[poli]

I know castellano is the more precise term. In Latin America the terms are pretty much synonomous. This is different in Spain, as Chileno states, where there are four distinct Spanish languages, and it seems at best ignorant and at worst imperialistic to refer to Castillian as Spanish in regions where Gallego, Catalan and Basque are commonly spoken.

If you study Iberian Spanish you will become more familiar with European pronunciation and verb forms. If you are going to spend more time in Spain, then certainly look at on-line courses that focus on Iberian Spanish.