Makilas

In Bayonne, I met the funniest character I've met so far. He owns a tiny workshop where he mqkes Makilas - traditional Basque walking sticks that also have a hidden knife inside. When he saw me writing in my notebook, he exclaimed "no publicity!" We got to talking and he explained why - he's become famous as one of the last few makers of Makilas. Everyone comes to see him and order one but it takes 1 year to finish one. He goes into the woods to select the branches, and then carves the pattern into it. It grows until he harvests it and then he takes several months to finish it. They're really beautiful - with brass and leather. But he doesn't want publicity - he wants to keep it simple. He showed me his real workshop, and we talked about americans and politics, and the famous people like Louis Vutton who have ordered makilas from him. He was so funny, and eventually let me take his picture. The conversation took over an hour!

Here's his photo, and sorry for the spêlling errors - darn these french keyboards.