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Situation
Aragón occupe
47.720 km2 in the north-east corner
of Spain. Its population is
1.189.909 inhabitants (year 2000).
Aragón is multi-faceted,
both in its natural aspects (in
Aragon one goes from the green and
spectacular Pyrenees with peaks of
over 3,000 metres to the sub-desert
plains of the Ebro Valley just a few
metres above sea level, or the
gentle uplands of the Iberian System
in the west and south), and its
human aspects (in Aragon an urban
and cosmopolitan culture develops
side by side with a rural and folk
culture and three languages
peacefully coexist).
Aragón’s
multifaceted nature is also to be
found in the regions which make up
the province of Aragón, situated in
the West and centre, stretching from
the westernmost part of the
Aragonese Pyrenees to the
westernmost part of the Iberian
Sierra, and it is crossed from west
to east by the Ebro Valley, in the
centre of which is the city of
Zaragoza.
Communications
Zaragoza is the
capital of Aragón and it is a medium-sized
city in the European urban network
with which it is well connected and
from which the tourist can easily
find his way to any part of Aragón.
And so, for this reason, the regions
making up the province of Aragón are
easily accessible.
Zaragoza has a
recently extended airport situated 9
kms from the centre of the city,
which connects it with various
cities in Spain and Europe.
As far as rail
communications are concerned,
because of Zaragoza is geographical
situation, the city has always been
a the fundamental link in Spain's
railway network.
With regard to
road communications, we have here a
city which is a strong link in the
network, with a Motorway to Bilbao
and Barcelona along the Ebro Valley,
which crosses the province; the
Aragón Highway which links Zaragoza
to Madrid crossing the Iberian
Sierra and, in the future, the
Somport-Sagunto Highway (some
sections of which are already open)
which will link the city to
Valencia, also crossing the Iberian
Sierra, and the French road network
via the Aragonese Pyrenees. All this
makes travelling easy, whether by
private or public transport, the
demand for which is satisfied by the
large number of bus routes
connecting the city with almost all
cities in Spain and the most
important cities in Europe or North
Africa.
If the
communication networks are the veins
of a territory, we can safely say
that Zaragoza is a vital organ and a
meeting place of the highest order.
As well as air, rail and road
communications, cable and the mass
media (various local television
stations, one of which covers the
whole of Aragón, correspondents from
the most important newspapers, radio
stations and television channels in
Spain, a modern Press Centre)
complete the range of services that
the city can offer as far as
communication is concerned.
Accommodation
The
accommodation on offer in this
territory is based on quality and
diversity. Quality that is
crystallised in the high level of
professionalism and the long-standing
experience that one would expect
from a region that is a crossroads
and a meeting place, and diversity
because of the wide range of
establishments, from hotels that
have a long history behind them and
offer their guests the taste and
charm of traditional hotels, but
with the most up-to-date
infrastructure and services, to
establishments that offer their
customers advanced technology housed
in the latest architectural trends;
from five-star hotels to inns, from
spas to rural guesthouses. And all
this for competitive prices, based
on a matchless price-quality ratio.
Gastronomy
The range of
restaurants and gastronomy is one of
Aragón's strong points, backed up by
a long culinary tradition, jealously
maintained today, using products
which have traditionally originated
in the highlands and valleys of
Aragón (agricultural produce such as
the splendid Aragonese wines - the
Denominaciones de Origen of
Cariñena, Campo de Borja, Somontano
and Calatayud-, extra virgin olive
oil or peaches from Calanda, to
quote just a few examples; farm
products, such as the denominación
de origen ham from Teruel or the
denominación específica Aragón lamb,
all accompanied by splendid regional
baking). Together with local
products, the proximity of the
Cantabrian and Mediterranean Seas
has meant that products link to the
sea have been successfully
incorporated into traditional
Aragonese cuisine, as delicious and
varied as one would expect from an
open region like Aragón.
The basis of
traditional Aragonese cuisine is, as
in all European countries, bread in
its various forms (decorated as in
Codos, with candied fruit as in
Tosos or Albarracín), and it is also
the basis of some typical local
dishes (migas a la turolense, "roya"
soup, "bodela" from the Tena valley
or escaldada from Huesca).
