Pilgrims' progress: Basque country pleasures

Aman of the Basque region is having an eye test, so the story goes, when the optician points to a chart displaying the letters: T X I X K E X U S K X T K

"Can you read this?" asks the eye specialist.

"Read it?" the man replies. "I know the guy."

Basque is a language unlike any other and is tongue-twistingly difficult to learn. There are just under a million speakers; fiercely independent folk who populate a "country" that straddles the border between Spain and France at the western edge of the Pyrenees.

Le Pays Basque, the French side, includes the stylish coastal resort of Biarritz, which teems with tourists throughout the year. Away from the beaches, however, the hilly hinterland conceals numerous holiday hideaways and underrated gems.

Best known as the starting point for the 800-kilometre Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail, St-Jean-Pied-de-Port is a walled town of picturesque streets and bridges that span the lethargic River Nive. Confusingly, its Basque name is Donibane Garazi, which means you'll need the patience of a saint (or a bilingual sat-nav) just to find the place.