The international community enjoys the “Txikiteros” event in Bilbao
- The Txikitero Eguna (day of the wine-drinkers) gathered together international professionals and students in the Old Quarter of the capital of Bizkaia.
Taking advantage of the celebration of the Txikitero Eguna on the 11th of October, Bizkaia Talent organized a new sociocultural activity to bring together both international professionals and students who are currently residing in Bizkaia. The aim of this kind of initiative is to create links between international students and professionals to strengthen the local community and promote cultural exchange, thereby facilitating the social integration in the province of people arriving for both work-related and academic reasons.
The Txikitero Eguna, which has been held every 11th of October since 1964, fills the “Seven Streets” (the old quarter) of Bilbao with a special and unique ambience. The groups of txikiteros, wearing traditional Basque berets on their heads and holding their glasses of wine, visit the bars of the Old Quarter singing bilbainadas (traditional drinking songs) in honour of the Virgin Mary of Begoña. The pub-crawl finishes at the corner of Santa María Street and Pelota Street, where an offer is made to the Virgin at the only place along the route where the Basilica is visible, and the txikitera piggy-bank is cracked open for donations to charity.
A group of thirty people enjoyed a full immersion in the Txikitero Eguna experience accompanied by a local expert, which enabled them to discover more about this Bibao tradition. During the course of seven stops in emblematic places such as Saint Nicholas Church, Miguel de Unamuno Square and the John Palace, the participants were given explanations about the history of Bilbao and the relevance of the Virgin of Begoña. The activity ended with a tasting session in one of the Old Quarter’s taverns.
Participating in the activity were people from Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Hungary, India, Iran, Italy, Mexico, Peru, the Dominican Republic and the Spanish State from the following organizations: BCAM – Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Bridgestone, CAF Turnkey & Engineering, Tecnalia Foundation, ITP Aero, Mosaikus, Nemergent Solutions, Sener, Deusto University, Mondragon University and UPV/EHU University.
