Pamplona, Spain

“If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home.”  ~James A. Michener

I can not even begin to describe how exciting the past 36 hours have been! 

Wow!

I wish we could do it all over again. 

After a LONG 29 hours of train travel we arrived safely to our destination, Pamplona, on Tuesday evening. We hit the ground running and didn't stop until we sat on our train to southern Spain today.

I have fallen in love with Spain already. The people are beyond welcoming and so friendly. It's great to be able to understand the language too (kind of). And we've just experience something that I will never ever forget!

Chris said it well last night. "We've just experienced something in a matter of hours that we will remember for the rest of our lives." So true and so wonderful!

In the last 36 hours we have run with the bulls, seen countless parades, enjoyed 6 bullfights, witnessed the honor of receiving 3 ears (yes...ears), and joined one of the countries biggest and best parties. We have been to and lived through San Fermin!!!

It only took us a couple of hours on Tuesday to realize what we had gotten ourselves into. Shortly after arriving into the city and settling into our apartment we were wandering the streets...both shocked and silenced by the craziness. We made our way through a market that had us feeling as if we were at the fair. (we still had no clue of what we were in for). Lots of vendors selling handmade gifts, souvenirs, and traditional San Fermin clothing. Food stations with churros and chocolate sauce, paella, sangria, and all the meat you could ever want. 

Eventually we made our way to the old town streets where the party was in full force. Everyone was wearing sangria stained white clothing from head to toe with drinks in hand. Music blared from every single bar. Bands crowded the alleys screaming out their own song of choice. People were singing, dancing, and showing signs of pure happiness everywhere we looked. People of all ages. We soon learned that this lasted all day and night for seven straight days. It was absolutely insane! The energy was so contagious. It didn't take long for us to join the party and try to act as locals. We stood out like sore thumbs though in our jeans and colorful shirts (we eventually bought all the gear and blended in quite well!).

We spent the night sipping sangria, people watching, soaking in the atmosphere, and enjoying a beautiful firework show. 

Wednesday proved to be an even better day with more surprises in store.

The day started early and ended late. We witnessed the running of the bulls at 8 am, watched as young and old horsed around with the bulls in the arena, and did some necessary shopping. The bull run was absolute chaos that lasted all of 3 minutes. People lined the streets to witness the brave outrun the bulls or their attempt to. We didn't see anyone get gored or injured in the run, but it was amusing to see the frightened faces of the runners as they dodged the bulls (or fallen runners), jumped the fences, or simply froze in the wake of the madness. 

After the run everyone made their way to the arena to watch the same fools chase around and be chased by the bulls. It was so fun to watch! The bulls have corks on their horns so they don't injure anyone. Each bull comes out for about 10 minutes while the people tease and rough house with them. The bulls do get some of the people and send them flying, but no one seems to get hurt. It's really just comical entertainment until the steer takes the bull out and another one starts the fun all over. After the show we shopped through the markets and made our way back to the apartment for our siesta. 

The evening started with some beer in the plaza before the bull fight. I think this was my favorite part! We didn't know what to expect, but what we saw was absolutely spectacular. The fight was 2 hours long and ended with 6 dead bulls and a definite winner! Three matadors took their turns teasing, attacking, and eventually stabbing the bull to death. It sounds horrible, but was extremely entertaining. After watching for a bit we were able to recognize the skill of the matador and cheer along with others after good moves or close calls! If the matador excelled in the race then the mayor or president of the games that day would decide if he deserved one or two of the bulls ears as a prize. We were lucky enough to witness the receiving of three ears!! And two of them went to one matador...so exciting! He was all over the papers today.

When the show was over we found ourselves in the streets again with everyone. We partied, had dinner, and ended the night with another amazing firework show.

Chris actually ran with the bulls this morning before we headed out of town. He is still alive to tell the story, but I have to admit that I was a little worried he wouldn't survive!

The experience was something I will always remember and I wish we could have stayed longer! 

Live Life on the edge!