Pamplona is famous for the Running of the Bulls (Fiesta de San Fermin).
The festival begins annually on July 6 at noon when the mayor opens the festival from the balcony of the town hall.
The first running occurs at 8 am on July 7 and continues daily until July 14. My husband ran with the bulls in 1997 and I watched the festivities hanging off a balcony. If you want to run, wear a white shirt and pants and have a red sash and handkerchief. Run in the middle of the street until the 6 bulls and 6 steers get close, then go to the sides to allow them to pass. Try not to be at Mercaderes as it turns onto Estafeta, where the bulls have to negotiate a 90 degree turn. Invariably, they fall and when they get up, they're disoriented and sometimes head back through the throngs of runners. This is often where tramplings and gorings occur. The course is only 1/2 mile long and the running takes on average 3-4 minutes.
Follow the red Encierro signs to follow the route of the run.
The run begins at the holding pen, which serves as a parking lot the rest of the year. Runners line up along the route. "Moments before the start, the runners sing to San Fermin three times to ask for his blessing and protection." At 8 am, a firecracker is fired and the bulls are let free from the pen. A second firecracker is fired when the last bull has left the pen. The 3rd firecracker is fired when the bulls enter the bullring and the 4th firecracker is fired when the bulls are corralled.
Statue of San Fermin embedded in the wall on the uphill road not too far from the bull pen.
The Running of the Bulls was made famous by "The Sun Also Rises" by Hemingway. There is a statue near the bullring honoring him.
Statue of the Encierro.
Look familiar? Hemingway taking part in the Running.
2012 10 09
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