Tolerance and Support: Korrika 2015

One of the best attributes about Barcelona is how friendly and welcoming people prove to be. It really does not matter if you are a local or a foreigner, you will get love from fellow individuals no matter what. One of the reasons why, is the fact that Barcelona is located at a very pristine location.  Having the coast on one side and the Basque Country on the other makes Barcelona a truly desirable destination. This destination has proven desirable enough, to at least want to host one of the largest running events in this area of Europe.

Respect and Culture

Barcelona prides itself for being a city that is based on respect and community. Anywhere around Barcelona you will notice people willing to help one another for the greater good. Witnessing such genuine acts it is truly a beautiful thing, especially after seeing how crazy today’s world can be. The reason why Barcelona has had such great success in terms of peace and tolerance is its overall willingness to embrace change. And if the will has proven to not be enough of a reason, then the success falls on the city’s attempts to try and embrace all sorts of languages and cultures.

Every year the Basque Country promotes their culture and language through a marathon or race called Korrika. This event is based on a mixture of a marathon like event with a little bit of carnival theme. This year this event kicked of March 19 in Urepel and will last for ten consecutive nights. The event will conclude the 29^th of March in Bilbao and will have approximately covered well over two thousand kilometers without making any official stops. This marathon based event has proven to be a well supported bi-annual tradition since the 1980’s.

Euskahaldun!!

This event kicks off by the euskahaldun, which refers to any individual that trusts his individual strengths and capabilities to learn and therefore be able to communicate in euskara. This epic journey hauls well over 600,000 people every year. This event is organized by the Coordinator of Literacy and Basque Promotion, with the ultimate goal of being to raise funds for the promotion of the Basque language. The participants located at the very front carry a banner bearing the race slogan “Euskal Herria euskalduntzen. Ni ere bai!” This directly translates to “Spreading the Basque language in the Basque Country. Me too!” The race is based entirely on positive sportsmanship and true uncompetitive spirit.

This year Barcelona received large crowds from all over the Basque Country commemorating this unifying tradition. It truly has been a phenomenal feeling being a part such a friendly cause.