Murcia in Spain
The region Murcia belongs to the Autonomous Communities of Spain and is located in the south-eastern part of the country. The Murcia region is located directly on the Mediterranean Sea particularly an interesting area for fishing and holidaymakers.
The direct neighbors of the area are Valencia, Castile-La Mancha and Andalusia. The province of Murcia corresponds to the autonomous community. The capital of the community is the city of the same name, Murcia.
Landscapes of the Murcia region
The Murcia region is particularly known for its salt water lagoon Mar Menor. This is located on the northern Cabo de Palos. The highest point in the region is the Revolcadores. Climatic seen the region of Murcia is one of the driest areas in Europe. Here the sun is in the sky for an average of 300 days. Due to the high summer temperatures, which easily exceed 40 degrees, there is often a water shortage during these months. In the winter months the weather is mostly mild and pleasant. The temperatures rarely drop into the minus range.
The greatest peculiarity in climatic terms are the many small Mediterranean bays in the south coast region. Here every single bay has its own microclimate. As a result of this phenomenon, the bays all have their own vegetation, which is sometimes more, sometimes less pronounced.
The history of the Murcia region
From 1224 to 1243, what is now the Murcia region was an independent kingdom. The present-day province of Albacete also belonged to the territory of the kingdom.
Today the Murcia region is an autonomous community of Spain. This has a directly elected parliament and an independent government. The status of autonomy goes back to the decision to form autonomous communities on June 9, 1982. With the formation of this autonomous community, it also took over the self-government of the province of Murcia.
Water in the Murcia region
As is well known, necessity makes inventive. Since there is always a shortage of water in the entire area of Murcia due to very hot and long summers, remedial measures had to be taken. The government of the Murcia region supports the idea of the Hidrologico National. The campaign slogan was Agua para todos. This whole plan caused quite a stir. The disputes turned into hostility. Eventually the Murcia region fell out with the northern Spanish regions. They were strictly against this ecologically questionable project. In the meantime, however, this undertaking has been canceled by the government of Spain, which is superordinate to the communities.
Living and working in the Murcia region
In the Murcia region, agriculture is still predominantly used. The largest quantities of fruit, vegetables and flowers in all of Europe are produced here. Agriculture is also particularly known for its excellent rice. The best conditions for this are given in the area around Calasparra. Also, wine is grown rich here and the best quality.
In addition to the agricultural orientation, the construction and tourism sectors are developing. Especially in the area of services for the tourism industry, more and more jobs are created every year by hotels and restaurants. The focus here is on a golf vacation. Numerous golf courses are to be built here in the next few years. The problem with this, however, is that due to the constant scarcity of water, a permanent irrigation system would have to be set up, which is not particularly sensible from an ecological or economic point of view.
Navarre in Spain
Navarre is one of the Spanish Autonomous Communities. Like the province of the same name, it is located in the north of the country. The area extends between the southern Pyrenees and the historic Kingdom of Navarre. Its capital today is Pamplona. Total live in the region Navarre around 605,876 people.
Location and landscape of Navarre
The area that is today Spanish Autonomous community stretches from the western Pyrenees to the upper Ebro Valley. This makes Navarra one of the smallest of the communities in Spain. Immediate neighbors are France, the Basque Country with the provinces of Gipuzkoa and Alava, La Rioja and Aragon.
The Petilla de Aragón enclave in Aragon is also part of Navarre. The landscape is particularly famous for its wine-growing region. The Bardenas Reales desert is also known beyond the country’s borders.
The Rights of Navarre
The Spanish Constitution of 1978 explicitly gives Navarre the status of autonomy to. This also goes back to historical rights, with the exception of the former Kingdom of Navarre. Until the middle of the 19th century, this had its own internal institution.
This was the cornerstone of Navarre’s complete financial autonomy. This means that Navarre can collect and administer the taxes on its own territory. A predetermined amount is assigned by the Autonomous Community to the Spanish central government.
In addition, the Policia Foral has its own police force in Navarre. In addition to this autonomous community, they also own the Basque Country and Catalonia. The police are not subordinate to the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, but receive their orders from the regional government of the respective communities.
Economy and life in Navarre
The people in the Navarre region are doing relatively well. Not only the landscape offers many possibilities here, but also financially and economically Navarre has taken good care of its citizens. Navarre is the third most prosperous region in the country after Madrid and the Basque Country. There are also many large employers in the region. A Volkswagen factory is located here, in which the VW Polo is manufactured. The wind turbine manufacturer Gamesa Eolica has also set up shop here. Liebherr and Bosch are also large companies, some of which have set up several branches in the region.
In addition, the famous hotel chain NH Hotels was founded here in Navarre. These can now be found all over Europe and are the third largest hotel operator for business trips.
In the Spanish Autonomous Community of Navarre, the residents speak several languages at the same time. There are three linguistic zones. Therefore, the Basque language, the mixed language and the non-Basque language appear here. Basque is the co-official language in the first two zones, but both Basque and Spanish are spoken in the mixed zone. In the non-Basque zone, only Spanish has official status. Which of course doesn’t mean that you don’t speak both dialects in all three zones. Because, of course, the Navarians do not always stay in the same place, but also move from the pure to the other zone. Therefore, the children learn both languages in schools.