Latest Blog Posts
National Basque Festival in Elko, Nevada (VIDEO)
Today’s video is all about Nevada! The 56th National Basque Festival took place in Elko, Nevada last weekend. I wasn’t able to make it because I was doing Basque walking tours in San Francisco, but my sister Stephanie made it out there for the party. She was gracious enough to take over the Hella Basque YouTube channel to document the event for us.
How Ernest Hemingway Made the Festival of San Fermin Famous
The festival of San Fermin in Pamplona, Nafarroa kicked off this past weekend. Although officially a celebration in honor of Pamplona’s patron saint, the festival is most famous for its Running of the Bulls, when daring festival-goers clad in red and white take to the streets to be chased by bulls. Every afternoon these same bulls meet their fate in the festival’s famous bullfights at the Plaza de Toros. The festival of San Fermin has been an annual affair in Pamplona since the 15th century, although the bull run and bullfighting are more modern traditions. San Fermin was primarily a local affair, relatively unknown outside of the Basque Country. But American writer Ernest Hemingway brought this tradition to the attention and fascination of the outside world in the 1920’s.
The First Basque Walking Tour of San Francisco
Last month I told you about how I was starting up a Basque walking tour of San Francisco to visit the old Basque hotels and restaurants of years past. So I thought you might like an update on how it all went.
Honoring Anthony Bourdain, Friend of the Basques
Today would have been celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain’s 63rd birthday. Many of us in the Basque American community were deeply affected by Anthony Bourdain’s sudden death last year, because he has long been a friend of the Basques. On this day, I wanted to dedicate this blog post to celebrating his appreciation of the Basque Country and its unique food culture.
Udaleku: Basque American Summer Camp
This week on the Hella Basque YouTube channel, I’m talking about Udaleku, the North American Basque Organizations’ summer camp for kids ages 10-15. Udaleku is at the Basque Cultural Center in South San Francisco, CA this year. I thought that would be a good opportunity to talk about the program and what makes it so important in perpetuating Basque culture in the United States.
Basque Paganism and Catholicism Collide on June 23rd for San Juan Eguna
There’s a special holiday coming up in the Basque Country this weekend: San Juan Eguna. Have you heard of it? I wanted to write about it because honestly I’d never heard about it before I started digging around Instagram for scenes from the Basque Country. I found wonderful photos and videos of Basques having bonfires on the beach for this special night, and I wanted to learn more about it. San Juan Eguna is the feast day of St. John the Baptist, and it coincides with the Basque summer solstice celebration.
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When I moved away for college, I left behind my Basque American community and felt very disconnected from my Basque identity. An isolation I imagine many in the diaspora may feel at one point or another.
My hope is that Hella Basque can help Basques in the diaspora feel more connected to their heritage, whether or not they have physical ties to a Basque community.
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