Berbakoa: Barandi's Nevada Days (2018)

Here I am again, in Reno, thanks to a grant given by USAC.
I am going to spend this summer here, doing some research and visiting old friends.

Picture-bertsos / Bertso-argazkiak

The pictures are going to be an excuse to compose some bertsos, which I will call picture-bertsos, bertso-argazkiak.
On my way to USA I had to take the plane in Madrid and there I took some pictures.

Renoko bidean
nabil ni herabe
Madrildik abitzea
omen dugu lege
Espainian ele anitz
badira, halere
elebakartasuna
hemen da errege.

Kalean gora kalean behera
ta hemen gelditu seko
erakunde baten egoitza da
egiari omentzeko
leoiak eta dotorezia
aurreko eta atzeko
parlamentua ei da leku bat
danok alkar ulertzeko
esaldi hura arrotza barik
bihurtu bedi etxeko.

Today the crew of USAC and some visitors from different universities (University of the Basque Country, Rey Juan Carlos University...) have gathered to have a barbecue at Idlewild Park which is about one mile from Down Town Reno. Good atmosphere, good company, and good food&drinks.

Gaur, uztailak 29, Renoko euskal diasporako bi ordezkari bikainekin izateko parada izan dut: Joxe Mallea historialari eta Jesus Goñi bertsolari nafarrarekin... Badira 50 urte baino gehiago hará joan zirela. Jesus bertsotan aritzeko ere xaxatu egin dugu.

Joxe Mallea eta
Jesus Goñi artzaia
bazkalkide izan ditut
izanik garaia
ta bertsotan Goñiri
jarri nion gaia
segituan kantatzeko
hark zuen kuraia
Euskal Herriak hemen
badauka sustraia.

The following Saturday Jesús Goñi invited me to Gardnerville and he told me many stories. There he was encouraged to sing some improvised bertsos, recalling the many times he has sung bertsos in JT, the Basque restaurant of Gardnerville.

On the way back I also tempted Goñi with a kopla, which had its response.

But this is the usual landscape that I enjoy every day. I want to finish a publication in Euskera about America in Basque literature. I also want to start an anthology of multilingual literary texts that were published in the Rein de Navarra. I want to prepare two communications (one on bertsolaritza and the other on literature or on polysystems) for two Conferences... I want too many things, hahaha! But I am making progress... I guess.

CBSn edo Euskal Zentroan
beti hasten dut eguna
lan egiteko ta ikertzeko
txoko bat goxo-lehuna
Euskal Herritik datozenentzat
ikerlarien laguna
ea oraingoan bukatzen dugun
bukatu behar duguna.

The next weekend we had to go to the Basque picnic in Gardnerville, where we met with illustrious people. From Reno we have gone Iñigo Medina, Iñaki Arrieta and the three. There we met Jean Flesher, from Salt Lake City, Utah. Cook, entrepreneur and musician: he sings in the Amerikanuak group. And above all, euskaldun: he speaks a very nice Basque, baxenafarra.

Hona hemen bere taldaren argazkia/ Here a band's picture:
amerikanuak band bilaketarekin bat datozen irudiak

amerikanuak band bilaketarekin bat datozen irudiak

And here two sons of Esterenzubi (Lower Navarre), Mattin Etchamendi and Jonhy Kurutxet. The two came to work as shepherds and one lives with his family in a ranch and the other is one of the 4 bertsolaris of the United States and lives in San Francisco, after having started a gardening company.

Mattin Etchamendi is the author of Urrunemo Mendebalean artzain, a wonderful book, in which he tells of his life as an emigrant, a sheperd in the American West. He is a great singer and I recorded one of the bertsos composed by him for the Basque picnics in the USA.

Euskaltasuna zaintzeak hemen
zinez badu meritua
hainbat euskaldun paraje hontan
artzaintzan da aritua
hostalaritzan euskal jendea
ere bada aditua
Gardneville da Euskal Herri bat
Nevadan sustraitua.

From north Virginia street to Verdi, a town in Washoe County on varied roads: sometimes it was a bike lane, sometimes a lane on the road, sometimes it was along the side of the road. 22 miles in total: not too much but enough to keep in shape.

Crossing Truckee River...

With Big Foot, my old friend from Verdi.

Bizikleta ta biok

berriro hemen gu

ohitura osasuntsuak

beharko mantendu

Verdi-ra nire lema

egin dut zuzendu

Big Foot lagun zaharrak

hemen segitzen du.

In the mornings, on my way to the UNR, I was surprised by an exhibition of classic cars in the downtown of Reno. Spectacular.

Back to the ordinary tasks during the week.

The next week I also made a trip on the bike to Verdi.

With some colleagues from Madrid coming from Rey Juan Carlos University. We did not run into too much, but we could be at a dinner and I could tell you something about the Basque heritage of the state of Nevada.

Joxe Mallea, who lived in Elko for several years, and who has a tight bound with that town and its people, suggested that I spend a weekend visiting it.

