Colorful town

[Deleted]

Some images look better in black and white. And it would be a crime to shoot some images in anything less than color.

Shot Saturday at a school carnival in Nampa, Idaho. Nikon D50, 18-70 Nikor zoom.

[photax]

Hi Wayne !

Beautiful colors !, the same in B&W would be completely emotionless. The costume reminds me somehow of Mexico.

MIK

[Deleted]

The costumes are Mexican. We have a large Hispanic community here (also the largest Basque community outside Spain).

[daveh]

Wayne, as you say the costumes do look good in colour. Black and white wouldn't really do them justice.

As regards the Basque population: figures about origins of peoples are always open to debate. I would have said that the largest outside Spain would be in France as I had looked it up in the past, and I knew there were about 1/4 million there. However, I have just checked on Wiki and I see that Chile,Argentina and others are quoted as having about as many as Spain. On this list the USA is about seventh.

[Doug T.]

Wayne,
Those colors really pop out! It looks as though it's all embroidered; that must have taken a lot of work to put together.
Doug

[mickeyobe]

Wayne,

Only colour could do justice to that subject.

The skirt looks like it must weigh a lot.

Mickey

[nikonbob]

Wayne

You are certainly right about needing to colour in order to do the costume justice. I feel the same at pow wows with all the colour there too. These kinds of cultural events are great especially if there is food too.

Bob

[Deleted]

Dave: Thanks for the information on the Basques. I was basing my statistics on what has been told to me by the local Basques who I grew up with. I question the data that there are only 6,000 people in Idaho with Basque heritage. If that is the case I think we most know all of them! I guess I should have said "ONE of the largest Basque communities outside the Basque region of Spain and France." I hope that clarifies things.

I have a Basque friend who is an ex FBI agent turned writer. She has a theory that the reason Basques and their language don't have any links to other European cultures is that they are the descendants of the Neanderthals. A little far fetched maybe but it is difficult to figure how their roots can be do disconnected from everyone else.

Here's a shot of some local Basque young people performing a native dance.

[daveh]

Wayne, I did fine somewhere on Wiki someone else saying that Idaho had, if not the second biggest population, at least the most 'patriotic' Basques.

I did also read that genetically Celts are the same stock as Basques, which throws a different light on the figures again.

It is said that England has more Celts than Wales, Ireland and Scotland combined. Certainly Birkenhead has had very strong Welsh connections. In spite of Liverpool having been called the Capital of Ireland there are more Welsh there too.

I have been a couple of times to the Basque region. It is a lovely part of the world. Great coastline beaches with a mountainous backdrop. They have the fastest ball-game in the world: pelota. Unless of course lacrosse is actually faster. (Lacrosse is quite strong in the North of England, the Manchester area being the focus.)

Neanderthals: there was a theory recently that there was more interbreeding than had previously been thought being the different types of "man".

Love the photos. It is good to see traditions being kept alive.

Dave.

[Doug T.]

Judging from the last family reunion I went to, I'm convinced that I'm related to an abnormal number of Neanderthals
Doug

[daveh]

Doug,

Wayne, just thinking here. It's what is so good about the forum. As I have said before there photos of all sorts of things that normally I would not get to see. Also it sets the old brain going. I would never have really though about people from the Basque area migrating in numbers. It is logical that they should and I suppose also that they would go to the New World in highest numbers. I would not have thought about them being in Idaho in such 'vociferous' numbers.

Dave.

[Deleted]

The Basques started coming here around the beginning of the late 19th century--mostly young men--to herd sheep, make some money and then go back home. But they liked the area, when home and brought back their families. There is a pelota ball court in Joedan Valley, Oregon--about 50 miles from here--that dates to the 1890s

I may have told this story before but when I was maybe 10 years old there was a flock of sheep grazing in a field on the farm next to ours. It was being tended by a Basque man. He couldn't speak any English but I went over to his camp and he showed me pictures of his family and seemed terribly thrilled to have company. I'm sure he was very lonely.

I went to school with many Basques and probably half the people in the National Guard Armored Cavalry troop I served in were Basques from Eastern Oregon and Southern Idaho. They had devil-may-care attitude that drove the company commander to distraction. I remember once I got in some minor trouble along with several Basque friends. The CO read us the riot act and then said "Cornell, I expect it from those guys, but not from YOU!" I took that as a compliment that he thought I was acting Basque.

The local Basques are proud of their heritage and keep it alive. But the ones who live here in the states are first and foremost Americans. The way they balance their roots with their citizenship is very much like the Japanese Americans--we have a lot of them in this area, too. Both cultures put a premium on education, achievement and community leadership. You very seldom see any young people from those two groups in trouble.. I feel privileged to count many people from both groups as close friends.

W

[drako]

My personal genetic heritage is mixed -- and undoubtedly sordid -- but my last name, Baskin, is of interest here. I heard once it means "son" or "family" of Basque.

We have no Spanish back there that I am aware of so, for what it's worth!