Here's a quick guide to Spanish dance, complete with phrases and vocabulary to practice at the end of the article, as it was published in the Costa Blanca News. (And as you see from the photo, our Seville partner school does indeed offer a Spanish & Flamenco course. Tempting?)

¡Mira Quién Baila! – A Guide to Spanish Dance

The recent success of reality TV shows such as Strictly Come Dancing in Britain and ¡Mira Quién Baila! in Spain has sparked a dance revival. More people than ever are interested in learning to tango and salsa and what better place to do so than here in Spain where many of the dances originated! Dancing is an excellent form of exercise and a very social past-time too but with so many seemingly similar dances to choose from, where do you start? Here is a guide to some of the more famous Spanish dances…

Flamenco

It is generally agreed that flamenco originated in Andalusía however it is unknown who actually created the dance. It is thought that flamenco was influenced above all by..    more »

Another of the "Living in Spain" pieces we've published in English language media, this article introduces you to the diversity of Spain's 17 regions, by offering a look at Andalucía, Cataluña, El País Vasco and Galicia. We've included phrases and vocabulary to learn at the end of the article. Enjoy!

Las Regiones de España – Spanish Regions

Flamboyant fiestas, noisy tapas bars, flamenco dancing, blue skies and a glistening green sea are just some of the images traditionally conjured up at the mention of Spain. There is no wonder that some 400,000 foreign nationals have taken up residence in the south and some 55 million tourists flock to the country each year. However, while these sunny notions of  Spain are accurate there is a whole lot more to be discovered! There is not enough space here to justify Spain's enormous diversity but this is a brief guide to some of its most famous and distinctive regions.   more »

This article was prepared for the English language press in Spain by a don Quijote intern from the UK earlier this year. Some of the fiesta dates mentioned in the article have passed now, for 2007....so we've included links to handy sites where you can always find an upcoming Spanish fiesta...

A Guide to Fiestas and Public Holidays in Spain

The Spaniards' love of noise, colour, dressing up, and generally having a ball is indulged at regular periods throughout the year, thanks to a fixed calendar of public holidays, ferias and fiestas which is strictly observed.

This concept may be a little strange to those of us used to Bank Holiday Mondays being days where the shops are open longer and DIY stores do big business or the sales starting on Boxing Day. However in Spain public holidays still mean exactly that, and, if you're not aware of them, they can catch you out. So write them in your diary and keep them free; nobody does fiesta better than the Spanish – and what better way to spend the day than joining in?!

Carnival, celebrated early in February, marked the kick off of Spain's fiesta calendar and, as Easter approaches, there's plenty more to come…

Here are 9 things to love about Salamanca, selected a couple of years ago by Christophe Rousseel, a Belgian student and writer who worked with don Quijote during his internship. Christophe spent at least 4 or 5 months here, enough to offer all sorts of advice about how to enjoy Salamanca - by day and by night:

9 things to love about Salamanca

1    Students

Nicknamed the Oxford of the Spanish world, the university of Salamanca boasts a student population of roughly 32000 Spanish students and some 6000 foreign students. There are even more students, since these figures don’t include the considerable number of Spanish learners attending private schools in Salamanca. The high concentration of Spanish and foreign students - there is one student for every 3 or 4 Salmantinos - bestows a unique atmosphere on the small city.

2   Nightlife

Insiders will tell you that Salamanca nightlife can rival any other city in Spain. Or as they say here: Salamanca por la noche, como ninguna. Perhaps it’s not as trendy as Barcelona or as acclaimed as Ibiza but Salamanca at night is custom-made for students. Prices are adapted to student budgets; 5 Euro for an open bar is no exception. The city is easy to get around: you can get anywhere on foot. It is also a lot safer than the bigger party capitals. And last but not least, nightlife is not at all limited to the weekends; you can go out seven days per week (although I advise against it).
Notwithstanding the fact that it’s a small city, Salamanca offers a plethora of bars and clubs: progressive, laid-back bars like Birdland on Plaza de España (named after the landmark jazz club in New York) or Clave del Ocho (near Gran Vía), cosy sidewalk cafés for a quiet talk (like Erasmus on Rua Antigua), crowded discotheques like    more »