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Zaragoza

	Location Origins Historical buildings and monuments The artist Francisco de Goya The day of the Pilar The Jota The Aragón cuisine
Main Park in Zaragoza

Location

Zaragoza is a Roman town situated in the northeast of Spain in the region of Aragón, midway between Madrid and Barcelona. It is located on the fertile banks of the Río Ebro, a very rich area that gave a lot of pride to the Romans.

Origins

The city was a Roman settlement called CeasarAugusta and it is from this that Zaragoza takes its name.

Historical buildings and monuments

It has a very important and magnificent Cathedral called, the Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar known as well by "El Pilar". Some of the other historical buildings and monuments are the Cathedral La Seo; parts of the Roman walls near the Pilar square; the Camón Aznar Museum and the other two, Zaragoza Museum and Pablo Gargallo Museum. One of the most important monuments is The Alfajería Palace, Legacy of the Moorish architecture in Spain, built in the 11^th century. The architecture in Zaragoza demonstrated that this city was home of the three main religions of the west: Christians, Jews and Muslims.

The artist Francisco de Goya

Francisco de Goya, one of Spain's best-known artists of the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries, was born in Fuentetodos, a small village very near to Zaragoza. "El Pilar", the Camon Aznar Museum and the Provincial Museum of Fine Arts show his work (frescoes,drawings, portraits, etc.).          

The day of the Pilar

The main festivity of Zaragoza is on the 12 of October, "Día del Pilar" (the day of the Pilar), the city festivity in honour of its patroness the Virgin of the Pilar. It is also a very important day in the rest of Spain and Latin America, it is the day of the Hispanidad, a celebration of the 12 of October of 1942 when Colon discovered the Americans.

The Jota

The jota, Aragon's folk dance, is danced in the streets during this week festivity. There is also a spectacular and unusual display of flowers in honour to the Virgin outside "El Pilar".

The Aragón cuisine

Aragon cuisine is typically meats like lamb, which is very good quality and very tasty locally, and different types of cured sausage like chorizo and longaniza. One of Aragon's specialities is candied fruits (frutas escarchadas) covered with chocolate. The province of Zaragoza produces a good wine called Cariñena (red wine).

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