Post by Blacky on Jan 2, 2011 3:03:02 GMT -5
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands (Catalan and official:[1] Illes Balears IPA: [ˈiʎəz βəɫəˈa(ɾ)s]; Spanish: Islas Baleares IPA: [ˈizlaz βaleˈaɾes]) are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.
The four largest islands are (from largest to smallest): Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain, of which the capital city is Palma. The co-official languages in the Balearic Islands are Spanish and Catalan (i.e. Mallorquí, Menorquí and Eivissenc, as Catalan is known by its speakers in this territory).
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands are a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish Autonomous Community and an Outermost Region of the European Union. The islands include (from largest to smallest): Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Grand Canary, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, El Hierro, and the islets La Graciosa, Alegranza and Montaña Clara.
The archipelago's beaches, climate and important natural attractions, especially Teide National Park and Mount Teide (the third largest volcano in the world), make it a major tourist destination, with over 12 million visitors per year, especially Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote. The islands have a sub-tropical climate, with long hot days in summer and cooler days in winter.
The capital for the Autonomous Community is shared by the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria,which in turn are the capitals of the provinces of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas. Until 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the only capital. The third largest city of the Canary Islands is San Cristóbal de La Laguna (a World Heritage Site) on the island of Tenerife.
During the times of the Spanish Empire the Canaries were the main stopover for Spanish galleons on their way to America because of the favorable easterly winds.
Canary Islands sub-boards
Tenerife
Tenerife (pronounced /tɛnəˈriːf/, Spanish: [teneˈɾife]) is the largest and most populous of the seven Canary Islands with a land area of 2,034.38 km2 (785.47 mi2) and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the most of any Canary Island.[1] Tenerife hosts one of the world's largest carnivals and the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife is attempting to become a World Heritage Site. Tenerife is serviced by two airports, Tenerife North Airport and Tenerife South Airport, and is the tourism and economic center of the archipelago.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of the island and the seat of the island council (cabildo insular). The city is capital of the autonomous community of Canary Islands (shared with Las Palmas), sharing governmental institutions such as Presidency and ministries. Between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands, until in 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, as it remains as at present.
The island is home to the University of La Laguna, which was founded in 1792 and is the oldest university in the Canaries. San Cristóbal de La Laguna (World Heritage Site) is the second city of the island and the third one of the archipelago. The city of La Laguna was also capital of the Canary Islands until Santa Cruz replaced it in 1833.
Tenerife also has the highest elevation of Spain, a World Heritage Site that is the third largest volcano in the world from its base, El Teide.[8] The island's capital contains the architectural symbol of the Canary Islands, the modern Auditorio de Tenerife.
Fuerteventura
Fuerteventura a Spanish island, is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. It is situated at 28°20' north, 14°00' west. At 1,660 km² it is the second largest of the Canary Islands, after Tenerife.
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria is an island of the Canary Islands. Located in the Atlantic Ocean about 150 kilometers (~93 miles) off the northwestern coast of Africa and about 1350 km (~838 miles) from Europe.[1] Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands after Tenerife, and the third largest in area after Tenerife and Fuerteventura.
Lanzarote
Lanzarote a Spanish island, is the easternmost of the autonomous Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 km off the coast of Africa and 1,000 km from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering 845.9 km2, it stands as the fourth largest of the islands. The first recorded name for the island, given by Angelino Dulcert, was Insula de Lanzarotus Marocelus, after the Genoese navigator Lancelotto Malocello, from which the modern name is derived. The island's name in the native language was Titerro(y)gatra, which may mean "the red mountains".
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the westernmost region of Europe, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity — the region lying in the Western part of Europe. Another definition was created during the Cold War and used to describe the non-Communist states of Europe that were allied with the United States to some degree. For this purpose the Western European Union, a defence agreement among Western European nations during the Cold War, was created in 1948. As a result, geographically central and eastern countries that steered clear of Soviet influence during the Cold War are usually included, while western members of the former Eastern Bloc (with the exception of Eastern Germany) are excluded.
European Union
The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 member states which are located primarily in Europe.[7] The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC) formed by six countries in the 1950s. In the intervening years the EU has grown, in size, by the accession of new member states and, in power, by the addition of policy areas to its remit. The Maastricht Treaty established the European Union under its current name in 1993.[8] The last amendment to the constitutional basis of the EU, the Treaty of Lisbon, came into force in 2009.
