Spain

[Tim]

Why not?  Britain has had a Queen for nearly 70 years now, and she's doing an excellent job.

[ladyfiaran22]

Actually, I meant to say that the heir to the Spanish throne is Princess Leonor since the king and queen have two girls. Infanta is Princess and Infante is Prince

[Tim]

Ah, I see.  The word is no doubt Spanish for "infant".

[ladyfiaran22]

May 26, 2020 18:01:58 GMT -5 Tim said:

Ah, I see.  The word is no doubt Spanish for "infant".

Correcto, mi amigo Canadiense 😊 Spain never had a problem with women rulers, Isabella was more powerful than Ferdinand and had more supporters as ruler of Castile than her brother whom she overthrew. I speak Spanish as a second language and it comes in handy since there’s a lot of Latin American immigrants around here, also in educational settings. It’s also helped with learning French in college and reading stuff in Latin since Spanish and French are descendants of Latin.

[ladyfiaran22]

This is the heir to the Spanish throne Leonor, Infanta de Asturias: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonor,_Princess_of_Asturias
Infante or Infanta de Asturias is like being Prince or Princess of Wales, Asturias is a region in northern Spain that was never under Moorish control

[Tim]

Guess the Moors only got so far north.

[ladyfiaran22]

They only occupied northern Spain for a while since it was too poor and cold and the natives fought back, I suppose the Moors didn’t think it was worth their time. That’s why in southern Spain there’s a lot of Moorish buildings and a big North African influence, Andalusia in the south was the Moors’ headquarters and they stayed here until 1492 when Ferdinand and Isabella kicked them out.

[Tim]

Yeah, I guess they would find the north cold.  Since they came from Africa.

[ladyfiaran22]

Northern Spain is far from the tourist image of Spain, especially on the Bay of Biscay. The climate is cold and damp and the people are mostly Celtic, mostly around Galicia and Asturias in the northwest. My Dad’s family is from Galicia, it was a poor region and many Gallegos emigrated to Latin America. My last name Sosa is a common one in Galicia, it’s the Spanish version of the Portuguese name Sousa. Which is probably why I can’t stand hot weather, like to drink and get sunburned easily, I have Celtic genes 😊

[Tim]

Guess most people who don't know think all of Spain is a hot desert.

[Squad 51]

Spanish was nearly the world language but then England came and won over the Armada, and now we see the result.

[ladyfiaran22]

May 28, 2020 11:05:07 GMT -5 Tim said:

Guess most people who don't know think all of Spain is a hot desert.

Or a giant beach resort😊 But seriously, a lot of Northern Europeans go to Spain for vacation like Americans go to Florida, but with a more interesting culture.

[Tim]

Maybe I'll get over there myself.

After I win the lottery.

[Melinda Halliwell]

Oh yeah, Spains a cheap holiday destination I've heard with package deals including flights, hotel, and food in hotels costing £400 per person which is why compared to other countries people vacation there getting more their money then.

My friend paid around that price when he visited Barcelona although he didn't have food included because he preferred buying that from the local supermarket eating in his own time.

Benidorm's known for Brits frequenting it obviously including ex-pats who live and work there.

And house prices are reasonable also allowing buyers to get quite large rooms and a pool too for the same price as a UK property.

[ladyfiaran22]

May 29, 2020 9:38:22 GMT -5 Squad 51 said:

Spanish was nearly the world language but then England came and won over the Armada, and now we see the result.

Spanish is actually the second most spoken language in the world with Mandarin Chinese being the top and English third. There's a lot of Spanish speakers in Central and South America and throughout the Caribbean, in addition to many Americans being fluent in Spanish as a first or second language.

While the English did wipe out the Armada, it was more a matter of bad luck since the Armada sailed during stormy weather and a lot of the ships got scattered around the British Isles with many being wrecked in Scotland and Ireland with many of the sailors killed by the locals. If the weather had been better, it would have been more of a fair fight and a more narrow victory. I myself speak Spanish as a second language since my family is from Cuba and I grew up speaking both, unfortunately I speak Spanish with an American accent and I write it better than I speak it, Spanish people have trouble understanding my accent.