247. September showers

30th September. I was down at the beach earlier today with the pup and to my surprise the sea was white with crashing foam and towering breakers. There was virtually no wind and it set me to wondering why this should be. Could there be any linkage with the recent Caribbean hurricanes? Or am I missing something blindingly obvious? And just now, when I opened our west-facing bedroom windows to close the shutters, I thought I could hear the soughing of the sea - and that must be 4-5km distant as the crow flies - I suppose it's possible. 

In a few days, Madame and I will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the momentous evening when our orbits intersected for the first time - little realising that we'd turn out to be lifetime soulmates. (I remember dancing to this - have no idea what's it's about though!) We've been casting around for places to go - but, with the arrival of SuperPup (9.2kgs and counting!), we've had to scale back our ideas.

We're now looking at paying La Tupina (in Bordeaux) a visit. La Tupina is arguably the temple to the cuisine of south west France - and that, for me, is unarguably the best cuisine of all. (carte) We've been there once before but, for whatever reason, we were never able to make it back there. I understand that there's been a change of management (uh-oh) since our last visit. Read this review and prepare to salivate! Foodie photos here..

Couldn't resist this:

Stairway to heaven..!

29th September. We were in Saint-Jean-de-Luz yesterday evening to meet some friends. When we left home at 5pm, the car was indicating 39½°C.. although it was probably more like 31°. And, leaving Saint-Jean to return home at around 8.30, it was still 25° and this was the sky looking out across the bay to the west:

25th September. The training of the pup is going in fits and starts.. I think what we have is the dominant dog from his litter. While he's gradually getting the hang of things, this particular exercise is taking longer than it should for him to master:

It's taken me 10 years to get around to explaining this - the names of the different cuts of meat in France. (There's an international guide to meat cuts here). The diagram below is a good starting point for those of us in France. (More on those French cuts here. More here.) If you're not sure you can remember any of this, a simple rule of thumb for choosing tender meat is to remember: the further away from the horns and the ground, the better. On the diagram below these cuts are numbered 1. Finally, don't ignore bavette (shown as a 2 below) or onglet (sometimes called hanger steak in the US). 

24th September.  Whizzed down to Socoa (near Saint-Jean-de-Luz) this morning to walk the dog along the sea wall before lunch. We'd booked a table at Chez Pantxua, one of our favourite restaurants. For seafood, it's incomparable. The warm weather had brought out shoals of people with the same idea.. but who hadn't booked. Our restaurant was soon 'complet' and the staff were having to turn people away.

We ordered the house speciality - the paella - and it was truly excellent. We exited the restaurant like a couple of stuffed ducks!

The photo below is exactly as it appeared on our table.. No photoshop or special enhancements required..

Needless to say, we didn't feel the need to eat this evening!

This is the view looking across the bay to Saint-Jean-de-Luz with the Pyrenees in the misty background:

And here's a view looking at Ciboure / Socoa with La Rhune behind:

Madame has a new name for the pup - "Bulldozaire"! He's discovered tugging.. and he's good at it. Once he has something clamped in his jaws, he defies us to take it off him. For a 4 month old pup, he has impressive strength..   

22nd September. Nutty, our black and white (tricolour really) all-action monster English cocker spaniel 4x4 pup, is 4 months old tomorrow - and I'm convinced that he's doubled in size in the few brief weeks that we've had him. He's a quick learner but walking on a lead still appears to be a bit of a mystery to him. Plus, he hasn't yet figured out what the purpose of a walk is.. He comes back home having sniffed at all the usual places - but that's as far as it goes.. he saves his donations for a greener earth until he's back home in his own garden.

The weekend before last saw me taking part in the annual commemoration of the WWII evasion network known as the Comet Line. Allied bomber crews who had been shot down in Holland, Belgium and northern France were collected by Comet helpers and fed, clothed, housed and provided with false papers before they were dispatched by train from Brussels to Paris, Bordeaux and the Pays Basque. During the course of two days, we walk over the same tracks up and over the Pyrenees that the aircrew took en route to their freedom.

We had another good turnout this year despite the unseasonal torrential rain that marked the weekend. We had participants from as far afield as Dubai, New Jersey and Toronto but the prize for the furthest travelled went to a couple of ardent Australian Basque-o-philes Sue and Barry, from near Brisbane. It was great to see you both again - well done you two - and I hope the experience didn't put you off. Next year we're tackling the inland route that was used later in the war and you'll be pleased to hear that there's no river crossing involved!

