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Alicante
Alicante is the capital city of the Alicante province in the Autonomous region of the Valencian Community. Alicante is the 5th most populated province in Spain with its population of over 1,700,000 people; the city of Alicante is home to about 320,000 of those inhabitants. Alicante, like the rest of the province, has 2 official languages: Castellano (or traditional Spanish) and Valenciano, although the majority of people speak traditional Spanish.
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Barcelona
Barcelona, Spain’s second largest city, is located in the autonomous region of Catalonia. It sits on the northeast coast of the peninsula, normally called Costa Brava. Barcelona is the capital of the province (which shares its name) as well as of Catalonia. The population of the city is about 3,200,000. A unique fact about Barcelona is the language; Catalan, also a Romantic language, is widely spoken throughout the Catalonian region. Barcelona is one of the country’s main economic centers, partly due to it being home to one of the Mediterranean’s most major ports.
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Gran Canaria (Canary Islands)
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is the capital of the Gran Canaria island and of Las Palmas province, which makes up part of the whole Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain. The Canary Islands are an archipelago of seven major islands (separated into two provinces) in the Atlantic Ocean. They are situated just west of Africa and to the south of Spain. The entire Gran Canaria island has a population of over 802,000; almost 379,000 of those inhabitants live in the capital. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is the biggest city of all in the Canary Islands.
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Leon
Leon, capital of the northern province of the same name, is of ideal size for a student with an urban population of around 200,000. This medieval city represents an excellent setting for a complete linguistic-cultural immersion experience. While the city is an important center of cultural tourism, its permanent foreign population is minimal, giving the foreign student plenty of opportunities to practice Spanish in daily life.
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Madrid
Madrid is Spain’s capital and largest city; it’s located in the center of the country making it a linking point with all other places in Spain. Madrid is regarded as a major city in the world due to its economic, political and cultural assets. Madrid is also recognized as the financial capital of the entire Iberian Peninsula; it’s also home to three of the world’s 100 largest companies.
As the capital of Spain, Madrid is the home of the Royal family and the seat of the national government.
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Malaga
Malaga, although not the capital of the region of Andalucía, is often referred to as the capital of Costa del Sol (Sunny Coast). Málaga is the largest coastal city in the South, with over 600,000 inhabitants and over 1 million living within the metropolitan area. Málaga enjoys the Mediterranean climate with around 320 sunny days annually. The sea being so close by helps control the hot summer days and the temperature in the winter doesn’t drop too much below 13ºC (55ºF) because the mountains protect the city.
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Salamanca
Salamanca is located in the province of Castilla y León, in the mid-western part of Spain. The city’s population is around 180,000 and although it is a smaller setting, Salamanca has much to offer like a bigger city.
Salamanca is renowned for being the home to the oldest university in all of Spain; it’s also among one of the oldest in Europe. This quaint city gets a lot of its modern culture and atmosphere from the University. When courses are in session, the streets are full of students and there are plenty of different cultural, exciting activities going on. Salamanca is also known has being the home to, what some say, is the purest form of Spanish.
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Santiago de Compostela
The capital of Spanish region Galicia is Santiago de Compostela. The city is located in the province of A Coruña and it is most famously known for being the home of the remains of St. James the Apostle. The population of Santiago is recorded to be about 93,000 inhabitants, but truer estimation would be closer to 130,000, including all the university students.
Besides being the burial grounds of St. James, Santiago is also the last stop of pilgrimage route, Camino de Santiago. The city was declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage site and the fame of this medieval trek brings in thousands of tourists to the city each year. Santiago is steeped with a deep history, the Camino de Santiago; among several other important cultural and historical aspects make the city one of Spain’s most monumental cities. Adding the lifestyle and atmosphere that the university brings in, Santiago is a very multi-faceted culture to live and study in
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Valladolid
The capital of Valladolid province in the Castile-Leon region, Valladolid is a medium-sized city of around 320,000 inhabitants two hours to Madrid’s northwest. The city’s nucleus consists of a historic district, while its focus on industry over tourism has shaped Valladolid’s present-day modern appearance.
The city is characterized by an intense cultural life that has always been closely tied to its university. Along with the advantages of modernity, Valladolid offers a significant cultural legacy of monuments, museums, gastronomy and history.
The heart of Valladolid’s old quarters is the 13th century main square (Plaza Mayor). Numerous historical buildings such as the Royal Palace, City Hall and the city’s museum surround the square, which stands as a fine example of Spanish Baroque art and is said to be the first main square of its kind in Spain (the famous city squares in Madrid and Salamanca used Valladolid’s Plaza Mayor as a model).
