Gernika - History of the Basques

The bombing of Gernika - Basque Country

Preparing people for the summer

In the Northwest and Midwest, families who have had students stay in their home during the summer are telling others they can too.  If you are interested in hosting a student or be a volunteer for a month this summer contact me.

A Taste of Basque at one of the Home Bases in Silverdale.

People enjoyed sampling Basque food known as pintxos and apple cider.

 Portland area gathers to hear from Bill Robinson and families who have hosted in years past.

 For a donation one would get a lamb sticker, a symbol of the Basque people.

 People shared pictures and stories of friendships that began and will last for a lifetime.

Club Basque

We held club at the university cafeteria. Over thirty students showed up and participated in a variety of games and fun activities. They sat, jumped, ran, talked and had a great time together. Jon Berkimer shared how he was searching for long lasting love and found it in God's love. At the end of club we passed out posters to the students from their home base church from last summer. Those students who did not get a poster will received theirs in the mail.



Here is a clip of one of the games we played.

The pursuit of pintxos - social life

Much of Basque social life is done in the streets, literally. So we asked a couple experts from Basque Country to show us how it worked. Both young men have been to the USA many times to learn and improve their English. Their American families love them and have traveled to see them in Basque Country.

Jon Larea has been teaching industrial manufacturing for the past 9 years. Jon is certified to teach English in the schools as well. Gorka is a university student studying computer science. It was interesting to observe the different technology they used to make a list of drinks people wanted as we went from bar to bar.  Jon used a pen and paper and Gorka used his smart phone.

The group started out on the boulevard. We met out in front of McDonalds. Yes, a McDonald’s in the heart of Basque Country – despicable! The purpose is to visit several "pintxo bars" and eat their best and well known pintxo. Everything imaginable can be placed on a piece of bread - mushrooms, crab, shrimp, peppers, anchovies, risotto, with sauces of all kinds (see pictures). Twenty-three of us walked the streets, talking, sharing our experiences and becoming friends to the fantastic taste of Basque food and drink. It sure beats staying at home. Muy Bueno!

Mount Igueldo - The Lighthouse

The story of The Lighthouse starts in the middle of the XVIIIth Century.

The Lighthouse, also known as “La Farola”, was built by the San Sebastian Consulate, at 180 meters above sea level. It was a fixed light tower visible from more that 9 miles away. Its signal saved many ships from being wrecked on the rocks while entering the harbor.

Although it was one of the best lighthouses at the time, it was finally abandoned during the Carlist War because of breakages and the fog which frequently kept the light from being seen.  In 1854, a new lighthouse was built situated on one side of the mount at 130 meters above sea level.

In 1912, The Mount Igueldo Society decided to regain the splendor of the old lighthouse and remodeled it with the architect Mr. Luis Elizalde. A new floor with wide windows were added and a fabulous panoramic terrace gives people a tremendous view of Donostia.

A hotel was constructed at the top of the mount.  A carnival with a roller coaster now exists for tourists to enjoy.

Most recently, this has been the site of several international prayer gatherings in an effort to bring Light to the Basque region. The mount gives one a breathtaking panoramic view of La Concha and the town of Donostia.

Irene meets up with girls

Today we visited a school in Tolosa that had many students who came to the Northwest. Two of the girls were from Irene's home base. It was a very happy reunion.

 

Irene has been very busy. She planned to take a train ride to Zarautz to meet up with Laura and play basketball. Laura is on a team and the coach allowed Irene to come in and play. She will probably teach them a thing or two about basketball, intensity and toughness.

Unexpected joy

We had a relatively light schedule today so both teams walked about 10 minutes to Santa Teresa. The sun was bright and the air was crispy cold. I couldn't see my breath but it was close. It was one of those occasions that if you walked in the sun it felt real refreshing.
Everyone was talking about what they experienced the night before as they ventured out for dinner at 8:30. In Basque country they each lunch around 2PM, late afternoon is through 8pm and dinner is 9PM or later. I was too exhausted to even eat the night before. I went to bed, woke up about 2AM, about 4PM (the day before) for the Northwest and could not go back to sleep. I decided it was a good time to catch up on the blog.

There was some talk about the differences they encountered so far while being in Spain.

• you flush the toilet by pushing a button on top of the toilet
• some toilets have 2 buttons to flush
• some bathrooms have the toilet paper dispenser was outside the bathroom (one had to take their proper amount before entering)
• shopping carts have all four wheels swivel
• a whole lot more roundabouts on the roads
• narrow roads and fast drivers

Some unexpected joy cam while visiting the schools. At Santa Teresa Jon was walking and praying on the side walk leading to the school when we heard this call, "Jon!, Jon!". It was Mikel, a student who had stayed on Bainbridge last summer. Mikel, another student and Mikel's mother (the teacher) were excited to see him. Jon went to the classroom to help with the presentations. Syd Brown also knew a couple Basque students at the school and help with the presentations so he could spend time with them.

My team of people walked down to another school where we were going to be the next day. The students have a 30 minute break in the morning and we were going to see if we recognized anyone. Jane went inside the school to find the teacher she knows and was pleasantly surprised to have a person tapping on her shoulder - it was Sara Diez. She was in the USA two years ago. Bev and I had her over to our house to bake cookies one day. It was good to see her and to learn she was going to study medicine.

Marcy Schroder from the New Life Home Base met up her Basque daughter when she surprised her by coming to Olarain where we are staying. We all got to meet her. It was a good day.

Family and relationships are cherished. We seek to understand and know each of our students and family better.