QUESTIONS? CALL: + 34 650 713 759

Pyrenean Experience

  • HOME
  • ABOUT US
    • Your Hosts
    • Blog
    • Photos & TV Documentaries
    • Responsible Travel Pledge
  • HOLIDAY TYPES
    • Guided Walking Week in the Spanish Pyrenees
    • Self-Guided Walking Week in the Spanish Pyrenees
    • Spanish Language Immersion Week
    • Creative Retreats in the Pyrenees
    • Walking the World War II COMET Line
    • The Total Basque Mountain Experience (One Day Tour)
    • Inmersion Total en Ingles en Los Pirineos
  • ACCOMMODATION
    • B & B and Holiday Home near Baztan Valley
    • The Farmhouse
    • How to get there
    • The Baztan Valley
      • Ituren
      • Basque Valleys of the Pyrenees
      • Baztan Valley Walks and Traditions
  • DATES 2021
  • PRESS & REVIEWS
  • CONTACT
Georgina Howard
Thursday, 20 January 2011 / Published in Basque Culture and Tradition, Basque Lifestyle, Ituren carnivals

Carnival Time Again – The Bustle of Life in Ameztia

The home of the Joaldunak
Petticoats whips and bells all part of the Joaldunak carnival dress. 234x350 - Carnival Time Again - The Bustle of Life in Ameztia

Petticoats, whips and bells – all part of the Joaldunak carnival dress.

I just popped in on Amatxi yesterday and she was bent double over the kitchen table taking in the waist on her grandson’s lace petticoats. Carnival time is coming .. by far the most exciting and loved moment of the year for our village of Ituren.  There is a general buzz everywhere, groups of youths congregating in farm sheds and clinks and clonks going on late into the night. If you come across a motorised bracken stack speeding around the village square next week like some demented Dougal from the Magic Roundabout then Iñaki, Sagrario´s son, is usually somewhere inside it on a tractor!

However, I have been told that this year Iñaki and Juanito are preparing some bizarre carnival version of Herri Kirolak (Basque rural sports) which is in fact Maika’s domain (and SHE is always a force to be reckoned with at carnival time!).

p.s. My great friend, Maika, who deserves many blog posts in her own right farms much of the land around here in Ameztia and has made national fame as a Spanish cross-country running champion and as a Herri Kirolak Basque  heroine (with particular reference to her way with an axe and her stamina on the ‘corn-cob’ relay races.!)

Tiny,  muscles of steel and a mischevious grin, I have discovered her soft spot for cheddar cheese and apple pies! One of my greatest friends and partners in crime, Maika, you are in for a blog post pretty soon.

For a charming little picture of Maika see Simon Busch’s article on the Basques: Bells to Men.

Also read here Max Walker´s article in the Guardian about the Joaldunak: http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/apr/17/spain-basque-navarre-culture-walking

  • Tweet
Tagged under: Basque Culture, Basque history, Carnivals, Ituren, Joaldunak, Pyrenees, Spain

What you can read next

The Baztan valley - making hay while the sun shines
The importance of ‘work’ in the Basque Culture
The Invisible Gardian by Dolores Redondo
The Invisible Guardian by Dolores Redondo
The Basque Language – Onomatopoeias and other Idiosyncrasies

1 Comment to “ Carnival Time Again – The Bustle of Life in Ameztia”

  1. flash hard drives says :Reply
    31 January 2011 at 12:41 am

    A thorough insight into Carnival Time Again – The Bustle of Life in Ameztia | Pyrenean Experience and ideas I will employ on my site. You’ve obviously spent some time on this. Excellent stuff!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

  • Basque Country Walking
  • Basque Culture and Tradition
  • Basque Food
  • Basque Lifestyle
  • Basque music
  • Basque Mythology
  • Baztan Valley
  • Bilingual Families
  • Dolores Redondo
  • Elizondo
  • Exercise and Learning
  • Ituren carnivals
  • Learning Spanish in Spain
  • linguistics and language learning
  • Spanish-English differences
  • Teaching Spanish
  • The Basque Language
  • The Invisible Guardian
  • Uncategorized
  • Visit the Pyrenees
  • Walking in the Pyrenees
  • Wildlife of the Pyrenees
  • World War II Escape Lines

Tags

Basque Country Basque Culture Basque Gastronomy Basque history Basque language basque traditions baztan valley bi-lingualism Birds Carnivals Cider comet line Elizondo farming Fiesta Francois Grosjean Gastronomy Georgina Georgina Howard Goleman Howard Ituren Joaldunak Krashen language learning Lozanov Marion Marion Howard Mills Nature Open University Pyrenees smugglers smuggling Spain Spanish conversation Spanish courses Spanish language Spanish school teaching total immersion tuition Vultures Vygotsky walking

Featured Posts

  • Comet Line children meet in France

    Basque Children of the Resistance

    0 comments
  • pyrenean experience sunset over the valley on our guided walking holidays in the Pyrenees

    Comet Line Crossing of the Pyrenees

    0 comments
  • Map of the French and Spanish Pyrenees

    Secrets of the Pyrenees

    0 comments
  • Hiking in the Pyrenees: the Baztan and Bidasoa Valleys

    Hiking in the Pyrenees – stunning scenery and ancient Basque traditions

    0 comments
  • Colour definitions - is it green, blue or grey?

    Seeing Life in Colours – and the need to expand our vocabulary!

    0 comments

Location

Mapoflocation 350x262 - Carnival Time Again - The Bustle of Life in Ameztia

Contact

Phone UK: +44 (0)121 711 3428

Phone Spain: +34 650 713759

Email: info@pyreneanexperience.com

Info

  • Privacy Policy
  • Responsible Travel Pledge
Responsible Travel
  • TripAdvisor
  • GET SOCIAL

© 2021 GEORGINA HOWARD All rights reserved

TOP
This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use. To find out more, read our Privacy Policy.