2. The Basque Country Our country is not very big, only 100kms
square but it is very nice as it has something of all worlds. In
the North we have unspoilt beaches against the backdrop of high
green mountains, in the South like around the Mediteranean
vineyards are found.
3. The landscape inside: the mountains, the fields The Basque
Countrys nice and rainy weather gives a green landscape, there are
a lot of pine, oak and chestnut trees in big forests. Since we are
very close to the Pyrenees, in fact, we live there, we have got
lots of mountains. We have got green fields full of grass in which
we can find lots of farmhouses scattered all over the place.
4. For many centuries, agriculture has been the Basque Countrys
main activity At first, it began in the valleys and in the flat
fields, and later on it moved to the mountainous regions. From the
year 1950 the agriculture sector lost its predominance in the
Basque Country. Nowadays, these are the main agricultural products:
sugarbeet, corn, potatoes and barley...
5. Cattle raising Cattle raising is still an important activity
for the farmhouses. There are big cow and sheep farms in many
places in the Basque Country which are helped by the Oceanic
climate. The milk industries every year obtain 275.286 litres of
milk from the cows.
6. The Basque people lived in scattered farmhouses and,
therefore, they produced everything they needed. The shape of these
caserios farmhouses is very significant; they have got three
floors: in the ground floor we can find the stable, where we keep
animals, the second floor the farmers live and, in the third floor,
the chamber, where the grass is kept and dried.Typical Farmer
withTxapela.
7. Until the year 1975, industry was the most important element
in the Basque economical development, especially thanks to the iron
mines and ship building. At the end of the 70s, after the
economical crisis and when Spain had entered the European Union,
the Basque Country went through big changes in its industrial
structure.
8. Fishing has always been very important We have got different
sorts of fishing boats: 70% of the boats take part in the
shallow-sea fishing. Provided with small boats they fish hakes
breams, anchovies... About a hundred boats take part in deep-sea
fishing. The biggest deep-sea fishing boats, provided with big
freezes, look for cod- fishes and tuna.
9. The coast: the sea villages Since the Basque country is on
the Atlantic shore, there is a lot of landscape connected with the
sea. Lots of shore villages were created, for example: Bermeo and
Getaria. All these villages have got the same pattern: the port
(full of boats ), surrounded by the village consisting of tall
houses and narrow streets. The people from these villages have
always lived on fishing.
10. The coast: the seaside San Sebastian La Concha On some
beaches you can surf. The waves are good for the surf and many
champions come to the Basque country to surf.
11. THE FIESTAS IN TYPICAL BASQUE CLOTHESVITORIA IN CHILDREN
WEAR IN THE FIESTASAUGUST
12. The cabezudos or big heads are seen in most fiestas in the
Basque Country. Inside them are teenagers. In their hands they
carry a pigs bladder.The cabezudos run after thepeople and hit them
with theirpig bladder. This makes a lot ofnoise which makes the
littlechildren very frightened not us.The cabezudos hit the
smallchildren very softly but thebigger ones like us they hit
hard.
13. The Giants Giants are at some festivals. They have inside
them a teenage boy or a girl to move them disguised around the
streets.
14. One figure that is typical in the fiestas is Gargantua, a
huge fat man who swallows children in his enormous mouth, only to
expel them out through a door in the back of his trousers, the
young children are very frightened of this fat man. Mari Jaia the
mascot of the fiestas in Bilbao in August.
15. The San Fermins are the firstimportant fiestas in the
BasqueCountry. They celebrate themin the capital of
Navarra(Pamplona). For this dayeveryone puts on a white T-shirt,
white trousers and a redhankercheif. Thousands offoreign people
come to thefiestas and Pamplona is full.
16. The running of the bulls in Pamplona This world famous
fiesta, is from 7 of July to 14 of July. At eight oclock each
morning mostly young men (although anyone can) run in front of the
bulls, this is very dangerous and every year some people are
injured. It usually lasts from two to three minutes
17. Typical Dishes. Bacaloa pil- pil which is cod in garlic
sauce is very nice.Angulas which are very smalleels, are very
expensive but rico. Most bars have tapas like tortilla, jamon
serrano etc.
18. TOURISM The Basque tourism, the most attractive things are:
the landscape, the food, the art, the sports, the festivals, the
traditional entertainments and the people. In the last few years,
the inner tourism has become more important with sport and health
tourism.
19. There are castles for tourists Butron is an enchanted
castle with it we can image what it was like in the battles that
took place there in the middle ages. The area around the castle has
been converted into a garden with more than five hundred trees of
different types each carefully chosen.
20. BILBAOSt Nicholas Church built in La Plaza Nueva is the
oldestthe 18th century it has a square in Bilbao it was
finishedBaroque style. Dedicated to in 1849. It has 64 arches and
isthe patron saint of sailors. in Neoclassical style.
21. La Ribera Market built in Calzadas de Mallona steps1920 is
of great that go to Bilbaos firstarchitectural beauty. cementery,
built 1806.
22. Church of San Anton built The Cathedral of Santiago.in the
16th Century. It has Built in the 14th century ina Gothic style.
the Gothic style.
23. The Guggenheim. This museum is a spectacular building
designed by Frank O. Gehry, with 24,000 square meters of exhibition
area and located in the very heart of Bilbao. It was built between
1993 and 1995. It is an extraordinary combination of
interconnecting shapes of metal and glass.
24. Puppy.The giant dog at the entrance of themuseum is always
full of flowers. It was builtonly for the museums opening ceremony.
Butthe people liked it so now it is permanent.
25. The Euskalduna Concert Hall is a modern building built in
the shape of a ship in dry dock.The Euskalduna Bridge has anunusual
shape with separate lanesfor pedestrians, bikes and cars.
26. Deusto University opened in The Arriaga Theatre1886 built
in the classical style. opened in 1890 is aIt is a private
university famous very luxurious andfor business studies students.
elegant building in the centre of Bilbao.
27. Bilbao Metro.Puente Colgante or Hangingbridge built in 1893
joins bothbanks of the river. It is made of Bilbao Museumiron. of
Fine Arts.
28. San Mames La catedral is the stadium of the Athletic of
Bilbao. It is one of the oldest stadiums in the Spanish football
league, without doubt it is one with the most history. The stadium
was inagurated by Alfonso XIII in the Semana Santa of 1913. In
total there are places for 48874 people. All the players are
Basque.
29. Bermeo is the second most important port in Viscaya. In
1476 it was named the capital of Viscaya now Bilbao is.Gaztelugatxe
is a smallisland found in the northeast of Bakio. The island
isjoined only by a bridge tothe main land. When youcross the bridge
you climb asteep slope with 300 stepsto the small church at thetop
of the Island.
30. GERNIKA-LUMO It is a town outstanding personality of its
own. It is the historical capital of the Basque Country thanks to
its thousand year old tree and due to its tragic bombing by Hitler
s planes (permission of the dictator Franco to practise bomb on his
own civilians) on the 26th of April 1937, which was immortalised in
Pablo Picasso s picture "Gernika".