At the same
level are the fruit and vegetables,
appreciated all through history as
borne out by mediaeval documents
that mention the onions from
Fuentes, garlic from Arándiga,
cauliflower from Tarazona, chard
from Muel, artichokes from Albalate
del Arzobispo, turnips from Mainar,
borage from the foothills of the
Moncayo, peppers from Montañana,
tomatoes from the banks of the
Gállego, asparagus from the banks of
the Ebro, grapes from wine-growing
districts and olives from Lower
Aragon. One vegetable that is almost
exclusive to Aragón is the borage,
of medicinal origin (its scientific
name is " borrago officinalis ") and
today is said to have medicinal
value in the prevention of cancer;
other vegetables used in Aragonese
cooking are mange-tout peas, chard,
broad beans in their pods, baby
chard and pumpkin.
Among varieties
of fruit that should be mentioned
are those that are grown near our
rivers (Jalón, Jiloca, Gállego,
Cinca and Ebro, mainly): peaches in
Lower Aragon, plums in the Lower
Reaches of the Ebro and Sariñena,
pears and apples in La Almunia de
Doña Godina, cherries from El Frasno,
apricots in El Burgo de Ebro, figs,
peaches and apples from Fraga, to
which should be added the mountain
fruits (strawberries, raspberries,
rovellones (an edible fungus), sloes
and truffles, as well as "peretas"
from San Juan).
As far as pulses
are concerned, they are the base of
traditional dishes such as the "recao"
from Binéfar, boliches from Embún
and the bean stew from Luco de
Jiloca.
Meat is also one
of the strong points of traditional
Aragonese cooking, fundamentally
lamb, with a great wealth of recipes
and dishes which use it as an
essential component (roast lamb all
over Aragón, braised shin or
"garronets" in Ribagorza and
"morteruelo" in Teruel).
As far as fish
is concerned, this is another
ingredient in traditional Aragonese
cooking, not just river fish (trout,
river crayfish) but also sea fish
which has all through history been
brought to Aragón, as shown by the
recipe books of the old Aragonese
Court containing an incredible
number of seafood dishes.
But the variety
on offer is not limited to providing
a range of traditional dishes; there
is a wide variety catering for all
tastes, from fast-food joints, to
French-inspired haute cuisine, not
forgetting seafood, vegetarian,
pizza, Spanish, European or South
American cooking, or restaurants
serving food from even more exotic
places. Together they make up a
broad harmony of flavours,
reflecting the cosmopolitan nature
of a city that boasts a highly
competitive and professional range
of restaurants.
This quality
cuisine is complemented by a mini-cuisine,
"tapas", veritable gastronomic
delights, a world of colours and
flavours which in the towns and
villages of Aragón stand out for
their quality and variety (from the
most simple to the most elaborate
creations), which means that going
on a "tapas crawl" will always be
considered a social activity in our
city.
Culture and
leisure
There are a
great many cultural and leisure
activities on offer: theatre seasons
(from classical to experimental
theatre; from works widely acclaimed
by theatre-lovers to those catering
for minority tastes); music, with a
broad musical programme of the
highest quality catering for
practically all musical tastes (from
opera to jazz, not forgetting pop,
folk or rock), and all this is
complemented by other activities
such as ballet or dance.
But the cultural
offer doesn't stop there, since the
region is extremely keen on the
cinema (the first cinematograph in
Spain was used in Zaragoza, and
Aragón was the birthplace of cine
pioneers such as Segundo de Chomón
and Luis Buñuel). This fondness for
the cinema is followed in the
commercial movie houses as well as
in the programmes laid on by
different organisations.
In addition, the
various regions offer photography
exhibitions, a great many museums,
either general or dealing with a
single topic; permanent or temporary
exhibitions, conventions,
conferences, courses, etc.
As far as
leisure activities are concerned, we
should not forget the nightlife in
our cities and towns, the
traditional, rural or urban
festivals, or the tradition of going
on a "tapas crawl" around our towns
and cities.
In view of the
increasingly greater attention given
to the environment, it should be
remembered that in this aspect, too,
our districts have much to offer,
given their geographical situation
and the large variety of landscapes,
microclimates and things to do that
the inquisitive tourist can find in
our region.
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