An Overview of Spain

I like Spain and the Spanish people. Spain is a very big country so it’s hard to know it well. But, since I live in a neighbour country, and Spain is our only land neighbour, I go there quite a lot, so I get to know it a little.
I do love Spain and its people, when I’m there I feel just like I do in Portugal. I speak the language well enough and I understand them quite well. So there are no problems there. Anyway, I believe that even if you can’t speak the language, you will have no problems in Spain. Almost everybody speaks English, and even if you don’t speak English or Spanish, if you try to express yourself somehow, people will be helpful enough. Spanish people are welcoming and nice.

Spanish people are good drivers, generally speaking, of course. They don’t drive too fast and they follow the rules. They aren’t as polite as the British, but, from all the countries I drove in, they are the second best. Their roads do help. There are free highways in almost all of the Spanish territory.

I like the food and it is quite cheap. Spanish make good chicken dishes and, of course, paella and tortilla. The starters with great smoked ham and those wonderful cheeses, are absolutely divine. I also enjoy their “tapas” very much, but those are quite expensive in most places (this is for a full meal, if you are just looking to have a taste of it, the price is good enough). Tapas are a very small amount of food, so it's advised to eat several sorts of tapas and that makes an entire meal a lot more expensive, and not as satisfying as a “normal” meal. They also have good wine and bad coffee.

The northern part of Spain is clean enough, but if you go towards the south it becomes shamelessly dirty. I hate to write this but I have to be honest. In southern Spain, although you find very beautiful towns, the charm is lost when you smell urine on the streets; you see sputum on the floor and all kinds of garbage. I remember stopping my child from going to a playground in Sevilla because it was incredibly filthy. The little towns are not as bad but, if you go there, be prepared. The country is very beautiful and this aspect is a real shame. I really hope they manage to improve it in the future.

Supermarkets are not very expensive. Petrol is cheaper than in most countries of Europe. As I said before, eating in a restaurant is pretty cheap and the food is good. Hotels are generally affordable and with very good rooms. Spain is one of the more affordable countries in Western Europe where you can go on holidays.

As I mentioned before, it’s a pity that the south is so dirty. But the country is very beautiful. They have amazing architecture, some great cities, towns and villages and also a very beautiful landscape (specially in the northern part or Spain). One of the greatest attractions of Spain is its beaches. The Mediterranean Sea is a great place to bathe and swim among the fish.

It’s a good country to spend some very relaxing, and affordable, holidays. And I hope to write some more about it in future hubs.