Chapter 3
High-wheeled vineyard carts decorated with vines and flowers are pulled, by sturdy oxen, out of every vineyard in the countryside, carrying all the pretty girls who work there and a basket of new grapes. The carts wind through the streets to the Cathedral, where the grapes are blessed and all the people pray and give thanks for a good harvest. Then, in the square in front of the Cathedral, a great flock of pigeons is loosed into the air. These are homing pigeons, and they fly back to their homes in every part of Spain, carrying the message that the harvest is about to begin. There's dancing in the streets all night, and the next day there are bullfights, races and more dancing. Then the people all go to work to harvest the grapes.
On Spanish holidays, there is plenty to eat and drink. For visitors, eating is fun even on any ordinary day. If you were to travel from region to region in Spain, you would notice that people eat different foods in different places. Along the seacoasts, of course, they eat many kinds of fish. In the north, one of the favorite seafood dishes is made of codfish cooked in a delicious sauce of red and green peppers flavored with garlic. In Valencia you would eat "paella" made of many kinds of shellfish, chicken, ham and rice flavored with saffron, a yellow spice which grows in Spain. Paella is made in a big round iron pan over a charcoal fire, and the little clams, shrimps, pieces of chicken and everything else that makes it good are tossed in, a handful at a time, until the whole dish is ready to be served, right from the pan it was cooked in.
Most families have a big lunch, at about 2 o'clock. If the weather is cool, this is very likely to be a pot of stew, or "cocido." Depending on what part of the country you are in, this cocido might be made of fish, lamb, beef or chicken. Whatever the meat or fish may be, the cocido also includes all the vegetables that grow in the garden at that time of year. It's apt to be flavored with garlic, sweet Spanish red peppers, and perhaps several spoonfuls of sherry wine.
In the hot summer weather in Andalusia, people eat a delicious cold soup as their main dish at lunch, and sometimes at dinner too. This soup is called _gazpacho_, and it is made with Spanish olive oil, vinegar, tomato juice and ice water. Very fine bread crumbs help make it thick, and little pieces of fresh, cold tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, olives and onions float on top.
Everybody in Spain eats a great many "churros." Churros are something like doughnuts, but they are twisted into odd shapes and fried in olive oil until they are crisp all the way through, not just on the outside. They are very fine for breakfast with hot chocolate, and they are also good with sugar sprinkled on them as a between-meals snack. Another snack is almonds, grown right in Spain, and shrimp the size of your little finger.
Some of the foods the Spanish children eat are the same ones their great-great-great-grandfathers and mothers ate, too. Mostly, the houses where they live are also very old--as old as the holiday customs that haven't changed in hundreds of years. These old ways and scenes are some of the reasons Spain has been called "the land where time stands still."
Only just now is this old Spain about to become modern Spain. New roads, railroads and airfields are being built to help people get around the country faster and to send food from farms and seacoasts to markets in a hurry. All over Spain you hear the sound of hammers and chisels, busily building a new life for the people.
Spain has joined the United Nations and Spanish boys and girls are eager to join all boys and girls who want their countries to be partners in progress. If, in getting to know Spain, you have learned to like it, perhaps you'll want to say "hello" and "good luck" to your Spanish friends. Here is how to say it: "Saludos, amigos!"
History
Before 200 B.C.--Earliest people lived in caves in northern Spain; were conquered by Iberians, then Celts. Phoenicians and Greeks came, and finally all were conquered by Carthaginians.
201 B.C.--Romans conquered Carthaginians, began a rule lasting more than 500 years.
406 A.D.--Barbarians, especially Visigoths, came into Spain from central Europe and eventually drove out the Romans.
711 A.D.--The Moors came from North Africa and conquered all Spain in less than 10 years. Although the Christian Spaniards started fighting almost immediately for the "Reconquest" of Spain, the Moors were masters for almost 800 years.
