Birdwatchers spotted in Costa Rica!

Every year thousands of Dutch people travel abroad in search of the most unusual, colorful and exotic birds. These people, better known as birders or Bird-Watchers are interested in observing and studying wild birds. One of the goals of birdwatchers is to spot as many birds as possible. This form of tourism is very popular these days and this is partly due to the growing awareness of sustainability and environmentally conscious living. Costa Rica then quickly comes to mind as a country that seems almost made for birders with over 850 species of birds! It is also one of the countries with the highest biodiversity and boasts many natural parks and breathtaking landscapes.

• There are many species of birds in Costa Rica thanks to the different ecosystems and climate zones in the country that have provided different habitats.
• The bird that has been declared a national bird and can bear this title with honor is the grays thrush, also called Yigüirro.
• Well-known national parks in Costa Rica are "Parque Nacional de Piedras Blancas," "Parque Nacional Corcovado" and "Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio.

That Costa Rica has high biodiversity is partly due to its geographical location between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and the two continents of North and South America. The country consists of a relatively small land area of 51,100 ^km2 of which 38% is forest and jungle. Of this again, more than 25% is protected area with many national parks and reserves. For many birdwatchers, this is paradise on earth because Costa Rica faces different ecosystems and climate zones. These differences in moisture and temperature have created different forests such as mangrove forests and tropical rainforests. These zones in turn have formed into different habitats and thus automatically attract different birds to Costa Rica.

Besides the bird species that live only in certain areas of Costa Rica, there are also more than 220 migratory birds in transit, wintering, resting or feeding themselves. These birds migrate mainly over the eastern side of Costa Rica. When the migratory birds come from long distances, this is considered by many to be the best time to visit Costa Rica.

Birds soaring gracefully and jauntily, almost weightless through the air and reaching far over the treetops. Every bird has something unique. For example, Costa Rica alone has more than 50 species of hummingbirds and 20 species of parrots. Some special birds that birders can spot with a little luck are the king vulture, harpy and black gooan. With their magnificent appearance and full plumage, these birds are among the species that represent and highlight Costa Rica as a unique birdwatching destination. Surely the most famous bird is the grays thrush, also known as the Yigüirro. This has been the national bird of Costa Rica since 1977. This bird gets its title from the song that resounds at the beginning of the rainy months during the breeding season between March and May. The grays thrush often appears in songs, stories and Costa Rican literature and symbolizes fertile ground. The bird has a clay-colored plumage and is unmistakable in the wilds of Costa Rica.

This wilderness is further home to many natural parks in Costa Rica where these birds and more can be admired in all their glory. One such park is "Parque Nacional de Piedras Blancas" and is located in southern Costa Rica on the Pacific Ocean. The park consists of mountains and rivers and is covered with a thick layer of evergreen forest where you will encounter other animals and plants extraordinaire besides birds. Besides the national park 'Piedras Blancas', there are other famous national parks such as 'Parque Nacional Corcovado' and 'Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio'. If you want to enjoy the birds here in peace then it is best to get up early to avoid any streams of tourists.

In short: plenty of birds in Costa Rica to spot! What makes Costa Rica special is not only the spotting of all these birds, but also the landscape in which these birds live and move is one out of thousands.

The US is a multi-lingual country with no official national language, a place where according to the 2011 census report, 20% of the people speak a language other than English at home.  In California that number is 44%. Orange County, located just south of LA, is California’s second most densely populated county, a place that reflects changing language trends across the country.

Legions of TV fans around the world recognize the sunny county from the Fox series The O.C. (2003-2007) which aired in over 50 countries and spawned an anxious flurry of copy shows during the mid 2010’s with promising titles such as The Real Housewives of Orange County, and Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County. Despite the excited use of the word “real”, the shows offered a decidedly un-diverse on-screen image of the county compared to statistics from the latest census report.

This year marks the 125^th anniversary of Orange County’s founding way back when a real estate boom in Southern California saw new towns established and communities expand all over the area. It had been covered by vast ranchlands just a few decades earlier. Towns continued growing, but no clearly defined urban center ever developed, and even today the county with over 3 million residents living inside a 790 square mile boundary still reflects its past as a region of many smaller communities that grew together over time within the shadows of Los Angeles. Famous attractions here include Disneyland and Huntington “Surf City USA” Beach.