I just about reached my own personal limit on that first climb.. I'm sure the mountain has become steeper since the last time I did it.

These two picture sum up the weekend!☺

Yes, that's water rushing down the path you can see below:  

21st September. This is a beautiful Basque song I heard the other day - "Agur Jaunak" sung here by Oldarra:

  

Here's Oldarra again with "Maitia Nun Zira": 

More here.

7th September. It's our annual long weekend up in the mountains this weekend.. and the forecast is not good. Looks like being a wet Saturday and Sunday - which is a great shame because we have people coming from as far afield as New Jersey, Dubai and Brisbane - as well as from Spain, Belgium, the UK, Ireland and France. Still, as my old rowing master used to say "It's only water!"

I was prompted by this photo to think about wine.. and it struck me that even if I tried a different wine every day for the rest of my life, I'd never finish the job.

Sometimes it seems that I've been on an eternal quest for the Holy Grail -  for the wine one sip of which would have my eyeballs rotating and which would send my internal wine-o-meter into the red zone! There's something of the "grass is always greener" to it all. Why shouldn't I instead settle for the fact that life's just too short to taste them all? I think from now on, I'll stick to drinking and enjoying the ones I like. That way = more pleasure and fewer disappointments.

3rd September. When you have a quiet moment, go and make yourself a coffee/tea/whatever, and listen to this piece by Roger Scruton.. I'd be surprised if it didn't have you nodding in agreement:

I've always believed that in jazz, less is more.. Listen to that great trumpeter Chet Baker as he reminds us of those times when we felt blue:

225. The clock's ticking..

3rd January. By one of those uneasy coincidences, I've just heard that Michel Delpech, the singer in the video below, has died.. (26 January 1946 – 2 January 2016). RIP †.

28th December. I can't think why I've not posted this video before.. it's the ride by le Petit Train up to the summit of La Rhune -  the emblematic* mountain that presides benignly over the Côte Basque. To many here it's the symbol of the Pays Basque. Make yourself a coffee before starting the trip! The ticket collector has a real local accent!

* do I get points for not using "iconic" here?!

25th December. If you've ever driven south in France in summer and switched the radio on to alleviate the boredom of the autoroutes, it's a racing certainty that you'll have heard this "summer song" that burst upon the airwaves in 1971.. and has been a perennial favourite on French radio stations (like RFM) ever since. Once heard, never forgotten..(you've been warned!) 

And for those of you who can just remember that slightly risqué* release "Je t'aime... moi non plus" by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin waay back in 1969, this next video may amuse you.. It's Frankie Howerd and June Whitfield with their tongue-in-cheek version..

* it was thought to be slightly shocking at the time.. According to Wiki, it was banned from radio in Spain, Sweden, Brazil, the UK, Italy, Poland, Portugal and before 11 pm in France.

By the way, Happy Christmas to all of you out there! Don't let me disturb your post-lunch snore-fest.. 

23rd December. Stuck in Paris and in need of a quick Pays Basque fix?? Look no further..

I've mentioned before in these pages the fact that there is a distinct and separate Basque culture here. France it's not.. it's the Pays Basque. You won't have to spend too much time down here or have to travel far within its bounds before you'll hear Anne Etchegoyen. Here she is with "Gurekin Egon" - a song that's heard at Basque funerals, when it's sung with gusto. Anne often sings with Aizkoa, a Basque choir, and you can listen to them here. You'll hear these songs and many others like them sung with vigour whenever Basques gather together - I particularly like their version of Oi Gu Hemen (the first in the above link). You can also listen to the street version here as it's sung during the Fêtes de Bayonne.

19th December. Don't know what to make of our current warm spell.. it was 24° (75°F) in Biarritz this afternoon.. We had a coffee sitting outside - watching all the shorts and t shirts strolling by.. Hard to believe that I'll be mano-à-mano with a live Christmas pudding in just a few days.. I'll manage though (the smart money's on a first round knock-out). ☺

17th December. I was down in the cellar earlier looking at the wine situation with Christmas in mind. Just as forestry workers paint, chalk or spray a ring around trees that are destined for the chop, I was mentally eyeing up what we had, what we needed and which of the remaining good bottles were destined for the table.. Some kind soul had given us a bottle of 2008 Pomerol Chateau Monregard la Croix and I mentally sprayed a ring around it..  Looking forward to that one!

