2015

2015 (MMXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (dominical letter D) of the Gregorian calendar, the 2015th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 15th year of the 3rd millennium, the 15th year of the 21st century, and the 6th year of the 2010s decade.

2015 was designated as:

Events

January

Andorra

Coordinates: 42°30′N 1°30′E / 42.500°N 1.500°E / 42.500; 1.500

Andorra (ⁱ/ænˈdɔːrə/; Catalan: [ənˈdorə], locally: [anˈdɔra]), officially the Principality of Andorra (Catalan: Principat d'Andorra), also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra (Catalan: Principat de les Valls d'Andorra), is a sovereign landlocked microstate in Southwestern Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. Created under a charter in A.D. 988, the present Principality was formed in A.D. 1278. It is known as a principality as it is a monarchy headed by two Co-Princes – the Spanish/Roman Catholic Bishop of Urgell and the President of France.

Andorra is the sixth-smallest nation in Europe, having an area of 468 km² (181 sq mi) and a population of approximately 85,000. Its capital Andorra la Vella is the highest capital city in Europe, at an elevation of 1,023 metres (3,356 ft) above sea level. The official language is Catalan, although Spanish, Portuguese, and French are also commonly spoken.

Soldeu

Soldeu (Catalan pronunciation: [suɫˈdew], locally: [soɫˈdew]) is a village and ski resort in the parish of Canillo, Andorra.

Overview

It comes alive in the winter months as a ski town, and is part of the Grand Valira ski resort, the largest in the Pyrenees with 205 km (127 mi) of ski runs. According to The Sunday Times, Soldeu is one of the three best budget skiing resorts in Europe. The ski area links to Encamp, Canillo, El Tarter, Grau Roig and Pas de la Casa. The Soldeu Ski School has a large number of native English speaking instructors and has won awards for the quality of its tuition.

The village is at an elevation of 1,710 metres (5,610 ft) above sea level and the top of the ski area is at 2,580 m (8,465 ft). The gondola from the village rises to 2,250 m (7,382 ft), where the ski and board schools as well as restaurants are located. From there, it is possible to ski to the top of the El Tarter gondola or the village of El Tarter itself via the blue-rated 'gall de bosc' run.

The village has various hotels, bars, restaurants, as well as ski and snowboard shops. It is more family orientated than neighbouring Pas de la Casa. The native language is Catalan. There are a large number of British and Irish tourists, and English is spoken in many shops and restaurants.