Orange County is known as a place of staunchly conservative political views which ironically include anti-immigration attitudes; according to a report from the University of Southern California the county scored relatively high on a ranking that analyzed immigrant integration in terms of civic engagement, economic trajectory and other indicators. Despite the famous attitude, immigrants now make up 30% of the population, that’s nearly 1 million people, and as the population has diversified its political leanings have too. Over half of the children here have at least one parent who is from another country.

Half a million Asian American residents live in the county, a community that grew by 41% between 2000 and 2010, making it the third largest Asian American population in America. The county’s Little Saigon area is the largest Vietnamese community outside of Vietnam. Bangladeshi residents make up the county’s fastest growing community which grew by 118% during the same decade, followed by Fijans up 108%.

Nearly half of the residents speak a language other than English at home, and over half of these speak Spanish. Over 1 million residents are Latino. Spanish is nothing new here; the region had once belonged to the King of Spain and then to Mexico until 1848, when it was ceded to the US after the end of the Mexican War. California’s original constitution stipulated that “laws and provisions would be published in English and Spanish”. 

The OC Weekly recently published an informative and interactive albeit kind of confusing language map (there are a lot of different colors and if they’re shaded different they mean different things) of Orange County that shows the second most spoken languages in each of the county’s zip codes. The language that appears in most zip codes is unsurprisingly Spanish, followed by Vietnamese, followed by, perhaps most interestingly, English. English is the second most spoken language in 14 Orange County zip codes, and in some zip codes it’s even third behind Spanish and Vietnamese. In most of the zip codes in the county’s capital Santa Ana, over 80% of the residents speak Spanish as their primary language. Chinese, Korean, Persian, and Russian are also all on the map. 40,000 households speak Tagalog.

So how does all this reflect what’s happening in the rest of the country?

Languages in The US

According a 2013 US census report on language, eight languages including Russian and Persian more than doubled in usage nationwide between 1980 and 2010. Vietnamese increased by 599%. There were 24.9 million more Spanish speakers.  The report explained that “Fueled by both long-term historic immigration patterns and more recent ones, the country’s language diversity has increased over the past few decades”.

The numbers frighten some pro-English-only observers. Many say that the increase in rich language diversity compromises communication among Americans. The fears have inspired some of the most active to ban together to create citizens’ actions groups such as U.S. English, Inc. in attempts to assure the passage of English as the official language of the United States. 31 of the 50 states have amended their state constitutions to recognize English as the official language, California is one of them; if the hope was to discourage foreign language use there, the plan seems to be failing.  Ironically, amending the US constitution to define English only as the official national language could eliminate programs designed to help non-English speaking residents learn English, in other words English only initiatives could end up in a certain way promoting the use of other languages. Groups like The American Civil Liberties Union oppose establishing English as an official language, noting that these types of laws compromise the rights of non-English speaking communities. 

 Anyone thinking that legal measures need to be taken to preserve English use in America may also want to keep in mind conclusions from the latest US census report, which show that even as families increasingly speak languages other than English at home, the percentage of Americans who report that they speak English well has remained steady.

The debate over whether or not English should be somehow enforced as America’s only language goes back to the first few years of the country’s founding.

In 1780, during the middle of the American Revolution which sought independence from Britain, a time when the US was establishing itself as a nation, future president John Adams attempted to found an official English Academy but the idea was rejected as it was considered undemocratic.

As early as 1751, Benjamin Franklin complained about the Germans, wondering why “should Pennsylvania, founded by the English, become a colony of aliens, who will shortly be so numerous as to Germanize us instead of our anglifying them, and will never adopt our language or customs…” Needless to say, widespread use of German anywhere in the US was phased out pretty much on its own without much official legislation (I say much because there was actually some legislation: following World War I, some English-only laws were passed in the Midwest to keep people from speaking German, laws that the Supreme Court ruled as unconstitutional in 1923).

