solo Valentine

My wife is still in London having fun while I'm left to look after the cat in sunny St Jean de Luz. It's a tough job but somebody has to do it. Saint Valentines Day is a far less commercial affair in France compared to other countries. While couples do favour a romantic soirée pour deux, there is less emphasis on buying presents and giving flowers. I'm sure French ladies would appreciate such gifts but Frenchmen would argue that they are romantic every day of the year. I agree with this sentiment, if you love someone why only show it one night of the year? Probably I am just jealous of those enjoying the company of others this evening, including my wife who is invariably at some party or other. Dîner pour un encore.

Basque of the day:- alone :: bakarrik

cause and effect

Mon Dieu! Even the air of St Jean de Luz smelled of militancy today. A day of strike action that had begun with a sombre midnight public announcement crawled cancer-like across the country. All day major cities policed crowds of angry protestors stamping up and down their pavements flag waving and ranting as Black Thursday (jeudi noir) took hold.

As a neutral outsider I have a number of questions:

1. the world has been aware that we are in economic crisis for some time, how does strike action help?
2. the world has known that French finances and economic strength have been in crisis for years, how does strike action help?
3. any logical being appreciates that during a depression salaries and job security cannot be falsely safeguarded just to make people feel better, how does strike action help?
4. Sarkozy is the first French premier to appreciate the modern economic world and is trying to correct the ship before it runs aground, how does strike action help?

Answers gratefully received. Newspapers state that almost 70% of the population supports strike action, I am yet to meet one in favour so presume they are the same 70% that allegedly want for Scottish independence.

Basque of the day:- bizarre :: bitxi

the iron is not hot

Amidst the worst economic downturn in over 60 years many avenues of French life are going on strike tomorrow. They are striking against Sarkozy's handling of the economic crisis and freezing of pay increases. I am trying to understand how bringing the economy to a complete halt for the day will assist.

Both public and private sector are in on the strike, including, hospitals, schools, administrators/ public sector, banks, car-workers (who clearly are having a robust business environment), law courts, airports and even the theatre are walking out in protest. It is widely believed that unless drastic action is taken to cut expenditure in the public sector the purse from which it fattens itself will bankrupt the country.

Black Thursday (jeudi noir) as it has been dubbed will enjoy strike action and marches throughout the country. The locals I have spoken to are dumbfounded. They have little sympathy with the striking forces who they say should grow up. "This is the tenth strike in the last year, do these people not want to work? Do they not understand what is going on in the world?" said one lady. There are fears that given the perceived irrationality of national mobilisation businesses will move operations to other less militant countries.

Le Figaro ran a story stating that the body responsible for publishing enemployment figures will not publish the monthly report planned for release tomorrow. This is in protest at the loss of a few jobs as part of a cost cutting measure brought on by le crise. I secretly hope that the men digging up the road outside take a well earned rest tomorrow too. They only have a two-hour lunch break, aside from mandatory bi-hourly coffee/cigarette breaks, so have more cause for complaint than most.

Basque of the day:- immature :: heldugabe

anniversaire

The sun shone brightly today trying valiantly to help me forget the march of time! My wife knows me best and determined we spend the day out walking. I won't dwell. Other events on this date included:

- start of the Anglo-Zulu war (1879)
- East Pakistan renamed Bangladesh (1972)
- first medical report into the dangers of smoking published (1964)
- Theodora crowned Empress of the Byzantine Empire (1055)
- Vladislav II becomes King of Bohemia (1158)
- Mount Etna destroys parts of Siciliy and Malta (1693)
- Auntie Isla born (????)

Friends assure me that birthdays get easier the older and wiser one becomes, however I think I will always be grumpy on this particular day...

Basque of the day:- ancient :: antzinakoak

last supper

I hate birthdays, tomorrow is mine. On one hand it is lovely to celebrate being brought into this wonderful world, on the other it is an annual reminder that you are getting nearer to the check-out and are running out of time to achieve all the things you want to.

Given that today was Maria's first back in the Basque country for a while we spent it doing things we enjoy: a walk along the coast, visit to the market, lunch at our favourite bistro, select good movies to watch, make dinner (tonight was roasted stuffed peppers). Very lazy, but sometimes rest is required.

Basque of the day:- lazy :: alfer

twelfth night

Today is 'Three Kings Day' which is a big deal in Catholic circles. Being in the centre of a very large Catholic circle (i.e. on the border between France and Spain) I sought to uncover what takes place. It rather unsurprisingly involved eating and drinking, people in these parts seem to be expert in such past-times.

