The Running of the Bulls Pamplona.

San Fermin Overall Impressions.

The Running of the Bulls has become the central event in the much wider religious and traditional festival of San Fermin. Look closer and there is a lot more. A spectacular opening ceremony of the Chupinazo, the solemn procession to the patron Saint Fermin, the socialite morning dance of the Alpargata, the parade of the Giants, nightly fireworks, the infernal stirring music of the brass bands which play day and night, and of course the bullfights. With 50,000 to 100,000 visitors per day invading the old part of the town, it is amazing that the Running of the Bulls has kept its fascination with the public for a personal interaction that lasts but a few moments. But danger, religion, and the underlying tradition provides an enduring cloak of authenticity, outweighing the downsides that come with the influx of such large numbers and the sleeping (and drunken revelry) in the streets.

Running of the Bulls (The Encierro) schedule and route: 7th-14th July.

Anyone can participate in the encierro, by turning up on the day and entering the route through the official gates at Plaza Consistorial or Plaza del Mercado before the gates close at the latest at 7.30am.
The bull run starts ~8am from the bull pen on Cuesta de Santo Domingo, a steep uphill cobblestone street with a run section of 200m, that has the second most dangerous stretch of the encierro approaching the Plaza Consistorial. At 7:55am, the runners sing their prayer for protection to their patron Saint Fermin. It is a time of anticipation and high anxiety, and not a place for beginners. At 8:00am a rocket explodes and the gate of the bull enclosure is opened. Moments later a second rocket signals all bulls have been released. The police line in Mercaderes  now allow the runners to start. There are normally 12 bulls of which 6 are steers that calm the fighting bulls and guide them as a group down the streets to the bullring. There follows a few cows with neck bells, and herders wielding long sticks to keep the herd moving forward and prevent any bull from turning around, see fig2.
The bull run then continues through the following sectors, see running of the bulls map, fig1.
♦Plaza del Ayuntamiento to Mercaderes, a 130m stretch (view fig2) with gentle bends.  It is one of the safest stretches, being wide with many escape points.  There are a number balconies here with good views.
♦Mercaderes-Estafeta corner, the sharp 90⁰ bend causes some bulls to slip outwards and crash into the barrier. This is the best static place for photography although you need a pass to be on the barrier.
♦Estafeta to Telefónica building. The street is long ~305m, narrow, and dark. It is one of the most crowded stretches and becomes more dangerous around 2/3 its length where it narrows and the bulls slow and tend to separate. Runners can only escape into the shallow doorways of the buildings. There are many viewing balconies on both sides of the street.
♦Telefónica building, a ~90m stretch of open space lined with double wooden barriers that funnel runners and bulls together, increasing the danger for both expert and novice, particularly as the herd now tired tends to break up. It is a popular section for the experienced “Divinos” runners to show their bravado.
♦Callejon-Plaza de Toros – The funnel shaped steep downhill tunnel with its narrowest point being only 3m wide, leading to the bullring. This is most dangerous section of the encierro as many runners fall blocking the flow.
♦Plaza de Toros – The bulls run into the center of the ring. Here the bulls are led to the corrals.
The third and fourth rockets signal the herd has entered the bullring and all bulls are corralled respectively, marking the end of the event. The average duration between the first and 4th rocket is around four minutes.

Watching the Running of the Bulls.

1)Public viewing places for the encierro.

A double wooden fence Fig3,  is used as a barrier along the wider sections of the encierro route. Spectators are confined behind the second fence, and can be obstructed by officials on the first fence which is reserved for press, police, first aiders etc, and the runners themselves. It is thus important to be on the top of the second fence to get a good view. In the narrow sections along the encierro route, the buildings themselves provide the barrier and no spectators are allowed. There are however a few places with a good unobstructed view, particularly on the wall overlooking the start on Cuesta de Santo Domingo. To get a good spot here, one needs to be in place around 5:30- 6am. Another place is inside the bullring where seating is unreserved.

2)Viewing the running of the bulls from rented Balconies.