People have spoken a rich variety of languages in America since long before the drafting of the US constitution (according to Marriam-Webster, before 1492, people spoke over 300 languages north of Mexico). Places like Orange County suggest that language use will continue to diversify with or without laws attempting to guarantee the use of the language of the country America successfully gained independence from over 200 years ago. And that’s a closer look at the real Orange County, a closer look at the united languages of America.

For centuries, Valencia has managed to construct exceptional buildings that are a clear part of its history. Valencia is characterized by its mix of ancient and modern architecture that blends beautifully without losing its folklore. The city was really put on the map when the City of Arts and Sciences, ´Ciudad de las Artes y de las Ciencias´ was born. As such, Valencia is frequented by those who are interested and lovers of architecture. The Gothic building ´La Lonja de la Seda´, a 15th-century silk fair has even won a place on the World Heritage List. Now and in the future, Valencia will continue to pursue modern architecture. This will continue to change the image of Valencia and amaze people.

• Valencian architecture is best known for its mix of various architectural styles.
• Santiago Calatrava is an architect and engineer from Valencia. Much of his work is visible around the world. He draws inspiration from organic and human forms.
• The City of Arts and Sciences is one of Valencia's main tourist attractions.

Valencia 's architecture and growth is in constant flux. This is reflected in the wide variety of architectural styles. From the historic downtown to the hip cosmopolitan neighborhoods. Throughout the city are buildings of Modern, Romanesque, Gothic,- Renaissance, Baroque, and many other architectural styles. The city is a mix of modern and futuristic styles such as the Bioparc zoo and the Valencia street circuit; these are paragons of modern architecture. These styles blend seamlessly with the combination of classical architectural styles such as Valencia City Hall. The best way to see these designs is to explore the city on foot. This way you can easily find the hidden gems in Valencia's small streets as well.

Spanish architecture is extraordinarily rich and distinctive. Therefore, Spain is also home to a number of great and famous architects. After Gaudí, the designer of the ´Sagrada Familia, comes Valencian architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava, the creator of the city of arts and science in Valencia. Calatrava was born July 28, 1951, in Benimàmet, formerly a municipality now fully integrated as an urban part of Valencia. He began his career by studying architecture at the Technical University of Valencia. He then moved to Zurich where he studied civil engineering at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.

Calatrava first received international acclaim through the bridge ´Bac de Roda´ in Barcelona. This was part of the 1992 Olympic Games. His designs are visible and recognizable all over the world because of his contemporary style. A style inspired by organic and human forms whose materials are selected with extreme care.

Valencia's modern architecture is visible in all its glory in the city of arts and sciences. Here there is a gigantic cultural center for culture and science that today is one of Valencia 's most spectacular sights. It is home to six unique and eccentric buildings designed by Santiago Calatrava. Entirely dedicated to the arts and sciences, it also functions as a stimulus for visitors' minds. They can thus learn more about the various aspects associated with science in a fun way. For example, here stands the center for music and drama, better known as ´Palacio de las Artes´. A building 75 meters high and 40,000 square meters wide that houses four different spaces for opera, music, ballet, and theater performances. It was built in the year 2005. This striking building is characterized by the different staggered heights of the floors, which are reunited by an enclosure of two symmetrical concrete shells. In addition to the center for music and drama, it houses a science museum, the largest oceanographic park in Europe and much more. Today the City of Arts and Sciences is one of the most famous places in Valencia and is largely the sight of innovation in architecture in Valencia.

Ecuador, the land of the Incas and the equator. It is a country with a rich history and a thriving culture. With influences mainly from Hispanic cultures, Ecuador is vibrant and varied. Varied in culture, but also definitely in landscapes. Ecuador is the country with one of the greatest biodiversity and has much to offer.

• Ecuador is located in the middle of the equator and owes its name to that as well.
• It all started with the indigenous Indian tribes and the Incas.
• From Indians with colored ponchos to rumbling volcanoes, Ecuador has it all.