Of course, I accepted the offer and there we were able to visit the Basque restaurants (Star Hotel and Toki ona), the Basque house, and the emblematic places in which the Basques had a lot to do.

On Sunday we went to walk through the Ruby Mountains, where the Basques were also very present, because they were dedicated to herding flocks of sheep the summers

Elko Euzkalduak Club. Now they have an interesting venue, just outside of Elko. On the facade, the American flag and the ikurriña.

Reno aldetik sortalderantza
barrena ilusioz betia
Joxegaz Elko bisitatzea
da gure asmo amestia
han jatetxeak topatu doguz
ta euskal jende irekia
hara non dogun Nevada aldeko
gure Euskal Herri txikia.

After hearing mass in the parish of Saint Joseph of Elko, when Joxe and me left we both met Ana Mari Ozamiz, from Arteaga (Bizkaia). In the license plate of his car, it says "Amuma" ... She is an authentic amuma. Dozens of years teaching Basque dances in Elko. 83 years old. She speaks beautiful Basque. Joxe was a priest in that same parish between 1967 and 1971.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The academic life of the CBS has resumed the rhythm with the Doctoral Dissertation of Ziortza Gandarias on August 29. This was my short commentary on Facebook:

"Today has been the doctoral dissertation of Ziortza Gandarias (galdakaoztarra, from Galdakao) in the Center for Basque Studies. Intense day The dissertation was about Jokin Zaitegi and his contribution to the Basque culture through the Euzko-Gogoa magazine. So interesting. A brilliant dissertation that has deserved a cum laude unanimously. Zorionak to the new doctor who deserves it. After we have posed with her and her husband Josu Zubizarreta, a great guy from Boise. To end the day we celebrated the event at Little Waldorf on N Virginia street: very good atmosphere."

Ziortza bere Distertazioan

hasi jakun erakusten

utopia bat herritik kanpo

nola berriro dan hasten

galdakaoztarrak kontu guztiok

ondotxo zekien josten

Eusko gogo bat txikia gugan

ikusi dugu berpizten.

Portola (NV) is a place that I did not know and near that town, there are vestiges of the presence of Basque shepherds. Joxe Mallea once again, generously, took me to see that area where we found a sheep camp that was managed by Basque shepherds. There a country oven has been restored by Joxe with the help of the US Forest Service.

Later, Joxe and I visited Lake Davis, beautiful, where more than one Basque has taken a dip.

September 1st:

Today has been a busy day. In the morning in Gardnerville interviewing a Navarrese inmigrant in Nevada: Jesus Rey, from the Erro Valley (Bizkarreta), about Navarrese immigrants in Nevada and California. A great guy, Jesus Rey: he came when he was 17 years old and ended up running a Basque restaurant for 29 years (with a Navarrese partner too): Country Club Restaurant. Thanks to this, their children have prospered in the new continent.

Erro aldetik ta hamazazpi

urterekin etorrita

Jesus Rey dauka izena eta

ez du egiten zarata

Gardnevillen da bere etxea

hemen familia dauka ta

hainbat urtetan lan einda gero

hemen sustraiak botata.

In the afternoon, Sandra Ott, a wonderful university professor from the CBS, hosted a reception at her home in Galena Forest (NV). We have gone back to celebrate the doctoral thesis of Mrs. Gandarias and the small "academic" community of Reno has tightened their ties. Family Picture

From time to time I make some "getaway" to visit some friends who are in the south of San Francisco, in an area called Menlo Park. From the Bay Bridge, you can see San Francisco's skyline in the fog.

On Monday (September 3) was Labor Day in the United States and the Haritz Azurmendi (from Albistur, Gizpuzkoa) and we both went to Lake Tahoe (a bath in crystal clear waters), we had lunch there and from there to Virginia City; now it is a tourist city but that It was very populated during the 19th century by the gold mines it housed.

In this last week I had to do a little sprint with the publications and with the interviews.

On Thursday, interviewing Mary Lou Urrutia, daughter of an immigrant from the Erro Valley (Navarra). An excellent person very involved in the activities of the Basque Diaspora.

We were in Louis Basque Corner and Luis Zabalegi himself (from Lerga, Navarra), owner of the place, joined us. Great guy.

Starting the day at 6 am at Espinal's house (outside of Reno) celebrating the Diaspora Eguna with balloons in the background. What great people! Gina Espinal is the daughter of immigrants from the Erro Valley (Navarra).

With Gina Espinal...

Then we had the event organized by the CBS to celebrate the day of the Basque Diaspora. We have departed from Rancho San Rafael, we have passed through the park and there are an oven and a wagon of Basque shepherds who worked in Nevada. There are also some explanatory panels. Many has explained how they brought that furnace by truck and how they restored it. Then we went to the statue of the Basque Shepherd (made by N. Basterretxea). On the way back some pizzas (in Pub n 'Sub) have ended the celebration.