We also had a very welcome Red Cross* parcel arrive the other day - it contained a Christmas pudding and mince pies.. The taste of Christmas.. *Thanks Jon & Miki!

As it was 22°C (71°F) yesterday (yes, you heard - twenty two degrees..!) here's a glimpse of summertime in Biarritz in 1968.. Just looked at the forecast for the next few days and it's going to be 20+° until Saturday..

The things you learn on the internet.. I was just looking at the list of Christmas carols I linked to in the paragraph below and it appears that "Gabriel's Message" or "The angel Gabriel" is a Basque Christmas folk carol (in Basque: Birjina gaztetto bat zegoen). You can either drop this snippet into conversation the next time it goes quiet in the snug or, better still, save it for that late night game of "Pro-Celebrity No Rules" Scrabble!

We were out in the car this afternoon and we were watching the temperature read-out climbing forever upwards until it peaked at 23½°C.. I have to convert this into Ye Olde half-timbered wattle and daub Fahrenheit to get the full impact.. 74°F. There were people out and about in shorts and t-shirts.. I can't believe that this time next week we'll be sitting down to our Christmas meal and opening presents.. 

13th December. I was writing a few Christmas cards yesterday - and listening to Christmas carols at the same time on Madame's little internet radio (it works a treat - highly recommended) but despite that it was hard to get into the Christmas spirit when it was 17°C outside with blue skies. Complaineth I not though.. I remember going to buy a Christmas tree one year when we lived in England - it was a bitterly cold and raw Sunday afternoon and already turning dark.. Buying one here is a completely different experience!

8th December. Forgot to mention that I went down to the rowing club late on Saturday morning in time to meet all the boats as they returned. A problem with the joints at the base of my thumbs has kept me away for about three months. Not quite sure what the problem is but if it's no better in the New Year I'm going to try going out in a boat to see if there are any ill-effects. It was good to see everyone again - they're almost a second family to me. One of the small speedboats that the coaches use came back towing a empty pair oar. Apparently the two girls who'd been in it had contrived to turn it over. There's been a lot of wood in the river lately and I suspect they'd had a collision with a tree and there's usually only one winner when that happens. (ask me how I know!)

We won't be using our "Made in China" synthetic Christmas tree* this year.. We asked the tree man to lop the top 6-7 feet off from the tree he cut down in our garden and we've now got that waiting in the wings ready to be moved into the house.

* Add this to your ever-growing list of "Is there nothing they can't make" things.

The choir I sing with is busy rehearsing this piece by Mozart, ready for a concert sometime in the New Year. It's his "Coronation Mass" in C major K 317. I think it would be fair to say that we have quite some way to go before we're anywhere near the standard set by Laurence Equilbey and the Accentus Chamber Choir..!

7th December. Ker-ching! That's it.. Christmas shopping finished!☺

We've had a spell of bright sunny weather lately.. yesterday the temperature was up around 18°C (65°F) and so we took advantage of it by a morning trip to Biarritz. The sea was a sight to behold - it looked like someone had opened the doors of the wave factory! As each towering roller neared the beach, its crest was lifted off by the wind in silvery parabolas (is spindrift the right word?) before it exploded in a melee of white foam. No surfers in evidence!

We parked ourselves at the Café Dodin on the Grande Plage to watch the spectacle.. One brave soul stripped off on the beach and walked down to the water's edge watched by all.. he didn't dally long before he was in. I think many envied him.. I know I did!

Today it's more of the same.. wall-to-wall blue skies. Problem for me is that it's difficult to associate the onset of Christmas with this weather.. I'm not complaining though!

A few days ago we had a tree feller to the house to take down a Christmas tree that someone had planted in the back garden before we arrived. It had grown to a good 50 feet high and it showed no signs of stopping.. We'd had one tree blown over a year or two ago in a storm and we didn't want to risk this one suffering the same fate - so down it had to come. The tree man wrapped himself up in something like a parachute harness and strapped on what looked like a pair of crampons and with his chain saw attached to his belt - plus other tools of his trade, he started shinning up the tree. Branches started tumbling down and every now and again there'd be an almighty dumph as a large section of trunk landed. He soon had all the major parts of the tree sawn up and I stacked those at the side of the house to dry out for a couple of years. He dragged all the branches outside where he had an industrial sized shredder that made short work of reducing everything into a mulch. He then returned to the garden with a leaf blower and blew off all the sawdust into the back border - job done! He'd started at 2pm and by 4pm he'd finished. I'd had thoughts of doing it all myself but without the tools I'd still be out there sawing everything up by hand with my bow saw..