Spanish Word for "Equator"

Officially, the country is called: República del Ecuador (Republic of Ecuador). It got this special name due to the fact that it is located in the middle of the equator. This has given it not only a high temperature throughout the year, but also the name of the country. In fact, the Spanish translation of equator is ecuador. Ecuador is located in western South America and borders Colombia to the north and Peru to the east and south. As many as 14 different languages are spoken in the country, but only one is an official language; 94% of Ecuador's population speaks Spanish, with the rest speaking vernacular languages. Like any country, Ecuador has a number of major cities. The largest city is Guayaquil, however the capital is Quito. With its historic cities and rich Inca history, among other things, Ecuador is now on UNESCO's World Heritage List. The current presidential republic has left a great trail in world history.

Ecuador's history goes back to before the 15th century. The Incas were very important to Ecuador, but before they arrived, the country was filled with different Indian cultures. Most of the tribes words on the coast and in the highlands. The two most important tribes were the Quitus and the Caras. When the Incas settled in Ecuador in the 15th century, the empire expanded rapidly. The center of the Inca empire was Cuzco. In the 16th century, Ecuador was conquered by Spanish conquistadores and was a Spanish colony for about 300 years. The first city to become independent was Guayaquil, yet not all of Ecuador became independent immediately and for a short time the country remained part of the Republic of Greater Colombia. It wasn't until 1830 that Ecuador gained full independence when the Republic of Greater Colombia fell apart. From this time on, the country was very unstable and had many different leaders. Today it is a thriving, presidential republic.

The small but oh so versatile country of Ecuador has it all. From living volcanoes to beautiful waterfalls in the Amazon and from indigenous Indian tribes with colorful ponchos to colonial cities. Plus through-the-mountains-walking llamas and a jungle with monkeys. Ecuador has something for everyone and you will never be bored. The country can be divided into four zones: the Galapagos Islands (which are also part of Ecuador), the coast in the west, the Andes mountains in the middle of the country and the Amazon rainforest in the east.

Ecuador is one of the poorest countries in South America. As many as 45% of the population lives below the poverty line. In addition, there is high illiteracy, despite free and otherwise compulsory schooling for children aged 6 to 14. Because of poverty, children leave school early to go to work, a problem found in many poor countries. But despite the poverty, it is a beautiful country with very friendly and hospitable people. Ecuador also has some great things to offer tourists; besides the big cities of Guayaquil, Quito (capital) and Cuenca, the Sangay National Park and the special Galapagos Islands are very popular. Ecuador is vibrant and alive! Ecuador has it all!

Many American students spending November in Spain and experiencing the unfamiliar silence leading up to Thanksgiving Day will inevitably imagine with mouth-watering envy a distant place called home, where loved ones enshrouded in the warm coziness of company and the pleasant perfumes of piping hot pumpkin pie prepare to hunker over plates brimming with traditional turkey creations.

Just a reminder: the fourth Thursday of November is not a holiday in Spain. The second Monday of October (nod to you Canadian friends) isn’t either. Many Spaniards have heard of Thanksgiving traditions from watching American movies, many even erroneously believe the holiday commemorates American independence (you may have just as much to teach your Spanish friends about America as they have to teach you about Spain). 

Below you’ll find a quick round-up of ways to spend your Thanksgiving in Spain.

Those who absolutely need turkey on turkey day have several options. You could opt to put together your own Thanksgiving meal. Plan possibilities range from a full blown feast for an army of amigos to the more humble and intimate package of turkey cold cuts for one (a bittersweet bachelor or bachelorette’s take on a classic that could be more about inspired soul-searching than indulgent and self absorbed sulking.) How you spend your Thanksgiving may of course depend on your accommodation arrangements. If you’re staying in the home of a host family, you might raise a few eyebrows if for example you make your way into the family kitchen and toss a full-sized bird into their oven.

If you do go the do-it-yourself route, keep in mind that some traditional items aren’t so traditional in Spain, in other words, stuff like cranberry sauce and even the turkey itself might not prove so easy to find. If you’re in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, or some other cities, you could check the store Taste of America for specific turkey day fixins’. You could also try to order a whole turkey in advance at a butcher shop. A few years ago, the famous Spanish chef José Andrés began offering for purchase an authentic Thanksgiving turkey in a box. This pavo asado al estilo Americano comes complete with mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce and even the lesser-known “chestnut purée”. The meal takes about 30 minutes to prepare and it feeds 10.

