Interview with Nerea

Nerea is originally from Bilbao in the Basque Country, and has been living in the United Kingdom for around twenty years. Before settling in Totnes with her son, Nerea spent time in Holland and Cornwall. She speaks Spanish, Basque - which she learnt in secret due to the language being banned during the Franco era - and English, although she feels that elements of her personality are often lost in translation. Nerea works as a primary school yoga and art teacher at a Steiner Education school and has consequently faced difficulties whilst teaching during the coronavirus pandemic. She has a keen interest in outdoor activities, such as yoga and surfing, and has been able to develop these hobbies whilst living in Devon. Another advantage of living in Devon for her has been the freedom to reinvent herself and find a community of like-minded people, which she believes is more difficult in the family-orientated environment of Bilbao. The things which she misses most about the Basque Country are the landscape, the sense of community and the cuisine. Feminism plays an important role within Nerea’s life as it is significant within Basque culture, and she believes that her treatment as a woman has differed between the United Kingdom and the Basque Country. Nerea also feels that Brexit, and her experiences since the vote, have turned her previously positive relationship with the UK into a more negative one. Nerea brought along three objects which she associates with home: an image of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a book of routes along the Basque coast, and a traditional neckerchief from Bilbao.