Lost in Spain Trivia Quiz

Answer: Las Meninas

The Prado displays art from the twelfth century to the early nineteenth century, and the only one which fits in this timescale is 'Las Meninas' by Velázquez, which dates from 1656. Apart from Velázquez, the Prado also has many paintings by Goya. More recent artists can be seen at the Museo Reina Sofia, also in Madrid, which houses 'Guernica' by Picasso. 'The Persistence of Memory', by Dali, can be viewed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the 1906 painting in the 'Water Lilies' series is in the Art Institute of Chicago. 'Whistler's Mother', the popular name for my other option, is in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

Answer: Red

The Spanish flag has horizontal stripes, with red at the top, yellow in the middle and another band of red at the bottom. A plain version of the flag is used for civil occasions, with the current official version of the flag also carrying the country's coat of arms.

The coat of arms consists of the Royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, and was officially adopted in 1981. The French flag has vertical bands of blue, white and red and is known as the Tricolore.

Answer: Barcelona

The Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia, to give it its full name, is a Roman Catholic church designed by Antoni Gaudi. Construction began in 1882 and work is still ongoing during the early part of the twenty-first century. Estimated dates for completion vary from 2017 to 2026 - Gaudi himself (who died in 1926) is quoted as saying 'my client is not in a hurry'. Pope Benedict XVI is due to consecrate the church during a visit to Barcelona in November 2010.

Answer: Peseta

The euro was introduced on 1st January 2002 as the currency unit for most member countries of the European Union. It has since been adopted by non-member states, including Montenegro and Kosovo. Members not using the euro include Denmark, Sweden and the UK, although Eire has adopted it. Before the changeover, the peseta was used in Spain, the escudo in Portugal, the lira in Italy and the guilder in the Netherlands.

Answer: Rioja

Rioja is made in northern Spain, and comes from the province of La Rioja. The grapes used to make it are also grown in Navarre and Álava in the Basque country. It is the best known Spanish wine, although sherry (from Jerez) is equally famous, but, as this is a fortified wine, it does not qualify. Barbaresco and Bardolino are both red wines from Italy, and Vinho Verde (literally meaning green wine, in the sense that it is young) is from Portugal.

Answer: Rolando Villazón

Carreras and Domingo were two of the 'Three Tenors' with the late Luciano Pavarotti. They came together in 1990 at a concert prior to the football (soccer) World Cup Final, held in Rome. Carreras was born in Barcelona and Domingo in Madrid. Montserrat Caballé is well known for singing the song 'Barcelona' with Freddie Mercury.

It became the theme song to the 1992 Summer Olympic Games which were held in her home town of Barcelona. Villazón was born in Mexico and became a French citizen in 2007.

Answer: Sausage

Chorizo is a spicy pork sausage, which originates from the Iberian peninsula but is now common throughout Europe and in Latin America. In Spain, it is made from chopped pork and smoked paprika, but there are many regional variations and several recipes with differing levels of spiciness.

In Latin America and Mexico, chilli powder (as it is spelled in the UK) is often used instead of paprika and the resulting sausage is very different from the original.

Answer: There are no lyrics

The title in English is 'The Royal March' and, unusually, it has no words. Attempts have been made to add lyrics, during the reign of Alfonso XIII (1886 - 1931) and in the period of the Franco dictatorship (1939 - 1975), but have never been made official. Since the restoration of the monarchy, with King Juan Carlos de Borbón in 1975, the anthem has reverted to being played without words. During the Franco era, the title was changed (unsurprisingly) to 'La Marcha Granadera'.

Answer: Guggenheim

Le Centre Georges Pompidou is designed in a very modern, high-tech manner and the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao is also a masterpiece of modern architecture. The architect was Frank Gehry, who was born in Canada but trained in the United States and is usually described as Canadian-American.

The museum is managed by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and houses modern art from the twentieth century onwards.

Answer: Pyrenees

The Pyrenees run for about 490km (300 miles) from the Bay of Biscay to the Mediterranean Sea, and form a natural boundary between the Iberian peninsula and mainland Europe. Andorra is situated at the eastern part of the range. The Apennines are in Italy, and run along the length of the country.

The Carpathians are in central and eastern Europe, and parts of the range are found in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine with the major part (55%) being in Romania. The Alps run from Austria to France through several countries and include Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in western Europe.