If kitchen toil and trouble doesn’t interest you, a few America-themed restaurants also sometimes serve a traditional Thanksgiving meal (think Hard Rock Café).

Then again, you don’t necessarily need turkey and customary T-day trimmings to give thanks and have a great time with friends. In my opinion, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying a Thanksgiving paella. You could celebrate with friends at a tapas bar, switching up timeless turkey traditions for savory Spanish classics.

Finally, some recommend forgetting all about your home traditions, insisting that a full immersion experience involves embracing the new cultural heritage that surrounds you and leaving home traditions back home. It’s up to you. If you have a group of American friends, you’ll probably at the very least consider doing something together on Thanksgiving. Some would say that if you’re an American student in Spain and you have a group of American friends than you may not be getting the most out of your experience abroad, a valuable time for gaining personal insight into the local culture and practicing the language with new Spanish friends.

It is named after a Spanish place and it is huge. Picasso' s "Guernica" painting is considered a very impressive painting. There is a story behind it, as well as in it. The painting holds you and makes you feel what the painter is trying to convey. 'Guernica' is different.

• Picasso's painting makes a lot of sense to you. It not only tells the story behind it, but makes you feel it. 'Guernica' by Picasso has traveled a lot but now hangs in the 'Museo Reina Sofia' in Madrid.
• The story behind it is about a bombing during the Spanish Civil War. It was the first terror bombing in Europe where the fascists wanted to break the resistance of the Republicans in this way.
• The painting is not realistic and has many underlying thoughts. Picasso mainly wanted to express different feelings with this.
• Picasso's real name is Pablo Ruiz Picasso, but he became famous only by the name Picasso. He lived to be 91 years old.

Pablo Picasso created "Guernica" in 1937. The painting is a whopping 3.49 meters high and 7.76 wide and is made of oil paint, which Picasso used to create most of his paintings. 'Guernica' is considered the most controversial and impressive work of all Picasso's paintings. It is named after the Spanish town of Guernica in the Basque country (Basque: Gernika), where a bombing took place. This was the trigger and story for the painting.

During a major conflict in Spain (Spanish Civil War July 17, 1936 - April 1, 1939) between the Fascists and the Republicans, the Fascists sought to break their enemy's resistance through a series of bombings of the Basque town of Guernica. On April 26, 1937, one bomb was dropped by the German Luftwaffe close to the town's weekly market. People fled and took cover in shelters. When after a while everything was calm again, everyone came out to help the wounded and at that moment the entire squadron arrived to bomb Guernica. There was complete chaos and panic. Those who tried to flee through the fields were shot at by single-seater planes, shelters were not sheltered from the 250-kilogram bombs, and the bombing took no less than two and a half hours. All the panic and chaos of that day is reflected in Picasso's painting. And that is exactly what he wanted to achieve.

Pablo Picasso wanted to convey the feeling of the bombing, rather than just the image. The key words of the painting, as well as the bombing, are: panic, fear, death, sadness and, above all, chaos. It had to be felt when looking at the work. The surrealist painting consists of only black, white and gray to express the war and a background of lines and planes mixed together to emphasize the chaotic. The man with the broken sword represents a dead soldier and indicates death. The horse is the symbol of innocent casualties in war and shows how much fear there is at such a time. The mother with her dead child shows the grief for the victims of the war and the bombing, and the burning lamp at the top of the painting represents the explosions of the bombs.

Pablo Ruiz Picasso, that's the official name of the famous Picasso. So, according to the Spanish naming system, he had two surnames: Ruiz from his father and Picasso from his mother. Why he became famous only under the name Picasso is probably because at some point he started putting only this part of his name under his works. He was a painter, sculptor, graphic artist, draftsman and ceramicist. Pablo Ruiz Picasso had mistresses all his life, including alongside his wife or primary partner, and he has four children by three women. Picasso was one of Spain's best-known painters and left behind many works.

Spain is known for its vibrant nightlife until early in the morning. It starts later in the evening over dinner in a tapas bar or restaurant and then it's time for a drink. After that, the real party can begin until deep into the night! Of course, in Spain every occasion is considered a party!