There are many rental balconies with good viewing perspectives along the route (see Fig4 Balconies and places map), ranging from 1st floor level to 4th floor, and holding 4 or more persons per balcony. Note the end position facing the runners may partially block the view of the others. For a photographer it is worth requesting the booking agency for this location. My preference is also to choose a low balcony. There are a number of agencies that rent out balconies. These can be found by googling ” running of the bulls balconies,” or from a downloadable list from the official tourist office http://www.turismo.navarra.es.  This site also gives a list of specialist local companies that provide tourist services including balcony rental for the encierro and San Fermin. The viewing aspect for individual balconies can be inferred using the street view tool in Google Earth.  The position of the 1st floor balconies I hired from Erreka is shown in Fig2.  Cost $60-$200/person. Note Estafeta is closed at 7am, so one should be inside the balcony apartment by 6:30-6:45am.

Opening Event: Chupinazo (Txupinazo in Basque).

Plaza del Ayuntamiento (The City Council  square): 6th July.

Regarded as one of the most important events of the San Fermin it is attended by tens of thousands dressed in the uniform of white and red, and pressed tightly together inside the Plaza del Ayuntamiento and adjacent square, (figs5,6). From the balcony it is a sea of red handkerchiefs (pañuelos), giant balloons and popping corks of cheapest champagne. Most revelers are drenched from water guns and stained with wine.
At  precisely 12:00 noon the mayor of Pamplona ignites a rocket that signals the beginning of the festivities of San Fermin (a few rockets thereafter are fired as see by the clock in fig7). The scene becomes a frenzy of revelry, streamers and confetti, champagne corks and the stirring music of the brass bands “charangas” who will now play day and night. It is one of the great spectacles of the world.

The Bullfight (Corrida) and Bullfight Tickets.

Plaza de Toros: 7-14 July.
The  bulls from the encierro are corralled in the Stadium of the Plaza de Toros, until that night when each takes part in one of the six rounds (2 per matador) of bullfighting starting at 6:30pm each day.
Tickets for the bullfights are sold out well in advance, notwithstanding that the arena holds 12,500 people. It is after all Hemingway’s Pamplona. Every evening after the day’s bullfight some tickets go on sale for the next evening’s event at the ticket office booking windows at the bull ring.  It is best to book well in advance with your travel agency who has contacts, but be prepared to pay well over the face value. Note  the seating is made of concrete with very narrow personal space (you can rent pillows). About 40% of all seating  is in the shade and the remainder is  in the open hot sun where the setting sun will be in the eyes of the spectators.

The Dance of the Alpargata.

Casino Principal, Plaza del Castillo: 9am 7-14 July.
This has a delightful old world atmosphere where you can have a light breakfast and dance with the local society members in a gilded wood panelled hall beneath pendant chandeliers (fig9 dance of the Alpargata). It is very in. Most of the Casino members are in the uniform of white and red and the highlight dance  is the “Baile de la Alpargata”, a name taken from a comfortable cheap local type slipper, which defines the ambiance. Not easy to gain public entry but your travel agent should be able to get  tickets ~25Euros/person.

The Parade of  the Giagantes.

The Procession starts near the old bus station, and then moves through parts of the old town( see Fig10 Parade of the giants). 6-14 July. (see the tourist bureau for  routing and times).
There are three types of costumed characters, all of which have been part of Navarra’s folklore for centuries.

1) Two white giants representing European kings. They were made in 1860 by the local artisan Tadeo Amorena.
2) Six cabezudos were added some thirty years later and represent the giants’ courtiers. They have the generic names, of ‘the mayor’, ‘the councilor’, ‘the grandmother’, ‘the Japanese gentleman’ and ‘the Japanese lady’.
3) Finally there are the kilikis, whose  tradition is to chase the children. Their names are Barbas, Patata, Verrugón, Coletas, Caravinagre and Napoleón.  Barbas and Coletas are the oldest figures, with the others made between 1912 to 1941.

Sanfermins Fireworks Display.

The Ciudadella (Pamplona’s central park: 11pm 7-14 July.
Every night there is fireworks display from the central park area of the old town, called the Vuelta del Castillo.  It is a fireworks competition between various companies and is judged by a panel of experts as well as the public.  One can watch the display from the park in designated safe areas.

The Sanfermins Closing ceremony; the Pobre de Mí.