  

22nd November. Two days ago it was 21° (70°F in real money) so we had lunch out in the garden. Yesterday, it was wild, windy and wet.. Today, we thought we'd nip across into Spain to do some shopping and as we approached the mountains, we could see that the summits of some (not too) distant peaks were covered in snow.. Explain me this.. (as they say here..)

I've been off rowing for a couple of months as I think I have tendonitis (possibly de Quervain's syndrome) around the base of both my thumbs. And before the suggestions come flooding in, I don't have a Blackberry or a mobile..! So I'm excused vacuuming.. (into each life a little rain must fall..!)  

Bleu Café, Grande Plage

9th November. According to the TV news last night, it was an unseasonal 27° in Biarritz and 28° at Saint-Jean-de-Luz yesterday.

8th November. We're enjoying an Indian summer here - yesterday we went to Saint-Jean-de-Luz and, as usual, pinched ourselves with our good fortune at being able to live here in this corner of France. The beach was crowded with late season sun-worshippers.. and there were quite a few in the water. The car indicated 25° - but it felt warmer than that in the sunshine. 

This morning we were in Biarritz (or Bayonne-Plage as wags in Bayonne refer to it!), once more enjoying the dazzling light, clear blue skies and 25°C (again!).. We stopped at the Bleu Café on the Grande Plage for a coffee. There must have been 100+ surfers out there - trying to catch the rollers as they marched in as if from a production line. 

There were more visitors in town than is usual.. I suspect many had combined a couple of holidays using a "bridge".. On the way to pick up a baguette from our favourite bakers we saw a bright red American 60s convertible (might have been an Impala?) coming towards us.. It looked to be the size of a cruise ship lifeboat. I can't think of a more unsuitable car for bumbling around the narrow winding streets of Biarritz. Parking (or mooring) a monster like this must be a nightmare.

I forgot to add that "The clock's ticking.." refers to the imminent arrival of Christmas.. We've been thinking about doing something then and so we've been looking around at places to go.. I'm not sure I want to be out on the roads then and also I'm not sure that I want to be in a commercial environment at that time of the year. We went out for New Year's Eve during our first year here and I don't want to repeat the experience. If we go anywhere it will be to here - our "ace in the hole" - Chez Pantxua (left and below) at Socoa.. We found this great family-run seafood restaurant 20+ years ago and in all that time the quality has never varied. For the freshest of seafood, cooked to perfection, in a friendly ambiance - there's nowhere better.

25th October. Here's a short video I made showing (part of) what happens during the Fêtes de Bayonne..

185. The Big Makhila

8th May 2012. Much of France is closed down today as it's VE day. I stopped at the Monument aux Morts (right) on my way to buy a baguette as there was a ceremony imminent - a contingent of élite 1er RPIMa soldiers (Special Forces) from their citadelle across the Adour were present as well as anciens soldats with their standards from former times and conflicts. At previous ceremonies like this that I've seen here, the music was presented via a CD player or a very small number of musicians. Today was different - a military band did the honours and, as usual, the dry rattle of the sidedrums and the blaring trumpets during the Marseillaise sent a shiver through me..

More stirring stuff from the Biarritz-based Basque choir Oldarra:

This clip originates from across the border in the Spanish Basque country..

I think you have to be Basque to appreciate some aspects of Basque culture..

I've mentioned 'Makhilas' before here but without really going on to explain what they're all about. A Makhila is a traditional Basque walking stick - but with a difference..! They're made of medlar wood (néflier in French) - a highly resistant, dense and durable hardwood that is often engraved. The lower part is finished with a decorative ferrule while the top part is fitted with a hand grip - often of tightly woven leather - topped by an ornamental pommel. A quick twist of the handgrip removes it to expose a short spike - thus converting the walking stick into an instant weapon. They are hand-made and made-to-measure - the craftsman taking into account the owner's height and weight. 

No two are the same. They are highly prized and often offered as presentation pieces to mark a special occasion.