Hotspots for going out

Spanish Fiestas

In Spain there are many holidays ´fiestas´ that are celebrated extensively. The Spanish fiestas are great fun to visit. Spaniards make a party out of everything, so when it is really festive you don't know what you are experiencing! There are many national holidays every year, but many cities or areas have their own. Spanish parties and fiestas are celebrated extensively in all cities and towns with lots of food and drink and often bands. There are also many traditional activities, depending on what holiday it is and what area. People are constantly outside and enjoying themselves together with their friends and family.

Before partying, of course, there must be food. Spaniards love to eat, and then eat a lot. They can dine for hours together, at home or somewhere in a restaurant and enjoy themselves with friends and family (make up something else for it, is also exactly the same in the paragraph above). One of the Spanish habits is to drink beer or wine with a meal. They also often drink sangria. When it is time to party, it is fun to first go to the shot bars "chupiterías" to start with shots of "chupitos" . After that, the clubs are visited until the early hours of the morning!

Hotspots for going out

There are many bars and pubs in Spain where you can spend the nights but of course there are also the real club lovers. Hence a small overview of the places with the best clubs.

The coastal towns that are very popular are: Lloret de Mar, Salou, Blanes, Malgrat de Mar. These places are full of tourists in summer, especially young people. They come to these areas to party every day and recover on the beach the next day. In summer it is full of parties with famous DJs. There are different styles in the clubs and bars so there is something for everyone.

The Spanish islands are also known for their clubs, especially the party island of Ibiza. Many international DJs come here every year. The chicest clubs are located here and it is more for people who have more money. Nevertheless, many young people also go there to party, some even for a few days. Of course, it is as expensive as you make it. Entrance and drinks in the clubs can be quite expensive and often there is a strict door policy. The island of Mallorca is super popular among young people for partying, and the Canary Islands also have many entertainment venues.

The big cities like Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia have many choices when it comes to going out. From small bars to mega big clubs with multiple halls or floors. If you take a city trip to one of these cities, it is definitely worth visiting a few clubs as well!

Spanish is a useful and fun language to learn, but who wants to take Spanish lessons in the Netherlands? These five locations will introduce you to a new environment and put the language to practical use.

Bolivia

Bolivia, the cheapest country in South America, is an adventurous option for mastering the fast-paced rhythms of the Spanish language. La Paz is not only the highest capital on the planet but also home to well-established Spanish schools.

Ecuador

This country may look small compared to its neighbors. Ecuador packs a wicked punch of culture, adventure and diversity. Spanish schools are thirteen in a dozen due to Ecuador's vibrant beachfront cities and large colonial towns.

Colombia

Where there was once a lot of cocaine dealing, there is now a phenomenal location to learn Spanish. The accent is not always easy to understand, but Spanish in Colombia has a unique sound. Many South Americans consider Colombian Spanish to be the most romantic form of Spanish in Latin America. Spanish schools are springing up like mushrooms all over the country. The country is slowly becoming a great destination for tourists because it is not as violent as it used to be. Don't be afraid of this country's reputation!

Guatemala

At the tail end of Mexio, Guatemala is one of the most beautiful regions in Central America. From ancient ruins of the Maya to oversized jungles leading up to the base of massive volcanoes, the country has amazing, diverse areas to explore. What makes the country even more appealing is that the Spanish dialect is very basic, slow and easy to understand. Adding to the fact that you do not have to be a linguistic expert to understand Spanish in Guatemala, it is also the cheapest country to learn the language. Three popular cities with great schools are San Pedro La Laguna, Antiqua and Quetzaltenango.

Learn Spanish in Spain 

Many people overlook Spain, even though Spain is a less expensive country in Western Europe. Schools to learn Spanish abound. While Spaniards use words and verb tenses exclusive to their country, it will absolutely give you the best background of the language.

Resources:
http://www.quito.com.ec/en/
http://www.zoover.nl/spanje
http://www.infoplease.com/country/guatemala.html

In the 16th century, Spain was the leader in fashion. Spanish clothing styles influenced the entire world and traditional dress was widely known for its elegance and decoration. As Habsburg Spain grew, Spanish fashions such as Spanish capes, vertugados and corsets became popular throughout Western Europe. Vertugados were bell-shaped hoop skirts made of boning, cloth and intricate constructions with thread under the woman's clothing. This style was cumbersome for Renaissance women, mainly because it took hours to get dressed as a woman.

