Spain [antikvár]

4 Destination Spain Stretching sun-drenched and untamed to the south of the wild and majestic Pyrenees, this passionate nation works a mysterious magic on more than 50 million visitors a year, making it the world's second most popular destination after neighbouring France. Some clichés hold true. Spain is littered with hundreds of glittering beaches and beach lovers soak up pitchers of sangria over steaming paella (at its tasty best in Valencia). Flamenco bailaors (dancers) stamp and swirl in flounces of colour, while toreros flaunt their courage in the bullrings. Scratch this surface and a vast, unexpected panorama unfolds before you. It is extraordinary what splendours remain off the beaten track: the green hills and ocean coves of the north; proud, solitary castles and medieval towns across the interior; the white villages of Andalucía; and mountain ranges such as the Gredos and Sierra Nevada (Europe's southernmost ski resort). Few know that Spain has four official languages. Its regions differ vastly from one another but are held together by a national passion for drama, contrast and a noisy, live-for-today hedonism. If there is one thing all Spaniards love, it is to eat, drink and be merry, whether enjoying tapas over fine wine in Madrid and the south, or the elaborate Basque Country equivalent, pintxos, over cider in the north. A day hardly goes by without one town or another celebrating a fiesta. The country combines its superb artistic and natural heritage with an infectious, go-ahead dynamism. In its kitchens, stores and building sites, Spain's avant-garde chefs, designers and architects have unleashed a formidable wave of uninhibited innovation. So pack your bags and head out to see it all for yourself.