Plaza del Ayuntamiento: midnight 14 July.
The Pobre de Mí is the candle lit midnight farewell ceremony that marks the end of the fiesta. It is held on the night of July 14 in the Plaza Consistorial (in front of the City Hall). Everyone takes off their red Scarf (pañuelo) and holds them aloft singing the anthem of the closing ceremony. 

Accommodation and food during the San Fermin.

The large number of foreign and Spanish visitors can overwhelm Pamplona’s normal supply of ~4500 hotel rooms, with many being returning guests.  Needless to say this can be a dire situation and many people sleep rough in the streets or sleep very little at all. There are only 7 hotels within the old city, with the 3* Hotel Maisonnave the closest, (can be noisy, but they do have quiet rooms). A quieter 4* hotel still within easy walking distance is Hotel Tres Reyes.  Hotel rooms during the SanFermins can be 2-4 times higher than normal, and very difficult to obtain close to the festival. So it is essential to book early, preferably a year ahead. Also note, during the San Fermin it is advisable to book with the hotel direct and get the hotel’s confirmation email, otherwise when you check-in at  the hotel they may not accept your booking!!
With many of the restaurants in the old city closed or boarded up, getting food in the old city can be a problem. The hotel restaurants are open but are heavily booked and the bars are dominated by alcohol swilling with the plates of tapas and the mini version known as “pinchos”  in high demand. There are a number of small general stores which close early and a few small fast food and sandwich shops.

Some General Observations.

♦Bands play day and night along the streets of the old town ( eg see Fig11 San Fermin municipal band), so if booking a hotel in the old town ask for a quiet room, and book as soon as reservations open.
♦It is most crowded and more expensive between 6-9th July and on weekends.
♦There is a uniform that is widely adopted throughout the festival. White pants and shirt and a red scarf.
♦The opening ceremony on the 6th July is a major spectacle.
♦There is a lot of sleeping on the streets and alcohol consumption, resulting in broken glass and streets smelling of urine. Around 6:30am the streets are hosed down and made clean.

Some Observations during Running of the Bulls.

♦The police remove without hesitation anyone they see with a camera or backpack, not appropriately dressed, or behaving tired or intoxicated.
♦I was surprised how suddenly the bulls appear out of the confusion of the crowd. I would say from sensing their presence through crowd movement to the time they were alongside was 1-3 seconds. By 6 seconds the herd had passed.
♦I noticed that most of the danger was due to runners slipping and falling, and pulling others down causing a pile up, or from pushing and shoving due to the sheer number of runners and the different speed at which individuals run.

Some Photographic Observations.

♦Note that all photographs here are illustrative in nature and the top photographs are reserved for my book.
♦The best location for balconies for the opening ceremony is facing the town hall on Mercaderes.
♦The best place on the balcony for photography is the end spot facing the runners and at the first floor level. Can check the aspect using street view in Google earth.
♦Santo Domingo and Estafeta are in shadow , Mercaderes, and Telefónica have early sun.
♦The most dramatic static place for photographing the bulls and runners is at the barrier at the Mercaderes-Estafeta corner. You do however need a photographers pass from. I got to the barrier at 4.30am and was able to choose the best place. The best photographic position is a remote camera under the barrier at the Estafeta corner.
♦Most of the bullfighting central arena is in direct sunlight at the start (6:30pm), with the shadow slowly covering the whole field of action by the 4th round, but it is still bright enough for 1/1000 sec exposure.

Update for Running of the Bulss Pamplona

Not a bad review of the fiesta overall, but a few things need to be corrected. The city will see to 250,00 visitors over the weekend, on the opening days, doubling the population of Pamplona, but we typically expect 50,000 to 100,00 a day the rest of the time. Most visitors are from Navarra, the Basque country, Community of Madrid, Castilla y León, Aragon and Catalunya. Less than 10% are foreigners, but foreigners now make up at least 50% of those who choose to run in the encierro, according to a survey taken by the city this past fiesta. For those of us who have been attending the fiesta for a long time, there appear to be far to many foreigners running the encierro, which degrades the experience and the meaning of the encierro. And of course far too many fools and drunks who know nothing about the fiesta.
NAME:Philip WEBSITE:http://www.iberiantraveler.com Date:16/09/2011