Santi Lorente is a Navarrese from La Ribera of whom we’re especially fond. We met him through his blog, because we discovered a project of his, guided tours of Tudela, called Tudela me pone (Tudela Turns Me On). It’s a very interesting project that takes on a wonderful historical tour of this southern Navarrese city with a very fresh perspective.
We liked it so much we even dedicated one of our “Viewpoints” entries to that part of the country. There we met him and, really, “to know him is to love him”. That visit turned into not just one but two entries, one to Tudela itself, and the other to the Bardenas.
Since our visit in 2017, this Basque’s ability to promote projects in La Ribera has never ceased to amaze us. And as can be seen on his website, he offers a fabulous range of routes to learn and enjoy. And they always end in a pintxo.
The other day, we discovered that during this lockdown we’re having to live through, he dedicated himself to another passion of his: telling stories. It turns out he’s not just a fascinating person to talk with in person, he’s also an amazing storyteller. His stories combine picaresque, a sense of humor, a love of Navarre and its defense, the recovery of historical events, imagination, and the importance of facts in day-to-day life.
He’s been writing a story per day, and it seems he’s willing to follow through on this until this all blows over. We loved them so much we asked him for permission to share them on the blog, so that they can become a part of that group of articles that seeks to bring the history, and the stories, of the Basques closer.
His stories mix reality and imagination, and also imagination with intuition. When we read them, we remembered that “magical realism” that some Latin American litterati offered us, where what we’re given as obvious and fiction itself are mixed so deeply that it’s difficult to distinguish them, and that gives us a fresh outtake. Perhaps because truth can be stranger than fiction, these fictions become more “real”.
We’ve collected all the tales he’s written so far, and we’ll be adding more as they’re published (and translated!).
For us, this collection of stories deserves to be read, just like that part of our country, so beautiful and powerful, deserves to be visited and explored. And if you do, don’t forget to learn about Tudela from the inestimable Santi Lorente.
We’ll leave you with the index of titles ordered by day. To read each story, just click on the title. At the end of each tale, there is a link that brings you back to the index. You can also go from story to story, using the list below.
Enjoy!
Last Updated on Dec 20, 2020 by About Basque Country