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The Aragonese have a reputation for being straightforward people, and theirs is a harsh stark land of untamed and untouched beauty. To the north Aragón is bordered by the Pyrenees and to the south by the Iberian mountains that separate the region from Castile and the orchard land of Valencia. Within Aragón the mountains of El Maestrazgo and Montes Universales create their own overwhelming beauty. The Ebro, Spain's powerful river, flows through the center of Aragón past its capital, Zaragoza, forming a vast fertile valley that is among the most productive lands in Spain.
If you fly into Zaragoza airport you will find fine examples of the Moorish Mudéjar architectural style, which flourished thanks to the region's religious policies between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries. In contrast to the decoration of the Muslim style, there are magnificent Romanesque churches, monasteries, and grand cathedrals like the cathedral of Jaca, in the Pyrenean valleys of Aragón. These owe their existence to the medieval pilgrims on route to Santiago de Compostela, who entered Aragón from France at the mountain pass of Somport. The Way of Saint James brought in its wake the finest artistic styles and medieval villages of unparalled beauty.
Zaragoza’s singular contribution to Spanish folk dancing and singing is the jota. Danced by pairs who leap and kick high in the air and sing with terrific power, the jota is as spirited a display and can be found anywhere. The region's most important fiesta is in honour of the Virgen del Pilar, patron saint of the Americas, celebrated in Zaragoza on October 12, a date known in Spain as the Day of Hispanic Nations.
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