St Jean Pied de Port and the Road to Santiago

The Sheepfarmer is now into a routine which includes 2 milkings a day, subsequent to the sale of a bunch of little lambs in time for holiday festivities.The MAJORITY of the lambing has been done (200 born in the 3 weeks leading to Christmas!) and we are definitely settling in for the winter…woodstoves and hot water bottles, unpleasantly cold temperatures in the bathroom leading to numb fingers by the time I am dressed and ready to go out the door in the mornings…ugh 4 mornings a week where I have to shower as soon as I'm out of bed!  I am fortunate that on the other mornings, the sheep are not as fussy about my appearance in the milkbarn.  
You see, for the past couple of months I have been working with a great group of ladies (we are 15!) who are doing a market study, while the “market” studies us.  Yes, we are between the ages of 40 and 60 with good work experience in various fields.  We are rich in knowledge, we are;  former accountants, researchers, chemists, architects, journalists, managers, etc.  And we are working on a study to help determine how it is in an area like ours , the Basque Country, all this talent is going unnoticed, when it is evident the need for our talents surround us. 

Let me give you an example.   During this transformation training I had to “observe" the office of tourisme in St Jean Pied de Port for a period of 3 weeks.
I have a degree in Communication and International Business as well as having had successful experience in turning companies around.  My temporary colleagues at the tourism office were creating brochures, websites, packages, etc for the summer months without the type of direction, for which they confided in me, that they dream of.  Did ANYONE ever once ask ME what I thought about WHAT they were doing, trying to COMMUNICATE , etc?!!! NO.  I was told to sit quietly (by their “Directrice”) and I watched them create the same horrendous brochures, etc. that they have always been putting forth, guaranteeing the continued oversight of 3/4’s of their market. You read that right. Three quarters.
REALLY. Local businesses complain that they are tired of selling 10€ souvenir plates, yet when potential clients walk through the door and ask about setting up visits for bicycle tours, trail riding by horse, making MOVIES, shopping brocantes or visiting museums, art galleries, etc. in ENGLISH, NO ONE pays attention nor offers ANY documentation, nor commits to invesitigating the possibility of accommodating the needs of these VALUABLE TOURISTS who desire a little authenticity and no souvenir plates.  

In other words, IF you are French and take your vacation in July and August to find a souvenir plate for 10€ you are WELCOME/BIENVENUE... ALL others may go about your way…lost and without experiencing this gorgeous landscape, food, art and culture in all it’s glory!  And if one dares ask about the ROAD TO SANTIAGO de COMPESTELLA, (which has a major “door” or “port” in the town Of St Jean Pied de Port and the FREE publicity for which my temporary colleagues had NO knowledge of the fabulous movie titled “THE WAY” and “speaks of SJPdP), you are told to contact the tourisme board of Navarre should the road/trail interest you.  This portion over the Pyrenées is one of the most beautiful and difficult portions of the trail.  “Spain” or the southern part of the Basque Country is just 7 kms away, therefore the tourisme office here, the northern part of the basque Country cannot help you?!  For &é”%$’#  sake, people come here because they want to experience the Basque Country…the same culture and language on both sides of the border!  They DO NOT COME HERE to be told to contact Spain before taking this beautiful drive/trail into what was formerly ONE COUNTRY (1500’s it was ALL Navarre)…and rediscovering all it’s stories and all it’s history! Let alone it’s fabulous people who speak Basque, before, either, French or Spanish.
Then again, rest assured,  you will get good directions, in English, if you request the public bathrooms.

Screw you if you choose to ignore my experience and savoire faire. REALLY. SCREW YOU, claustrophobic fonctionaires who insist on a Directeur de Tourisme who has a BTS in Tourisme but would NOT recognize marketing experience in their inability to recognize an incredible gold mine in what is termed a transference des competences...

Please forgive my rant…

           EXCELLENT movie, by the way, I HIGHLY recommend it!  

Back to US LADIES and the part of THIS training targeted to help us “find” new selves which generally include finding new aspirations.  The interesting thing is that most of us have suffered from burnout or a sense of betrayal in relation to our former selves/jobs.  OK, let’s be blunt, most of us (if not all) have suffered from depression in it’s many nauseating forms and nuances.  And now? Most of us have learned A LOT in regards to humility, tolerance, compassion, respect and tenderness.  The hard way. At least, I have recognized my own, personal, improvement in these arenas...

We women, in our group, now seem to be digging in our heels and saying 
“I HAVE already proved myself.  NOW, I will do what delights me”  :)

Like us great ladies, St Jean Pied de Port is a town seeped in art and history and culture.  Wisdom…if you will just ask her a question and listen to her.  

This wisdom is built into every stone that paves her streets, erects her buildings and fortifies her fortress.  THIS authenticity is worth far more than the stereotypical story about the “puppet” Basques who know how to sing and dance and prepare a good meal. FAR MORE.

The road is long….

but we are stronger and wiser...