Zaragoza is situated some 250 kms north east of Madrid and approximately the same distance is Barcelona which lays to the south east on the coast of Spain.

Zaragoza (Saragossa), the capital of Aragon, has all the attractions of a modern, populous city with excellent avenues, such as that of La Independencia, Sagasta and the Gran Via.

The Zaragoza's appeal lies in the fact that it has been left relatively untouched by tourism: most travelers know it only as a train station on the way from Barcelona to Madrid. Those who take the time to get off the train are rarely disappointed. The old town is full of authentic Spanish restaurants, and Aragon cooking is superb. Attractions include the Aljaferia castle, the greatest Moorish edifice outside Andalucia, the Roman Forum and Theatre of ancient Caesaraugusta, and the Basilica del Pilar, one of the most famous sanctuaries of the Virgin Mary in the world.

Other important sights are the old Cathedral, La Seo, a magnificient 14th century church with its famous Museum of Trapestries. Especially interesting are the estately houses and magnificient palaces in the city.

Here is a good web site dedicated to Zaragoza and the Aragon Province

From Around Spain - SpainGuides.com

The most important Zaragoza museums are the Museum of Fine Arts, with paintings of early aragonese artists and of El Greco, Ribera and Goya, and the Camon Aznar Museum, with paintings ranging from Rubens, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Velazquez and Goya to Renoir, Manet and Sorolla.

The international expo will take place in Zaragoza and run from the 14th June to the 14th September, with the theme being Water and Sustainable Development. Universal Expositions are held every 5 years on a site with no area limitations. They last 6 months and address a general theme, this one being water.

I had the great fortune to visit the last major expo of this type held in Seville in southern Spain during 1992 and it was quite fantastic. I was there for a whole week and still never go see all the amazing pavilions, shows and other attractions, if Zaragoza can achieve the high standards set by Seville it will be a must stop over for all visitors and residents of Spain this summer.

The first international exposition took place in London in 1851. Since its success, numerous expositions have been held all over the world, including the Paris Exposition of 1889, which gave birth to the Eiffel Tower. As these events increased in number, it was decided that an official body to oversee the events was needed and thus the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) was created in 1928.

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