The wood of the slow growing Medlar tree is hard, even, fine grained and polishes well and is reported to be practically unbreakable. The wood has practically no commercial value as the tree stays relatively small and its branches aren't necessarily straight. Because the wood is hard, it has been used for spear points, hunting and warfare clubs, fighting sticks and making windmill parts - especially some of the wooden gearwheels. The process of making a Makhila starts in the spring with the carving of lines on a living branch of a tree that's at least 15 years old before harvesting the branch in the winter. Over the summer, the design of the carving expands with the growth of the tree. 

The bark is removed and the branch straightened with the aid of the heat of a kiln - this operation requires a great deal of skill. The wood is then allowed to dry naturally for several years after which the wood is stained using family techniques handed down for generations. The stick is finished with made-to-measure decorative fittings which are cut, carved, braced and decorated pieces of brass, silver, German silver or gold. As noted above, the handle is either metal or tightly plaited with leather strips and finished with a horn or worked metal pommel. The handle can be easily removed to reveal a forged steel spike. Traditional Makhilas are inscribed with a short verse of the owner's own symbolism in Basque. The making of a Makhila is a tradition passed down from father to son and there are very few Makhila makers left. I know of only two - one here in the centre of Bayonne and another at Larressore.

Scroll forward to 10:44 on this next clip to see Makhilas being made at nearby Larressore:
I noticed with a start this morning that the Caisse d'Epargne building (that I mentioned in post # 182) in the historic centre of Bayonne is being demolished! The mayor must obviously be an avid reader of the blog!

Changing the subject just a little, I noticed the other day that McDonalds here are now selling a McBaguette!

(NB: McDonalds is known as McDo here - pronounced McDough) All of this reminded me of that memorable dialogue in "Pulp Fiction" between Vincent and Jules on the cultural differences between the US and Europe:

It's 28 in the shade here this afternoon - where did that come from..?☺ 

This week's special offer is a free trip over the Pays Basque in a hot air balloon (or un vol en montgolfière as it's known here). It's best in full screen:

 

10th May 2012. Forecast to be 32 this afternoon - the temp's soaring past 29 in the shade at the time of writing (1pm)..

Thirty minutes ago at 5pm it was 33½° in the shade in the garden.. phew! The dog's re-discovered the pleasure of lying spread-eagled in all his favourite cool places in the house.

12th May 2012. We had the house double glazed 2-3 years ago by a charming couple who run a company based at Saint-Jean-de-Luz. (highly recommended) They came and measured up before returning a few weeks later to fit the new windows. They finished in 1½ days and left the house spotless. A couple of weeks ago we received an invitation from them to an apéro-dinatoire to mark their 1st year of business at their second shop they've opened at nearby Anglet. As they know we don't require any more windows it was just a nice friendly goodwill gesture. We went there yesterday evening - there must have been 20 or so other happy customers - and we had a very pleasant evening.. There was a beautifully presented selection of food - plus various drinks - soft drinks, wine, rhum-based punch, whisky, pastis etc etc. When we left, they gave us a complimentary umbrella and a sports cap.

This morning I was all set for an outing in a beautiful Swiss-built wooden shell coxed IV.. we'd got as far as putting the boat on the water and we were sitting in it when someone had a technical problem which meant we had to change boats. The only boat remaining was a glass fibre yolette (left). Wider and heavier than our more usual boats, these are what beginners here usually start in. I have to say I wasn't looking forward to the sortie but once we'd heaved it off its rack, put it on the water and set off I was pleasantly surprised. We were a mixed ability crew - which I approve of - two of the guys had only taken up rowing last October. I was at 'stroke' and as we headed off up-river - the last boat to leave the pontoon by some margin - I was immediately impressed by how solid the boat felt and soon the boat was running free in the water between strokes with that distinctive sound.

I forgot to mention that the previous Saturday I'd been invited to attend the annual meeting of an association concerned with the Comet WWII escape line that operated successfully in this area. The meeting was held in Hendaye - situated right on the border with Spain - as a gesture to those travelling from San Sebastian. I'm now a committee member. Planning for this year's commemoration is virtually complete with just a few minor tweaks resulting from suggestions raised at the meeting. This year, instead walking over the original mountain crossing route that ran from Ciboure, Urrugne, Bidegain Berri farm, Bidassoa, Sarobe farm, Renteria that was used by Comet up to early 1943, we'll use one of the inland routes (via Anglet-Sutar, Ustaritz, Larressore, Espelette, Dantxaria) that were adopted after the arrests at Bidegain Berri in January '43. This has been thoroughly researched with the families involved and I believe it follows closely the inland routes used later on in the war. In a separate initiative, Philippe Connart, Cheryl Padgham and Geoff Warren conducted their own research and it will be interesting to see how similar the routes turn out to be. 

