THE BASQUE COUNTRY
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| Via Romana in Sare |
We left Olhette after breakfast and climbed up a hill leading to the landmark of La Rhune (Larrun in Basque), at an elevation of 905m, which can be reached by a yellow train designed to cope with the steep ascend to the hilltop thanks to a taylor-made toothed rail.
On the other side of that hill, in the valley, lies a small village called Sare, which is definitely one of the highlights of Basque classical architecture, together with Ainhoa. Sare is set in the middle of green pastures, has a large church, which somehow looks like a fortress. It also has a pelota court with concrete steps serving as seats for on-lookers during matches on the long sides of the court, perpendicular to the wall used to send back the ball (similar to squash). The pelota game is really popular in the Basque country but also beyond in Béarn (there is actually a tournament of Aquitaine) and it is not rare to see people practicing it in the evening after work. Rugby is obviously just as popular.
On the other side of that hill, in the valley, lies a small village called Sare, which is definitely one of the highlights of Basque classical architecture, together with Ainhoa. Sare is set in the middle of green pastures, has a large church, which somehow looks like a fortress. It also has a pelota court with concrete steps serving as seats for on-lookers during matches on the long sides of the court, perpendicular to the wall used to send back the ball (similar to squash). The pelota game is really popular in the Basque country but also beyond in Béarn (there is actually a tournament of Aquitaine) and it is not rare to see people practicing it in the evening after work. Rugby is obviously just as popular.
As we sat down at the terrace of a small restaurant whose owners were visibly not overjoyed to have two backpackers with their backpack seat at the terrace for the Sunday lunch (true enough we were looking a little different from the other customers). Our neighbours were commenting the last results of the local rugby tournament and the upcoming matches. I went on, undeterred, to taste some achoa (minced veal stew with local peppers) and a glass of red Irouleguy. l went inside to pay the bill and the lady in charge of this family business repeated the order we had taken, highlighting, in what I perceived to be a disapproving tone, that we hadn't had any coffees. I retorted that coffee was the enemy of the wanderer (because it makes you pee).
Next to the pelota court, a house had a replica of Picasso's Guernica painted one of the garden's wall. Guernica is a Basque town that was bombed by the Nazis upon request of the Spanish Nationalists during the World War II. Out of this historical episode, Picasso's Guernica has become a symbol of Spanish oppression on the Basque people. That painting had just come in the news the week before when a Spanish art scholar claimed that Picasso's Guernica was not meaning what it was famous for and in fact that Picasso had never meant to represent the battle of Guernica literally but rather the deteriorating and violent relationship with his wife (the couple would be represented by a bull and a horse). Picasso has cleverly always refused to clearly explain what his painting actually meant. Here in Sure, the representation in the garden was clearly meant as an affirmation of belonging to the Basque identity. Next to the pelota court was a tag mentioning "ETA", which is the abbreviation for the Basque separatist movement that had coincidentally made a media announcement on May 3rd, 2018 that it had decided to disband.
Next to the pelota court, a house had a replica of Picasso's Guernica painted one of the garden's wall. Guernica is a Basque town that was bombed by the Nazis upon request of the Spanish Nationalists during the World War II. Out of this historical episode, Picasso's Guernica has become a symbol of Spanish oppression on the Basque people. That painting had just come in the news the week before when a Spanish art scholar claimed that Picasso's Guernica was not meaning what it was famous for and in fact that Picasso had never meant to represent the battle of Guernica literally but rather the deteriorating and violent relationship with his wife (the couple would be represented by a bull and a horse). Picasso has cleverly always refused to clearly explain what his painting actually meant. Here in Sure, the representation in the garden was clearly meant as an affirmation of belonging to the Basque identity. Next to the pelota court was a tag mentioning "ETA", which is the abbreviation for the Basque separatist movement that had coincidentally made a media announcement on May 3rd, 2018 that it had decided to disband.
Sare has a high street of traditional basque houses, a high-end hotel and restaurant, a couple of shops. The main street opens on a path paved with stones which reminded of an old roman road which it was. We followed it for several kilometres. It went through a number of finely manicured gardens surrounding immaculate houses with windows and window-panes neatly painted in red. The style of construction is massive, but every detail is impeccably executed. This bulkiness and yet neat construction reminded me of the farms in Bavaria.
Ainhoa, a few miles east is also proudly aligning its partly half-timbered facades along the main street. Its platan trees are well groomed and brought closer in the hope that they, one day, connect with their neighbours. On every house front, above the entrance door, there is a stone carved with the name of the original owners and the date of construction of the house, some as far back as the 17th century. The village was surrounded by woods, pastures and large trees that imprinted their character onto the unapologetic roundness of the hills.
Ainhoa, a few miles east is also proudly aligning its partly half-timbered facades along the main street. Its platan trees are well groomed and brought closer in the hope that they, one day, connect with their neighbours. On every house front, above the entrance door, there is a stone carved with the name of the original owners and the date of construction of the house, some as far back as the 17th century. The village was surrounded by woods, pastures and large trees that imprinted their character onto the unapologetic roundness of the hills.
Images
1/ via romana in Sare
2/ Guernica in my backyard (Sare)
3/ an ancient bride not far from Sare
4/ platans in front of houses, Ainhoa
5/ bucolic Bidarray
1/ via romana in Sare
2/ Guernica in my backyard (Sare)
3/ an ancient bride not far from Sare
4/ platans in front of houses, Ainhoa
5/ bucolic Bidarray
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| Guernica in my backyard, in Sare |
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| an ancient bridge not far from Sare |
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| platans on the house front, Ainhoa |
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| bucolic Bidarray |
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