6th STEP of the SAN FERMIN Stairway - 2014!

Once again, we are happy to announce that we have arrived to yet another step, along the San Fermín ladder - today is the 6th day of the 6th month!! 

Go out and celebrate with sangria; go dance the "jota"; stay up all night and get your body conditioned for the sanfermines!! 

Yes, we are well on our way to euphoria, 2014! 

VIVA SAN FERMIN! 

GORA SAN FERMIN!

HOW CAN WE PREPARE OURSELVES for RUNNING with the BULLS in PAMPLONA?

Many of you have asked us for suggestions as to how to run with the wild bulls in Pamplona...

If you do plan to run with a pack of six, wild, angry, and frightened bulls, we suggest that you do yourself, and those who love you, a real favor:

Read and study the very important information about "Running with the Bulls" at this great website: http://www.partyearth.com/cities/pamplona.

Viva San Fermin!

Are the BULLRUNS really dangerous?

Now that the sanfermines, 2014, are rapidly trampling upon us, many of you have written to us in the past weeks, inquiring about our own opinions about running with the bulls in Pamplona. Many of you have asked if the bullruns are "really" dangerous??!!  We can tell you from the experiences of many of our Pamplona friends and family: THE BULLRUNS IN PAMPLONA ARE NOT REALLY DANGEROUS.....THEY ARE REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY DANGEROUS!  Included here are two photos that tell the story quite well -  Any questions??!

NUDE protests in Pamplona - July 5th!

Many of you have written to us, asking about the nude protests that have been taking place in Pamplona each July 5th, for the past 10+ years!  This non-violent event in Pamplona has grown into a protest of about 2000 naked, or at least semi-naked, PETA members - all of whom are true animal lovers and much concerned about the treatment of the bulls, during the San Fermín fiestas.  Most of these kindhearted adults wear not much more than their red scarves and tiny bullhorns on their heads, and, consequently, they are quite successful in gaining lots of attention and international news coverage for their cause! The exact time and route of the protests are usually unknown to spectators - and even to the participants, as well!  But, you can be sure that the protests will take place on July 5th - sometime in the late morning through the afternoon hours, in the old city, Pamplona! 

Rumors ran rampant this past July, 2013, that the nude protesters were not going to come to Pamplona on July 5th, so as not to draw more curious tourists and money to the San Fermín fiestas. However, rest assured, there were indeed hundreds of nude PETA participants, scattered throughout the Plaza Consistorial, aka the Town Hall Square - and, yes, lots of photographers did show up to record the events in high definition!

For more information, and to pre-register as a nude participant, check out: http://www.runningofthenudes.com/

BEWARE! TRAGEDY in the BULLRING - July 7, 2006

Many of you have written that you are NOT convinced that "so many" serious injuries happen along the bullrun, or in the Plaza de Toros (bullring) in Pamplona.    Here is the account of one young man, whose  story may well convince you that running with bulls, or even "just" running from the "vaquillas" in the bullring, can be a life-altering experience, with permanent, life-damaging consequences: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/07/07/world/main1783668.shtml

5th STEP of the SAN FERMIN LADDER!

Just a quick note to remind all of you that today - May 5th - marks another milestone on the way to the sanfermines, 2014! Yes, today is the 5th day of the 5th month! We are getting closer and closer to our long-awaited San Fermín fiestas, 2014, and the official countdown to euphoria is well under way!

 

For those of you are are new to the sanfermines, the "steps" of the official "San Fermín ladder" refer to the milestones that we die-hards celebrate, as we get closer in time to the fiestas in Pamplona!  As the song tells us: In English - The 1st of January, the 2nd of February, the 3rd of March, the 4th of April, the 5th of May, the 6th of June, the 7th of July - San Fermín!!"

 

In Spanish, the words are: Uno de enero, dos de febrero, tres de marzo, cuatro de abril, cinco de mayo, seis de junio, siete de julio - San Fermín!"

 

Watch this fun video here, to enjoy this lively San Fermín song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mxzr-YcgxKE

In honor of what the sanfermines stand for, there are some things that you can do - today! - in order to get ready for the greatest fiesta on the planet! First, call your work place, and tell them that you are calling in "well", and that you will feel "even better" today when you eat some churros for breakfast and sip sangria with your tortilla for lunch! Go out and throw sangria on your friends and - better yet! - on lots of unsuspecting people you don't even know! Next, early tomorrow morning, take your kid's drums outside and walk up and down your neighborhood streets beating the drums until you wake up as many tired neighbors as possible! Throw more sangria on even more friends and unsuspecting passers-by! Go out and dance the "jota" in any public place - we did this at our local grocery store last week! - great fun to watch the reaction of the store's customers! Also, stay up all night tonight, and tomorrow night, and the next night, to get in practice for the real thing!

