14 June, 2013

By VIVA Team

There is so much to see and do in Spain, it's a wonder it's taken the British media so long to find that out!

Your mother probably told you that it’s nice to be nice. This is brilliant, if often overlooked or underappreciated, advice. It’s not quite ‘Do good deeds and good deeds happen to you’, but as a way of living your life, it’s right on the money.

Journalists – particularly British ones – haven’t always abided by such a mantra. I say this as a British journalist myself, although I like to think that my first thought is to spin something positively, rather than salaciously.

And having reported on Spain through a British prism for the past few years, I have to admit that I myself have struggled with the ‘nice to be nice’ advice. But my animosity was never geared towards Spain. Far from it. It was usually reserved for journalists hell-bent, it seemed, on skewing the picture about Spain’s current economic plight…


Sure, they have to report the facts, the opinion polls and the protests. But often it was done with a mendacious, manipulative agenda. So it was with surprised smile this week that I flipped open my laptop and scanned my Spain news feed.

Amid all the usual stories about Spanish football and finances, there was this gushing piece on the Independent. Now, with summer here, Spain is at the forefront of many people’s minds, so a simple travel piece about where to go and when would make sense.

But this one goes further. Much further. It is not only incredibly well researched and accurate, but it takes the reader off the beaten track, suggests attractions that normally get overlooked by Brits in Spain, and paints a well-rounded, balanced view of Spain and its many benefits.

There’s the usual stuff about Spain being a perennially popular holiday destination for Brits, but it also delves into a little history, cuisine, style, glamour and architecture.

If you’re seeking a favourable and well-written overview on what to do in Spain, then you could do worse than… browse our pages first! But then afterwards, take a look at the Independent’s piece – it will really warm your heart. Well, it did mine, anyway…