Being Basque
John Ysura said, “Come join the party” is the unspoken Basque motto. He said a Basque gathering always has the feel of friends and family, and when outsiders join it adds to the excitement. Ysura traveled from San Diego, Calf. and will continue to drive to Buffalo, Wyoming to attend every Basque festival along the way. He stopped in Reno this Saturday to emcee the Reno Zazpiak Bat Basque Festival. He will spend three-days-time on the road to scratch his itch for traditional Basque celebration.
“By day, I’m a college professor; by night, I’m Basque,” he said with a roguish smile.
Ashley Moore, who attended the celebration, shared his sentiment.
“I wish I was Basque,” Moore said. She said the Basque tend to “enjoy life in a relaxed, stress-free way.”
She said when her aunt married a Basque man, he so charmed the family that they’ve all been to ‘Basque country’ in Spain. The Basque celebrations in Spain were so marvelous that she tries to come to the local festival every year to recapture the easy-going merriment found in Spain’s celebrations.
The Basque are originally sheep-herders from seven regions in Spain and France. It’s from these seven regions that Reno Zazpiak Bat Basque Club gets its name. Zazpiak means seven, representing the seven regions, and Bat means one, symbolizing the regions’ unification in the club.
Ysura said the Basque have one foot in the past and one in the future. This can be seen most noticeably in their music. He recommended www.musikazblai.com for the latest on Basque rap.
Saturday’s festivities showed off a variety of Basque sports including wood chopping, weight lifting and texiangas toting. I have much more to say about these events but at 3:32 in the morning I’m loosing my train of thought. I’ll add more tomorrow. So check back to hear more about feats of brawn and bravery and an upcoming blog about the Sands' pool parties.
“By day, I’m a college professor; by night, I’m Basque,” he said with a roguish smile.
Ashley Moore, who attended the celebration, shared his sentiment.
“I wish I was Basque,” Moore said. She said the Basque tend to “enjoy life in a relaxed, stress-free way.”
She said when her aunt married a Basque man, he so charmed the family that they’ve all been to ‘Basque country’ in Spain. The Basque celebrations in Spain were so marvelous that she tries to come to the local festival every year to recapture the easy-going merriment found in Spain’s celebrations.
The Basque are originally sheep-herders from seven regions in Spain and France. It’s from these seven regions that Reno Zazpiak Bat Basque Club gets its name. Zazpiak means seven, representing the seven regions, and Bat means one, symbolizing the regions’ unification in the club.
Ysura said the Basque have one foot in the past and one in the future. This can be seen most noticeably in their music. He recommended www.musikazblai.com for the latest on Basque rap.
Saturday’s festivities showed off a variety of Basque sports including wood chopping, weight lifting and texiangas toting. I have much more to say about these events but at 3:32 in the morning I’m loosing my train of thought. I’ll add more tomorrow. So check back to hear more about feats of brawn and bravery and an upcoming blog about the Sands' pool parties.
posted by Kristin Larsen at
3:31 AM
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