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Basque Christmas Traditions: Olentzero

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Georgina Howard
Saturday, 26 December 2015 / Published in Basque Culture and Tradition
Olentzero on Christmas Eve in Ituren
Olentzero – an inseparable part of Basque Christmas Traditions As you would expect even Basque Christmas traditions dig deep into their pagan past and the Joaldunak, the pagan protagonists from the festivals we visit on Total Basque Mountain Culture Walking Holidays, appear again with fire and flame. Here, during the winter months, the flint-grey skies
Basque CountryBasque Culturebasque traditionsChristmas TraditionsJoaldunakOlentzero

The Witches of Zugarramurdi – the scene was set!

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Georgina Howard
Sunday, 03 May 2015 / Published in Basque Culture and Tradition, Basque Mythology
The 'witches' of Zugarramurdi
Who were the Witches of Zugarramurdi? Zugarramurdi is a tiny bucolic Basque village nestling in the foothills of the western Pyrenees. Innocuously the name Zugarramurdi means ‘hill of elm trees’, although today it is far better known for its caves and witches than for its hills and elms.  However, this is the site of the most brutal witch
Basque Culturebaztan valley

Basajaun – Basque Mythology or History?

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Georgina Howard
Thursday, 26 February 2015 / Published in Basque Mythology, Dolores Redondo, The Invisible Guardian
Basajaun in the cave of San Juan Xar
Basajaun, which literally means ‘Lord of the Forest’, is one of the main characters in Basque Mythology and just one of several characters we introduce on our Total Basque Mountain Culture Walking Holidays. He is depicted as a large, hairy human-like creature who makes his home in caves deep in the forests of the Pyrenees,
Basque Culturebasque traditionsbaztan valley

Ituren Carnivals – and a Brummy in their midst

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Georgina Howard
Wednesday, 28 January 2015 / Published in Basque Culture and Tradition, Basque Lifestyle, Ituren carnivals
Me, Marion and Iñaki with out neighbours in Ituren
I know, I know, I have written about the Ituren carnivals many times before (see links below) but the reaction is so raw, so overwhelming  each single time we participate that I feel compelled to put it down. They are not my people, I am from a ‘middle-class’ Birmingham suburb with Accessorise and John Lewis down
Basque CultureBasque languagebasque traditionsCarnivalsIturenJoaldunak

The People of the Baztan Valley

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Georgina Howard
Thursday, 08 January 2015 / Published in Basque Culture and Tradition, Baztan Valley, Spanish-English differences
Xan Milhura and his family escorted allied pilots over the border into the Baztan Valley
The origins of the Basque people has been a subject of great debate, and of great political interest. Here is a study on the people of the Baztan Valley, a traditional Basque valley in the northern Pyrenean valleys of Navarre which throws some light on the subject. The People of the Baztan Valley In 2010 a team
Basque CultureBasque historybaztan valleynavarre

The origins of our Self-Guided Walks in the Pyrenees

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Georgina Howard
Friday, 12 December 2014 / Published in Visit the Pyrenees, Walking in the Pyrenees, Wildlife of the Pyrenees
people walking
The Telephone Call Our self-guided walks in the Pyrenees were pitchforked into action after a phone call from a Houston lawyer around Christmas 2012. Steve was heading to the Basque Country with a group of lawyer friends and wanted me to design 6 days of self-guided walks in the Pyrenees to lead them over the
Basque CountryBasque CultureBasque Gastronomybasque traditionsIturenwalking
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Featured Posts

  • Comet Line children meet in France

    Basque Children of the Resistance

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    Comet Line Crossing of the Pyrenees

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  • Map of the French and Spanish Pyrenees

    Secrets of the Pyrenees

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  • Hiking in the Pyrenees: the Baztan and Bidasoa Valleys

    Hiking in the Pyrenees – stunning scenery and ancient Basque traditions

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

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

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