January 2, 1492--The Reconquest of Spain was completed when the armies of Ferdinand and Isabella drove the Moors out of the Alhambra in Granada, their last stronghold.
August, 1492--Columbus sailed with his three ships from Palos in an effort to reach the Far East by sailing west; on October 12, he made his first landfall in the New World and claimed it for Spain.
1492-1588--The Golden Age of Spain. Columbus discovered more lands in the New World, and Conquistadores planted the Spanish flag all through North and South America. Spain controlled most of Europe. It was a time of great artists and writers like Velasquez, El Greco, Murillo, Lope de Vega and Cervantes.
1588--Spain's great naval Armada was defeated by England and the power of Spain began to decline throughout the world. Last overseas possessions were lost at the end of the Spanish-American War in 1898.
1931--King Alfonso XIII abdicated from his throne, went into exile; Spain became a republic.
1936-1939--The Spanish Civil War. Nationalists led by General Francisco Franco won the war and the General became Chief of State.
1947--The Law of Succession was adopted by Spanish Parliament, providing for a future King and new Spanish monarchy; this law altered in 1956 so that the monarchy may be established sooner than originally planned.
1953--American aid program began; airfields, pipelines and other construction projects using American money and American builders help Spain develop a defense network and natural resources.
1956--Spain admitted to the United Nations.
Index
Alhambra, 37-40
Andalusia, 26-27, 37, 55, 57, 60
Aragon, 32
Armada, 20
Asturias, 25
Avila, 34
Balearic Islands, 20
Barcelona, 30
Basque, 33
Bulls & bullfighting, 26, 45-46, 51-52, 56, 58
Burros, 14, 24
Canary Islands, 20
Castile, 34-36
Castles, 34-35
Catalonia, 29, 30
Cave drawings, 15
Christmas, 52-53
Church, 15-16, 46, 49-50
Civil War, 21, 46
Columbus, Christopher, 7, 8, 18
Conquistadores, 19, 20, 28
Donkeys, 14, 24, 32
Don Quixote, 42-44
Elche, 54
El Escorial, 35
El Greco, 41-42
Extremadura, 28
Festivals, 31, 56-58
Fiestas, 50-52
Flamenco, 40
Food, 52, 53, 58-61
Franco, Francisco, 21
Galicia, 25
Games, 45
Geography, 11, 12, 25-36
Gibraltar, 12
Granada, 19, 37-40
Gypsies, 27, 40, 56
History, 7-8, 15-21
Holy Week, 54-55
Iberians, 11, 15, 32
Isabella, 7, 8, 17, 19, 20
Jai alai, 33-34, 45
Jerez, 56
León, 28
Lions, 38
Madrid, 36-37, 42
Moors, 16, 17, 27, 31, 32, 37-40, 41-42, 55
Murcia, 29, 32
Navarre, 32
Palos, 8
Paradores, 35
Paseo, 44, 49, 51
Prado Museum, 42
Pyrenees, 11, 32
Regions, 12, 13, 24-36, 58
Romans, 15, 16
Saints, 50-51, 55
Schools, 44, 45, 46-48
Segovia, 16
Seville, 55-57
Shepherds, 9, 33, 44
Siesta, 36-37
Three Kings Day, 53
Toledo, 37, 40-42
Valencia, 29, 30, 31, 52, 60
Sources
In preparing this book, the author drew upon her own experience in Spain as well as historical and other information supplied by official Spanish sources both in Spain and the U.S.
Teachers may obtain additional information from Library of Congress, Washington, D. C.; Hispanic American Society, Inc. 80 Wall Street, N. Y.; Hispanic Institute, 435 West 117th Street, N. Y.; Hispanic Society of America (Museum and Library), Broadway between 155 and 156 Streets, N. Y.; Iberia Air Lines of Spain, 339 Madison Avenue, N. Y.; Spanish Embassy, Washington, D. C. (Commercial Office and Office of Cultural Relations); Spanish State Tourist Department, 485 Madison Avenue, N. Y.