The Balearic Islands (Catalan and official:[1] Illes Balears IPA: [ˈiʎəz βəɫəˈa(ɾ)s]; Spanish: Islas Baleares IPA: [ˈizlaz βaleˈaɾes]) are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.
The four largest islands are (from largest to smallest): Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza, and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain, of which the capital city is Palma. The co-official languages in the Balearic Islands are Spanish and Catalan (i.e. Mallorquí, Menorquí and Eivissenc, as Catalan is known by its speakers in this territory).
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands are a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish Autonomous Community and an Outermost Region of the European Union. The islands include (from largest to smallest): Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Grand Canary, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, El Hierro, and the islets La Graciosa, Alegranza and Montaña Clara.
The archipelago's beaches, climate and important natural attractions, especially Teide National Park and Mount Teide (the third largest volcano in the world), make it a major tourist destination, with over 12 million visitors per year, especially Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote. The islands have a sub-tropical climate, with long hot days in summer and cooler days in winter.
The capital for the Autonomous Community is shared by the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria,which in turn are the capitals of the provinces of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas. Until 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the only capital. The third largest city of the Canary Islands is San Cristóbal de La Laguna (a World Heritage Site) on the island of Tenerife.
During the times of the Spanish Empire the Canaries were the main stopover for Spanish galleons on their way to America because of the favorable easterly winds.
Canary Islands sub-boards
Tenerife
Tenerife (pronounced /tɛnəˈriːf/, Spanish: [teneˈɾife]) is the largest and most populous of the seven Canary Islands with a land area of 2,034.38 km2 (785.47 mi2) and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the most of any Canary Island.[1] Tenerife hosts one of the world's largest carnivals and the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife is attempting to become a World Heritage Site. Tenerife is serviced by two airports, Tenerife North Airport and Tenerife South Airport, and is the tourism and economic center of the archipelago.
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital of the island and the seat of the island council (cabildo insular). The city is capital of the autonomous community of Canary Islands (shared with Las Palmas), sharing governmental institutions such as Presidency and ministries. Between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands, until in 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, as it remains as at present.
The island is home to the University of La Laguna, which was founded in 1792 and is the oldest university in the Canaries. San Cristóbal de La Laguna (World Heritage Site) is the second city of the island and the third one of the archipelago. The city of La Laguna was also capital of the Canary Islands until Santa Cruz replaced it in 1833.
Tenerife also has the highest elevation of Spain, a World Heritage Site that is the third largest volcano in the world from its base, El Teide.[8] The island's capital contains the architectural symbol of the Canary Islands, the modern Auditorio de Tenerife.
Fuerteventura
Fuerteventura a Spanish island, is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. It is situated at 28°20' north, 14°00' west. At 1,660 km² it is the second largest of the Canary Islands, after Tenerife.
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria is an island of the Canary Islands. Located in the Atlantic Ocean about 150 kilometers (~93 miles) off the northwestern coast of Africa and about 1350 km (~838 miles) from Europe.[1] Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands after Tenerife, and the third largest in area after Tenerife and Fuerteventura.
Lanzarote
Lanzarote a Spanish island, is the easternmost of the autonomous Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 km off the coast of Africa and 1,000 km from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering 845.9 km2, it stands as the fourth largest of the islands. The first recorded name for the island, given by Angelino Dulcert, was Insula de Lanzarotus Marocelus, after the Genoese navigator Lancelotto Malocello, from which the modern name is derived. The island's name in the native language was Titerro(y)gatra, which may mean "the red mountains".
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the westernmost region of Europe, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity — the region lying in the Western part of Europe. Another definition was created during the Cold War and used to describe the non-Communist states of Europe that were allied with the United States to some degree. For this purpose the Western European Union, a defence agreement among Western European nations during the Cold War, was created in 1948. As a result, geographically central and eastern countries that steered clear of Soviet influence during the Cold War are usually included, while western members of the former Eastern Bloc (with the exception of Eastern Germany) are excluded.
European Union
The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 member states which are located primarily in Europe.[7] The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC) formed by six countries in the 1950s. In the intervening years the EU has grown, in size, by the accession of new member states and, in power, by the addition of policy areas to its remit. The Maastricht Treaty established the European Union under its current name in 1993.[8] The last amendment to the constitutional basis of the EU, the Treaty of Lisbon, came into force in 2009.