Repeat all suggestions above, until you collapse from fatigue, and then get up and do it all over again! Yes, today, we are on the 5th Step of the San Fermín ladder....Now, go out and have a blast!

Which BUS do we take from the PAMPLONA train station to the OLD CITY??

Many of you have been asking a very common question:  From the train station, which public bus is best for transport to the old city, Pamplona?  The only busline from the RENFE train station in Pamplona, to the old city, where the sanfermines take place, is the Bus # 9.....You will see the bus-stop just outside the main entrance/exit of the train station....and, you can expect a short 10-15 minute bus trip into the old city, depending on San Fermín traffic!

WHAT is the SIGNIFICANCE of the FOUR ROCKETS that go off, EACH MORNING of the BULLRUNS?

There are four rockets that you will hear, and the safety of the people running with the bulls depends on the correct and prompt firing of these rockets.

The first rocket is lit at 8:00am, sharp, signaling that the gates have been opened at the corral on Calle de Santo Domingo where the bulls just spent their last night. The second rocket signifies that all the bulls have left the corral and are now loose on the streets. The third rocket is fired to tell the runners that all the bulls have arrived to the bullring. The fourth and final rocket is lit when all the bulls are inside the bullring's corral.

The bulls are released each morning of the bullruns – July 7^th, through, and including, the 14^th – at 8:00am, sharp

WHERE CAN WE LEAVE OUR LUGGAGE DURING THE SANFERMINES??

Many of you have written to us, asking where can you leave your luggage, backpacks, etc, before you are able to check into your rooms, or after you check out of your rooms??

You will be happy to know that there is a "left luggage" area, called the "Consigna", at the old school building, located directly on the Plaza de San Francisco, in the heart of the sanfermines fiesta! 

The hours of the "Consigna" are from 8:00am on July 4th, continuously through 2:00pm, on July 15th.

 

The cost to leave each piece of luggage, each backpack, etc is about 4.75 euros, per 24 hours.

 

Viva San Fermín. 2014!

HOW CAN WE PREPARE OURSELVES for RUNNING with the BULLS in PAMPLONA?

Many of you have asked us for suggestions as to how to run with the wild bulls in Pamplona...

If you do plan to run with a pack of six, wild, angry, and very frightened bulls, we suggest that you do yourself, and those who love you, a real favor:

Read and study (!!) the very important information about "Running with the Bulls" at this great website: http://www.partyearth.com/cities/pamplona.

4th STEP of the SAN FERMIN Stairway!

Once again, we are happy to announce that we have arrived to yet another step, along the San Fermín ladder - today is the 4th day of the 4th month!! Go out and celebrate with sangria; go dance the "jota"; stay up all night and get your body conditioned for the sanfermines!! Yes, we are well on our way to euphoria, 2014! VIVA SAN FERMIN! GORA SAN FERMIN!

What about CAMERAS at the CHUPINAXCO ceremonies on July 6th??!!

If you insist on bringing a camera into this madness of the CHUPINAXCO, we suggest that you wrap your camera completely in a waterproof bag. Or, we suggest that you bring a waterproof camera, due to the huge amounts of champagne, wine, mustard, mayonnaise, eggs, or other colorful condiments and refreshments that participants throw upon each other!  We suggest that you do NOT bring your favorite, expensive digital camera into these crowds - your camera will either be ruined with the above mentioned champagne, wines, etc...or, the professional pickpockets may very well add your camera to their collections of San Fermín contraband! See pictures here, which show the density of the crowds that gather for the chupinaxco. Watch this video for more information:  http://www.sanfermin.com/index.php/en/la-fiesta/txupinazo More info on what to expect at the CHUPINAXCO will follow in another post.

What about PARKING during the sanfermines??

Many of you have been asking about where to park a vehicle during the very crowded dates of the sanfermines -

If you plan to bring a car to Pamplona, please know that all streets in the old city are blocked to traffic, during the fiesta dates of July 5th, through and including, the 14th.  Parking is sometimes available at the airport; along the perimeter of the Parque de la Taconera (see photos above); and in the residential area called "Rochapea", across the Río Arga from the old city, and about a 15 minute walk to the fiesta.  Here is the link for where the Rochapea area is located:  http://maps.google.com/maps?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGLJ_enUS311US311&q=rochapea+pamplona+spain Please be aware that leaving a car for several days, or even overnight, may be risky.

THIRD STEP of the SAN FERMIN LADDER!

Today is March 3rd, and this means that we have officially climbed to the THIRD STEP of the San Fermín Stairway! First of January, 2nd of February, 3rd of March!!.....Today is the perfect excuse to enjoy some chilled sangria, to throw some of this chilled sangria onto unsuspecting friends, and to remember that the sanfermines, 2014, are rapidly approaching!! VIVA SAN FERMIN!  GORA SAN FERMIN!