THE GETTING TO KNOW BOOKS
COVER TODAY'S WORLD
_Africa_
GETTING TO KNOW AFRICA'S FRENCH COMMUNITY
GETTING TO KNOW ALGERIA
GETTING TO KNOW THE CONGO RIVER
GETTING TO KNOW EGYPT
GETTING TO KNOW KENYA
GETTING TO KNOW LIBERIA
GETTING TO KNOW NIGERIA
GETTING TO KNOW THE SAHARA
GETTING TO KNOW SOUTH AFRICA
GETTING TO KNOW RHODESIA, ZAMBIA AND MALAWI
GETTING TO KNOW TANZANIA
_Arctic_
GETTING TO KNOW THE ARCTIC
_Asia_
GETTING TO KNOW BURMA
GETTING TO KNOW THE CENTRAL HIMALAYAS
GETTING TO KNOW HONG KONG
GETTING TO KNOW INDIA
GETTING TO KNOW JAPAN
GETTING TO KNOW THE NORTHERN HIMALAYAS
GETTING TO KNOW PAKISTAN
GETTING TO KNOW THE RIVER GANGES
GETTING TO KNOW THAILAND
GETTING TO KNOW THE TWO CHINAS
GETTING TO KNOW THE TWO KOREAS
GETTING TO KNOW THE TWO VIETNAMS
_Caribbean and Central America_
GETTING TO KNOW THE BRITISH WEST INDIES
GETTING TO KNOW COSTA RICA, EL SALVADOR AND NICARAGUA
GETTING TO KNOW CUBA
GETTING TO KNOW GUATEMALA AND THE TWO HONDURAS
GETTING TO KNOW MEXICO
GETTING TO KNOW PANAMA
GETTING TO KNOW PUERTO RICO
GETTING TO KNOW THE VIRGIN ISLANDS
_Europe; East and West_
GETTING TO KNOW EASTERN EUROPE
GETTING TO KNOW ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, IRELAND AND WALES
GETTING TO KNOW FRANCE
GETTING TO KNOW GREECE
GETTING TO KNOW ITALY
GETTING TO KNOW POLAND
GETTING TO KNOW SCANDINAVIA
GETTING TO KNOW SPAIN
GETTING TO KNOW SWITZERLAND
GETTING TO KNOW THE SOVIET UNION
GETTING TO KNOW THE TWO GERMANYS
_Middle East_
GETTING TO KNOW IRAN-IRAQ
GETTING TO KNOW ISRAEL
GETTING TO KNOW LEBANON
GETTING TO KNOW SAUDI ARABIA
GETTING TO KNOW THE TIGRIS AND EUPHRATES RIVERS
GETTING TO KNOW TURKEY
_North America_
GETTING TO KNOW ALASKA
GETTING TO KNOW AMERICAN INDIANS TODAY
GETTING TO KNOW CANADA
GETTING TO KNOW THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER
GETTING TO KNOW THE U.S.A.
_Pacific_
GETTING TO KNOW AUSTRALIA
GETTING TO KNOW HAWAII
GETTING TO KNOW INDONESIA
GETTING TO KNOW MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE
GETTING TO KNOW THE PHILIPPINES
GETTING TO KNOW THE SOUTH PACIFIC
_South America_
GETTING TO KNOW ARGENTINA
GETTING TO KNOW BRAZIL
GETTING TO KNOW CHILE
GETTING TO KNOW COLOMBIA
GETTING TO KNOW PERU
GETTING TO KNOW THE RIVER AMAZON
GETTING TO KNOW VENEZUELA
_United Nations Agencies_
GETTING TO KNOW F.A.O.
GETTING TO KNOW THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
GETTING TO KNOW UNESCO
GETTING TO KNOW UNICEF
GETTING TO KNOW THE UNITED NATIONS PEACE FORCES
GETTING TO KNOW WHO
GETTING TO KNOW WMO