In France people eat a gâteau des Rois. A rather basic but delicious cake that contains a silver trinket. The person that is dealt the trinket is deemed king for the day and treated as such. In Spain El Día de los Reyes is more elaborate. Children polish their shoes and leave them on the doorstep for the Kings to leave presents in (much the same as our Christmas stockings). Wine and breads are also left for the Kings and their camels. Rather than the gâteau version, the Spanish eat Roscón, a bread filled with fruits and creams. Again there is a trinket, or Jesus doll, contained within that entitles the recipient to a day as a king. Both nations enjoy hearty celebratory meals with their families.

Being home alone this week I bought a gâteau des Rois for the cat and me to enjoy. She is now sitting on her favourite chair wearing crown and sceptre.

Basque of the day:- king :: errege

Basque birthday

Today was Maria's birthday, an eternally youthful one as ever. We celebrated with a tour of the many playparks around St Jean de Luz (having Anna with us is a great excuse to lark about). We found four parks and two carousels, Anna was duly delighted!

The other advantage of having an energetic two year old in our midst was the justification of a mid afternoon nap. After a suitably Basque lunch of piperade, axoa (which is also an Indian dish) and gateau Basque washed down with plentiful supples of vin rouge we took advantage of this extra snooze time.

This evening we ventured out to allow the ladies to enjoy the start of the sales. Rue Gambetta was awash with locals and the remaining Parisian holidaymakers all sharing the common goal of finding a bargain. Clare picked up a fab Longchamp bag and haggled an amazing price, I guess being the leading legal light in Bruxelles she was always going to negotiate hard! Roger and I opted to settle into the more familiar territory of Bordeaux Superieur and fromage. A fine way to celebrate Maria's arrival on the planet.

Basque of the day:- birthday :: urtebetetze

new beginnings

Arrived back in St Jean de Luz this afternoon after a wonderful Christmas and New Year. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful friends and family, a large thank you to all. Returning here does feel like coming home which is a good sign. The cat hadn't died either which also made for a happier start to the year.

The sea was becalmed, the mountains nonchalent and the streets soulful as we enjoyed a stroll around town. We have friends staying with us for the first few days of the year which gives us an excuse to enjoy new eateries and visits. I am particularly happy because they bring with them their beautiful two year old so I finally have someone to build sand castles with! Alas, we arrived home too late to enjoy todays beach club rendezvous (see 20 Dec entry) and a rugby match in Bayonne, next time. This year I intend to try everything, at least once.

It promises to be an interesting year (very possibly the most important in our lives) as global economies, cultures and political structures continue to adjust to the ongoing turmoil. It's going to be some ride so hang on tight.

Basque of the day:- crisis :: krisialdi

lang may yer lum reek

Well, Christmas already, that arrived like a bolt, off back to Ecosse to see the family... The blog is almost two months young and despite having only told a handful of folks about it it's somehow had almost 500 visitors, many thanks all!

A summary of the salient points from the last two months:

- Basque is unique
- peope are unbelievably friendly and proud of their heritage
- rugby and cesta punta are religions
- ceremony is important, they even celebrate the Dead in these parts
- there seem to be a billion fetes and feasts, and bulls get short thrift
- Louis VIX got married here, pirates lived here, Ravel was born here
- 007 in French is odd
- flamenco dancing is for real men
- nature is more powerful than we recognise
- working hours are relaxed and striking is a social pastime
- gateau Basque and hot chocolate are awesome
- big waves mean big surfing
- seafood is plentiful and fresh, food is a serious business
- the health service works and banks try to help
- being betwixt the Pyrenees and Atlantic means weird weather (mostly sun!)
- nothing beats spending a day in a cafe drinking coffee and chatting idly
- tradition and respect still exist, and Christmas has not been spoilt by commercialism

Happy Christmas! :: Zorionak eta urte berri on!

...we have prolonged our stay in the homeland, Santa becomes more expert the older he gets, have a happy Hogmanay!

aliens and carols

Noting that today was the shortest day of the year it was the first time I have really appreciated how late the light remains down here. It is half six just now and the sun has just finished setting behind the mountains (this photo was taken 5 mins ago). After a delicious lunch of veal escalopes in lemon we headed out to a carol concert in the church. It was conducted entirely in Basque and it was lovely to hear carols sung in this tongue. Afterwards we partook in a spot of promenading. It was very busy being the first weekend of the Christmas holidays as people dashed, as much as people down here dash, around the shops purchasing gifts for their loved ones. The people we have spoken told us that they only tend to start their Christmas shopping on the first weekend of the holidays.

The Parisians are back in town and we both felt that our home town was being invaded. I guess that is a bit like pot calling kettle black but we have gradually felt we have become part of the local town so having so many more people walking around felt strange, goodness knows how it will feel in August. Many Parisians have second homes here, St Jean de Luz being a very Gucci town, and the population probably more than doubles when the out-of-towners arrive.

