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Xabier Gil Hernandez is from Pamplona and has lived in Peru for six years.  He has a degree in agriculture and environment and has toured the country and knows close up the rural work and that of indigenous communities.  He is also a member of the Euskal Etxea in Lima where he has taught Basque since last year. 

Joseba Etxarri. He studied Agricultural Technical Engineering at the Public University in Navarre (UPNA) and the work to complete his degree took him to Peru in 2007. In the Andean country he was introduced to a world with a different reality he continues to work with today. When he returned to the Basque Country from that first stay, he decided to pursue a degree in environmental sciences at the University of the Basque Country, to then immediately return to Lima.  In love with the country, and with one of its daughters he has lived there since 2010, also contributing to his Peruvian environment.  He is aldo an active member of the Euskal Etxea in Lima and is the founder of the local youth group LEGAZ, Limako Euskal Gazteria, Basque Youth of Lima.

A professional project, related to your studies brought you to Peru.

-I came to do a project at the end of my degree and I spent seven months in Huancavelica, capital of the department of the same name. It is a very rural area, at 3,500 meters in altitude.  It is one of the poorest regions in the country.  I worked with indigenous communities, in projects related to food.  Quinoa and Kiwicha are cereals that are native to the area and the idea was to support its processing and transformation so that they would be provided with greater opportunities.  The climate is hard there, from the human point of view as well as from the agricultural one, and life in these communities is not easy at all.  Fighting a little against the altitude and living a completely enriching experience, I can say that I learn a lot and that my entire first stay in Peru served me greatly.

What are the communities that you encountered like?

-The people are very authentic and generous.  Despite them having few resources, they give you what they have, and they let you into their homes and give you food and lodging.  Their disposition is incredible.  But you have to gain their trust.  In these rural areas, they only speak Quechua and I used to go with a member of a local NGO; being white and not speaking their language made it more difficult to enter initially.  These people have suffered a lot, historically, and also at the hands of NGOs, with projects that were begun, but abandoned, half way through.  Peru is a very rich country in minerals and since the time of the conquistadors there have been many people who have passed through only looking to take advantage and exploit these riches, without any regard or respect for the people or the environment.  I have to say that I was lucky and met my partner, Ania Ayuque, in Huancavelica.  Her mother served as a bridge between communities since she spoke Quechua.

After that experience you returned to the Basque Country, but with plans towards returning to Peru.  You began studying Environmental Science at the University of the Basque Country.

-I con-validated several classes and I got the degree in two years.  One month a year, I came to Peru to visit Ania, with the idea of settling there after my degree.  It was the moment, as well, when Europe was already experiencing the crisis.  I came in 2010, and for the first year I worked analyzing water and residue, measuring levels of contamination.  I drove miles and miles and there was a lot of conflict that affected the communities, multinational corporations….Historically the environment was never well-respected and they did terrible things, to the people as well as to the environment.

You approached the Euskal Etxea in Lima in 2011.

-Yes, when i did, i realized that the median age of its members was rather high, and I was the youngest.  They met, we met, every Thursday for dinner.  Beginning in 2012, due to the crisis in Europe, there were many young Basques coming to Peru looking for work.  With some of them, we formed the LEGAZ group (Limako Euskal Gazteria).  We started a Facebook page, and created a rather dynamic group. We organized Basque classes at the club that I taught along with another friend, Bittor, and we contribute to its everyday function; we celebrate Basque festivities like the Tamborrada, San Fermin, Aberri Eguna, Aste Nagusia, Olentzero, events like the Korrika or Euskera Day, we go on outings and excursions…We show films, for example, the film Ander by Roberto Caston, that unites Basque and Peruvian elements. Also in a more social setting, we collaborate in initiatives for children and families that live in the jungle, in Puerto Inca or Puerto Maldonado.  We do this willingly.  The special times at the club, are one more element of our lives here.

Would you recommend Peru to a young Basque that is looking to emigrate?

-Peru is an economically thriving country which, over the last few years, has experiences remarkable growth.  Finding work is not hard.  There is a lot of construction going on and the country has gone from building houses of 3 or 4 floors to building them 20 floors high.  The people who have come from Euskal Herria comprise a little bit of everything, from industrial engineers to agricultural technicians, and lawyers, and technicians and professionals of all kinds… But there are also people who go back after a time.  Without a doubt, speaking Spanish is a great advantage, but speaking the language is not a guarantee of being able to understand the people, or the culture, or the idiosyncrasies of the country.  This is Peru and here things are done the Peruvian way.  The people speak softly, very kindly, and they have their own rhythm. Basques, and Spanish and Europeans, many times are criticized for being too direct, or too abrupt. Lima, on the other hand, is a city of 10 million inhabitants, with the complication and the craziness that that entails.  Of course there are opportunities.  At the Basque club we are happy to welcome anyone who comes and asks for support and advice.  You can visit our website and we are also on Facebook.