Spain is a country in Southern Europe. It is in the Iberian Peninsula. Spain has a coastline at the Atlantic Ocean in north and the Mediterranean Sea in south east. It is bordered by Andorra, France, Gibraltar (U.K.), Portugal, and Morocco (at the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla on the North African coast), it also shares maritime borders with Algeria and Italy. Spain has a population of 46.4 million people (in 2016), capital and largest city is Madrid, Spain’s second city is Barcelona, the capital city of Catalonia.
Portugal, one of the oldest countries in Europe, is located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula lying between Spain in the north and east, and the Atlantic Ocean in the south and west. The signs of the Portuguese presence around the world are still visible and this is the reason why Portuguese is one of the most spoken languages worldwide and the Portuguese are one of the peoples more open to other civilizations.
Spain, a country on Europe’s Iberian Peninsula, includes 17 autonomous regions with diverse geography and cultures. Capital city Madrid is home to the Royal Palace and Prado museum, housing works by European masters. Segovia has a medieval castle (the Alcázar) and an intact Roman aqueduct. Catalonia’s capital, Barcelona, is defined by Antoni Gaudí’s whimsical modernist landmarks like the Sagrada Família church. Spain is known for its food, Flamenco music and dance, bullfights, horses, arts and literature, architecture, a Moorish heritage, its islands, Mediterranean beaches, wines, fruits and vegetables, and football (soccer).
Despite being a relatively small country (516Km long and 218Km wide), the Portuguese natural heritage is extremely rich and diverse. The average altitude is low (240m), with the highest mountain range being the Serra da Estrela, in central Portugal. In the northwest, there are green fertile valleys and tree-covered mountains while vast areas of high plateaus predominate in the northeast. Along the western coast as far as Lisbon the topography is a mixture of lowlands and bays.
Its location on the Atlantic Ocean has influenced many aspects of its culture: salt cod and grilled sardines are national dishes, the Algarve's beaches are a major destination and much of the nation’s architecture dates to the 1500s–1800s, when Portugal had a powerful maritime empire.