Spanish traditional dress was heavily influenced by the Moorish culture, which dominated parts of the Iberian Peninsula from 711 to 1492. Moorish culture introduced the needle and with it popularized beautiful embroidery. They also popularized the use of jewelry (often as buttons), heavy perfume and necklaces. The color black became popular for special events and both men and women wore heavy gold necklaces with precious stones. In addition, Spanish clothing was often made of expensive and heavy fabrics and decorated with gold or silver threads.

Unfortunately, this Spanish fashion and associated clothing failed to evolve with the rapidly changing times. As a result, Spanish clothing became obsolete and gave way to French Dominance. Cities such as Paris were more innovative and began to take over the position as the leader of European fashion from the 17th century.

Today, Spanish fashion is very modern, but traditional Spanish clothing is still used for special occasions. Flamenco dancers still wear their typical Spanish dresses in red, black or white with their hair in a bun and a rose behind their ear. Male Flamenco dancers wear traditional costumes consisting of black or red shirts with classic pants. Nevertheless, clothing style in Flamenco is also subject to fashion trends.

Costumes of traditional Spanish bullfighters have also remained unchanged over the years. They are elaborate costumes inspired by flamboyant 18th-century Andalusian dress. Known as traje de luces ("costumes of light"), they are easily distinguished from others by the use of sequins, gold and silver threads and detailed embroidery.

In addition to Spanish costumes for special occasions, each region in Spain has its own traditional attire and Spanish dresses. They are not worn often, but you can often catch a glimpse of them during regional celebrations and parades.

Much of the traditional Spanish clothing is for special occasions and celebrations. The most common pieces still used today are: the mantilla, the peineta and the vest. The mantilla is a traditional Spanish veil often worn during religious celebrations and Spanish weddings. It is a light scarf made of lace or silk that is worn over the head and/or shoulders. The peineta is a large, decorative comb placed in the hair to hold the mantilla. It is a brownish comb with a special appearance and long pins to make the veil even higher. It is used on special occasions and originated centuries ago making it a traditional piece of Spanish clothing. The Spanish gilet comes from the Spanish word jileco, orchaleco in modern Spanish. It is a sleeveless coat and an important piece in traditional dress. In the 19th century, it was an embroidered bodice shaped like the body part of a coat, used for neat occasions. Today they are used for extra warmth outdoors.

Since Halloween is this week, I thought we could talk about those abandoned cities and towns that give us so much good storytelling material for this time of year. Ghost towns are present all over the world and in just about in every country. In the United States, there are famous places like Centralia, Pennsylvania (the inspiration for the Silent Hill videogame and movie), well preserved Bodie in California and numerous other spots in the west and Great Plains. Abandoned places in the UK are everywhere primarily due to the Black Plague while more recently others were abandoned during WWII like Tyneham and Langford.

In Spain there are also some very noteworthy towns where only some buildings, landmarks or vestiges of dwellings once were. In northern Spain, the County of Treviño forms a part of Castille and León. Due to agreements made in the Middle Ages between rival kings, this county is enveloped by the Basque province of Álava and is not physically connected to Castille and León. Due to the difficult geography of the area—rugged and irregular hills along with difficult farming conditions—Treviño has always been isolated from its neighbors like Álava, Burgos and La Rioja.

The Village of Ochate

However, in an area full of hamlets and half abandoned villages, there is one place that stands out—the village of Ochate. This abandoned village is known to have been inhabited since the Bronze Age thanks to discovery of flint and quartz tools in the fields nearby. There is also proof of Roman occupation since a funeral stele was discovered near a neighboring hermitage. Ochate's location, today remote and more off the beaten path than ever, was once positioned along a very transited road that connected Castille and León to what is known as the Route of Fish and Wine. This route got its name by being an important trade route between the fishing villages along the Bay of Biscay and the fertile fields and wine producing region of La Rioja.

