Camino de Santiago del Norte
Day 9 of our Adventure: Stay in Markina-Xemein
CAMINO Day 5
Sunday September 11, 2017

Ermua

Another day with my family ~ this time in Ermua where my Tío Julian and 4 of his 5 sons live. The youngest, Mikel, his wife Ainara and their 2 daughters drove over from Vitoria to join the rest of the family for a spectacular feast.

Julian is the youngest of my father’s cousins, and he is the same age as my mom. He had a stroke a few years ago, but he knew who we were and asked about my mother “Dorotea”… She loves them all very much, and apparently the feeling is mutual.

Once again we had an all-day feast, with jamon, chorizos, salad, an egg-shrimp-and-mushroom appetizer, and choices of meat or fish. Mike and I chose Merluza, a delicious fish that is a specialty of the Basque region. I won’t go into how much food and wine was consumed this day. Suffice it to say, we could not have eaten another bite when the day was done!!

My cousin Ismael, his wife Inma, and their son Luken pretty much took charge of us by giving us tours, feeding us insane amounts of food, and driving us all over God’s creation. It’s hard to say what the “highlight” was, but certainly seeing Julian is on the top of the list. Seeing all 5 of the Arano sons and their families was indescribable. Being with my family makes my heart sing. Seeing Mikel, who spent an entire year in the States in 1983 and was our tour guide and translator in El Pais Vasco in 2003 was so fun. It was great to see that he’s kept up his English!!

ALL of the “next generation” Aranos are beautiful, smart, and charming. I love that so many of the “kids” speak English so well. Maybe they’ll come to visit us in California! I’m going to hold Mike to his “promise” for us to come back to The Basque Country every 2 years. This family is too precious to both of us to not have an ongoing relationship with all of them. Oh, and now that Mike has his own Basque beret, he HAS to come back!! (Thank you, Inma!!)

Until the next time, my family…..