In conjunction with the descendants of those courageous wartime passeurs, the committee has arranged a splendid long weekend that I'm sure all attendees will enjoy. Apparently, the final day sees a climb steeper than anything experienced on the more traditional route. This should put to rest any lingering fears 'out there' that this year's commemorative march will be but a pale shadow of the traditional Ciboure route.

181. April showers in the Pays Basque

6th April 2012. Forecast for the morning is for rain, but as they often get it wrong for this corner of Aquitaine, I'll take a peek out of the windows in the morning to see if rowing is on the cards. As it's the first Saturday of the month, it's also the day for an apéro after the outing..

Haven't played any Chet Baker in a while so - to put that right - here he is with Almost blue:

And another - Around Midnight - the classic late night jazz track that Thelonious Monk made all his own - but played here by Chet:   

7th April 2012. A good row this morning - had an outing in a mixed VIII and we did 14km.. Stayed on a bit longer afterwards as it was that time of the month (1st Saturday) for an attitude adjuster! Still haven't got used to drinking whisky at midday though.. Had a quick word with Perle Bouge who was there having a vigorous work-out on a rowing machine. She said she'll be going to the Olympics in July. In case you haven't read previous posts about her, she was involved in a road accident I believe when she was 19 and is now confined to a wheelchair. Despite that, she took up rowing a couple of years ago and won a Silver medal at the recent World Championships in New Zealand. She has a fierce determination to succeed and I hope her efforts will be rewarded this summer.

I know I included this track by Amy Winehouse fairly recently but I make no apologies for putting it in again. She had one of the best female jazz/blues voices of my memory. Such a tragedy that her personal life spiralled out of control the way it did.

Jardin Public, Biarritz (in 2006)

10th April 2012. Situated opposite the magnificent old station (now the theatre) in Biarritz, the Jardin Public used to be a haven of 'coolth' and shade even on the hottest of wind-free summer days when the heat can sometimes wrap the Côte Basque in a clammy embrace like a warm damp blanket. The square was a leafy green enclave shaded by some mightily tall old trees and it was the perfect place to pause on a bench after lunch in the tranquil shade offered by the canopy high above. The dog enjoyed the respite from the hot pavements too and it wouldn't take him long before he'd be 'paws-up' on the grass having a snooze. There were some ancient cedars that spread their limbs out high and wide and others (chestnuts perhaps?) that I couldn't name to save my life. Here it is (left) as it was in 2006.

Unfortunately, a great storm screamed in out of the Bay of Biscay in January 2009 and it devastated the coast from the Pays Basque up as far as Bordeaux - flattening 60% of the endless pine forests of Les Landes. It wreaked havoc with these majestic old trees in the Jardin Public as can be seen here:

Here's a tree going down in that great storm.. 

Now, the Jardin Public has totally lost its former oasis-like quality, as the removal of the trees has exposed it completely to the relentless heat of the sun. While it's no longer possible to sit there in summer and unwind in the shade, it remains a favourite place at other times of the year. If we could afford a house (haha!) or, more realistically, an apartment in the centre of Biarritz, something around here would figure high on our wish list. 

12th April 2012. It's been a while since I've featured a Basque choir and one of the very best is Gogotik.. This particular one by them always sends a shiver through me:

I've been meaning to mention the Musée Basque in Bayonne for some time.. It is a remarkable collection - I believe the largest collection of Basque artefacts anywhere - and no visit to Bayonne should overlook it. It starts off with simple displays of the pastoral life of the Basques and as you penetrate through to the upper floors the scope gradually widens until the full glories of the museum's contents are revealed. (By the way, admission is free on the first Sunday of the month).

I've previously mentioned here the emblematic painter Spanish Basque Ramiro Arrue who captured the stylised essence of Basqueness in his work to such an extent that his vision of the Pays Basque is still shared by many and it endures here to this day. Here's a two-part video about him:    

This next clip features some of the distinctive headstones that may be found in the cemeteries here. They're not sad places, lying forgotten under a few dripping yew trees with weeds rampant - they're kept spotless (like the rest of the Pays Basque) and provide another insight into Basque culture.