Basque of the day:- foreign :: atzerritar

swimming and donkeys

The sun was back with a gusto today. Walking past the historic church, Ste. Jean de Baptiste, today we had an odd experience. Seemingly from within the sacred walls came the rocky tones of Eric Clapton. It turns out that in preparation for Christmas, numerous loudspeakers have been set up around town to provide the festive shoppers with background music.

This afternoon ventured onto the beach for the first time in a while and both made it into the sea! Not exactly warm (11C) but not numbingly cold either (don't tell Mrs W about this photo please!). We noticed a couple of others who were braving the water but appeared to have the luxury of a changing room. After speaking to them we have now joined, for the mammoth fee of EUR15 p.a., their local beach club that has changing facilities, showers and toilets nestled beneath the esplanade on the beach. They also meet daily throughout the year for a dip followed by drinks, very civilised.

St Jean de Luz officially opened the town for Christmas this evening. Imagine that, a town in the C21st that only starts to celebrate Christmas on the 20th December, so refreshing! Groups of Basque men wandered around dressed in the local costume accompanied by accordionists who roused them into song at the merest drop of a roasted chestnut. The crib we saw being constructed in one of the squares yesterday was also in full swing. Rather than the more recognised fat bloke dressed in red with a rubbish stick-on beard the crib was a backdrop for local children who acted out the nativity, complete with real cows, sheep and donkeys, fabulous!

Basque of the day:- nativity scene :: jaiotza

sapin noel and Basque parties

It does rain a lot here. My mother always told me not to dress the house for Christmas before the 10th of December so we set out today to get us a 'sapin noel'. We perused various tree-vending establishments around St Jean de Luz before buying one from the wee shop next door (the one where you bought all the biscuits Pete). This week's stressful moment came when we couldn't decided between a two foot potted tree or a seven foot free-stander, we opted for the big one. I tell you, life here can be as tough as it used to be in the City.

We managed to squeeze it into the elevator and expanded it accordingly in the salon. Does anyone else have as much trouble trying to get the blasted thing vertical? It took so long to find a semblance of verticality that we didn't have time to dress it, something for tomorrow.

This evening our friend Pascale has invited us for dinner to her house in Ascain, a lovely wee village in the Pyrenees foothills about 20 mins from St Jean de Luz. Will we manage to cope with fashionable French etiquette? Will we get served anything we don't recognise? Will my tenuous grasp of French see me through the evening? These questions and more to be answered tomorrow (well later this evening probably but I expect I will drink too much and go straight to bed when I get home). A bientot...

Basque of the day:- dinner :: arratsekoa

cashing in on French luxury

Reading Le Figaro today it appears French luxury brands are responding in different ways to 'le Crise'. In Paris the jiji boutique Lenotre is offering customers a special yuletide chocolate log for a bargain price of EUR115 (it does feed 8 after all, so just over EUR14 a slice). The log is on sale 19th December, get in fast...

Restaurants in Paris are offering cut-prices for recession struck diners. At the Gucci Paris caterer come restaurant Chez Dalloyau, a proposed Christmas menu starts at cEUR60 (before wine), and the EUR65 offering by Chez Francoise (including coffee) has been reserved by 170 people with only 30 places left.

Champagne sales were down almost 17% in October which is bad news for the industry as 40% of sales are realised in Q4... surely some fizzy bargains shall ensue??

Back to tripe then... poor lambs!

Armistice Day

We walked across a rain-drenched St Jean de Luz, past the harbour across the river and into Ciboure for the Armistice Day memorial. Since we arrived slightly early we milled around with various soldiers, sailors and police constabularies. They were all very amiable but looked so young, particularly the soldiers, which made me feel very morose not because I am getting older but in consideration of what we were here to remember. Although battle thankfully never ravished this area (although there are various German pill boxes along the cliffs used as lookout posts) many young men gave their lives or as they said after reading their names "mort pour France". Around four hundred locals joined the forty or so servicemen as the mayor gave a short reading thanking the families and those other countries who came to the rescue of France 90 and 70 years ago.

Imagine having been 17 and fighting in World War I, the war to end all wars, and then on your 39th birthday, after enduring years of Spanish flu, WWII breaks out. It is worrying that kids these days moan about stress and are want to create their own violence. However, we need to remember that there do remain less fortunate innocents in countries such as Iraq, Palestine and Afghanistan who are mixed up in daily bombardments between two sides they neither support or condone. I always feel very proud and hopeful on days like today, not patriotism as such, more a collective belief that were things to become terrible again we may still be able to band together and vanquish evil.

After the mayor's short piece, local children read the names of those from Ciboure who had died. Following the drummers and servicemen who marched ahead we proceeded back across the bridge into St Jean de Luz where the names of the fallen Luzien's were read out. Once the ceremonial aspect had finished everyone went back to the Hotel de Ville for an aperitif and some fabulous Bayonne ham (jambon). A real sense of community still pervades here. Many of the names read out shared the same family name, names which are still highly prevalent today.