In the land of Ramuntcho
In just one day there is a country where you can see the mountains, the sea and the countryside,
"Ongi etorri Euskal Herria", Welcome to the Basque Country, near Spain,
From the valley of the borders of the Aldudes, to the balcony overlooking the ocean of the Corniche,
Towards the highlands of Soule, passing through the star villages of Labourd, rich.
A modest whaling fishing village, it became the resort of a royal couple,
Chic and elegant Biarritz, the fruit of an imperial passion between Napoleon III and Eugenie,
At the beginning of the 20th century. was run by nearly 300 fishermen at the foot of the Atalaye plateau,
Decorated with souvenir plaques, around sixty crampottes line up in the only flowered street
« I do not know of a more charming and magnificent place than Biarritz», wrote Victor Hugo,
Falling in pamoison in front of the Rocher de la Vierge and the Grande Plage, facing the waves,
One sculpted like a lonely lighthouse by the mighty waves, but by the Virgin protected,
The other, where bathers pitch their striped tents on Fous Beach, near the Palace.
Nestled in the bay of Socoa, with its two twin lighthouses, the ancient city of privateers,
Aligns its elegant neo-basque villas and its mansions by the sea,
St Jean de Luz keeps the memory of the marriage of Louis XIV with the Infanta Marie-Thérèse,
Today recognized as "yours culinary" by the know-how of its Oceanic sardine plant.
Between the two towns, on the side of the cliff, the small village with a balcony overlooking the sea without cracks,
Bidart, whose dazzling whiteness of the mountain hamlet stands out towards the azure sea,
Unrolling in front of the Labourdine houses with tiled roofs and red shutters, venerable,
Its long tradition of bare-handed pelota in front of the pediments echoing to the sound of the ball.
From Ciboure to Hendaye, the cliffs of the Basque Corniche tell millions of years,
The rocky promontories of Urrugne offer the spectacle of diving into the sea of striated rocks,
The famous flysch whose crumpled lines and strata have piled up to create the Pyrenees,
A coastal path runs along this wild nature between creeks and beaches of fine golden sand.
In a setting of grove and meadow, an astronomer-explorer built his modest home,
At Pointe Ste Anne, Viollet Leduc in 1864, inspired by fortified castles, erected Abbadia,
Antoine d’Abbadie wanted a holiday resort free of light pollution in fantasia,
Making its neo-Gothic-style watchtower an observation post for celestial bodies.
You have to leave the frequented coastline to reach the hinterland and the villages of Labourd,
Where the facades of the houses abound with half-timberings painted in the red of love,
Like beautiful coral rosaries, in Espelette, garlands of red peppers are spread over the walls,
On the way to St Jacques de Compostela, the Labourdine houses of Aïnoha frame the only street.
Since 1924 the little cog train has joined the top of the Rhune between the Ocean and the Pyrenees,
Pierre Loti saw Sare there, its parish, its massive bell tower like a fortified keep,
In the past, smugglers trod the trails playing leapfrog between France and Spain,
Sacred to the Basques, the panorama is magnificent facing the sea at the top of their mountain.
In the heart of Labourd, tired of Parisian social events, a celebrity comes to Cambo les Bains,
The author of Cyrano de Bergerac had the Villa Arnaga built, a bit of the city apart,
Loving walks in the shade, he planted tadpole oaks there,
It draws a large French garden with a large canal serving as a mirror, with ponds
Glued to the border, the Aludes valley unfolds its valleys with steep foothills,
In the land of Irouléguy, the smallest vineyard in France, flourishes in neat terraces,
In St Étienne de Baïgorry, hams were hung on the hooks of the legendary bridge,
And the pilgrims from St Jacques, to medieval St Jean Pied de Port, before Spain, stopped.
In Haute-Soule, karst canyons and underground abysses dig into the mountain, gashes,
In Kakuetta canyon, vertiginous footbridges overhang its bowels,
That of Holzate straddles the gorge of Olhadulbi and was once used to join the beech groves to the loggers,
In the heart of the gorges, the Verna cave opens onto a room of impressive dimensions.
Ideally located at the confluence of the Adour and the Nive, here is "Baïona", a good river in Basque,
To the sound of the flute and the drum, all dressed in white, red scarf around my neck and mask,
Basque beret screwed on the head, we sing traditional tunes, all united,
On the floor of the halls, facing the two emblematic spiers of Ste Marie cathedral.
The Cathedral completed in the 16th century. belongs to the Gothic style radiating with Champagne influence
In Port Neuf, whose houses are built on stilts, the street smells of chocolate,
On the Quai Jauréguiberry, the narrow houses of barely 5 m, in gray stone, without shine,
Alternate with the high half-timbered facades with green or oxblood shutters, bourgeoises.
Guy dit l’Arié…..Joie