Astero
Ontario Basque Center to Hold Saint Michael Celebration
Our friends at the Ontario Basque Club have shared news about their upcoming event, the "Saint Michael Basque Festival," that will take place on September 29th at 1:30pm. Everyone is invited to share in a day of Basque culture that includes food, fun and music. The festivities will begin in Moore Park where a statue of Saint Michael will be blessed and a ceremonial ezpata dantza will be performed in honor of Mikel Deuna or Saint Michael. This will be followed by a procession from Moore Park to the Basque Center where the dance will repeated in its entirety. Txorizo sandwiches, paella, erroskilak, beer, pop and water will be available beginning at 2:00. contests include weight carrying, tug-of-war, txapela and abarketa throwing, and a tortilla contest among others. The event also includes a free concert by Kalakan at 5:00. For more information visit their festival web page, and see you in Ontario!
Basque Classes at Boise's Basque Museum
We also received word that Basque lessons at Boise's Basque Museum have resumed. There are three levels provided this year: Beginning Basque is taught by William Thompson Uberuaga, from Meridian; Intermediate is taught by Itxaso Cayero, from Mungia; and the Advanced class is taught by Oihana Andion from Iruña. Beginning and Advanced classes are held on Mondays from 6-8pm with Intermediate classes being held on Thursdays from 7-9pm. Classes will run through December 16th and cost $65 per semester for Museum members, and $80 for non-members. There is still time to enroll. To register, or for more information, contact Annie Gavica amgavica@gmail.com, or call the museum 208-343-2671. They also informed us that the annual Basque Singing night will take place in October and that Euskara Eguna will be celebrated on December 2nd at the Museum. …ikasizue euskaraz mintzatzen!
Basque Events in NYC
Finally, we would like to share information on events taking place in New York just prior to the Basque Club's Centennial Celebration in October. The Etxepare Basque Institute has organized events on October 7-11 as part of the Bernardo Atxaga Chair program at the City University of New York (CUNY). This year's guest professor is Jasone Cenoz from the University of the Basque Country who specializes in multilingual education. Events include conferences on October 7th and 9th held at CUNY and the Black Box Theater at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice respectively. The event will conclude with a concert in memory of Mikel Laboa. For full program details, including topics to be discussed please see their flier.