Today, that route is nothing more than a hiking trail and with its decline, the enclave of Treviño also experienced depopulation which has dwindled the county's population down to 1461 inhabitants in 2011; a very small population for an area of 100 sq. miles or an area roughly the size of Sacramento, California. Vacío means empty in Spanish and this lack of populatoin coupled with an eerily remote region and unfriendly landscape combine to make this place very empty indeed and also an ideal location for a ghost town.

Through the middle ages to the 19^th century, Ochate was always a village on the edge; in fact it was previously abandoned at the end of the 13th century only to be revived again in the mid-1500s. Descriptions of the village from the second half of the 19^th century tell of a small and humble village populated with cattle farmers and laborers. The people here lived off of what they raised and they ate principally beef, beans, potatoes and cereals. Curiously, the ingenuity of the villagers for making the best of their situation were able benefit from their harsh  conditions by charging mushroom collectors a fee for foraging around their village. We know this thanks to the preservation of written contracts dating back to the 18^th century.

Why this village started to empty at the end of the 19^th century is still not entirely clear but illness, unfortunate weather and a murder all had a role to play. During this time there was sickness, especially the Spanish flu, which devastated the area and rain and hail that destroyed crops in successive years during the 1920s caused people to go search for a better place to live. In 1930 there remained only two families—one being a family of three and the other a single elderly man. Because a crazy pastor that frequented the village threatened pretty much everyone, the Aránguiz family decided to move to a safer village nearby. The elderly man, Eusebio, wasn't far behind. Their fears were later realized when the crazed shepherd brutally killed a fellow shepherd in one of the abandoned houses of Ochate in 1936.

The stories related to this towns cursed past began to surface in the 1970s and took off with the publication of an article in the magazine Mundo Desconocido, a monthly publication that dealt with the paranormal and extraterrestrial.   Within this article the telling of UFO sightings and persistent paranormal activity was uncovered as well as a telling of biblical plagues that affected this tiny hamlet through the years creating the basis for future misery and strange occurrences.

The story of a missing person from a neighboring village in Ochate in 1973 while on his way to plow his field along with farm animals mysteriously disappearing made the news around this time. Also there have been reports of lights that have been seen originating from the village at night and not just from the village. These lights have been found to originate from stone sarcophagi that are buried in the ground around the village that today lay empty and visible to the intrepid visitor.

Numerous other stories of happenings related to the supernatural have circulated among the curious. Iker Jimenez, the famous Spanish reporter of all things strange wrote:

I have to recognize that, with night having fallen over us, I was shaken to my bones when I heard those recorded voices (from Ochate) from January and June of 1987. The first was the scream of a little girl saying "Pandora!" Or maybe it was the voice that yelled "kampora" which in Basque means get out. This was voice was recorded inside of the bell tower and with total clarity that it was truly chilling. There was another voice recorded in the same place but higher up and has left in the air various questions. This last voice was that of a woman who in a lamentable and hoarse tone said: "Why is the door still open?"

Iker Jimenez,

Enigmas Sin Resolver I, Vol.I

It has been speculated that door refers to a door to other dimensions that the researcher, Alberto Fernandez, was trying to uncover. Unfortunately, and for reasons not explained, this researcher took his life on one of his visits to Ochate. The idea that this village is some kind of portal is also reinforced by the towns own name. In Basque, Otxate means Puerta de Lobos (The Wolves' Door) and Ochate means Puerta de Gog (The Door of Gog), Gog being a biblical figure associated with the powers of evil in the Book of Revelations.

There have been numerous groups of researches coming to Ochate over the last 40 years trying to unravel the mystery surrounding the once humble-turned-cursed village. One thing for sure is that this is a place with many stories to tell all within a region that is only 10 miles from Vitoria, the capital of Spanish Basque country, yet a world away. If you want to visit Ochate, you will need some good walking shoes since this village doesn't have access by road. You can park in the nearby village of Imíruri and walk a little more than a mile to the remains of Ochate. There you will find the remains of the church and the foundations and some remaining walls of what were once the houses and barns of the people that lived here. There is also the remains of a hermitage on a bluff overlooking Ochate that is also worth a visit. But don't forget a flashlight and camera, just in case…

Why don't you tell us about your favorite ghost town?

Alberto Aragunde: Ochate. Un pueblo de leyenda desde el aire.