Last Saturday my mate Ross and I boarded a bus in London and 18 hours later we arrived early Sunday morning in Zauratz, Spain. It was rainy and cold when we arrived in the small beach side town in the Basque region of Spain.
We were part of a PP Travel tour for San Fermin fiesta in Pamplona. Our first day was quite relaxed and when the sun came up late in the day we made our way to the beach for a swim. In the evening we went on a small pub crawl through the beach front bars. I didn't drink a lot as I was saving myself for the week ahead.
On Monday we made our way into Pamplona to attend the opening ceremony of San Fermin, the annual feista held from the 6th to the 14th of July. Locals and internationals pack the streets and started drinking. At 12.00 a cannon is fired to mark the opening of the festival. Just before 12.00 everybody holds waves their scarf above their head and the party officially begins.
The Spanish start cheering and singing. I joined in wherever possible. My mates Andy, Anna, Ross and I where at the main square for the 12.00 kickoff. We decided to stay there as the party was still kicking off but it was not as packed as the town hall area. For the rest of the day we wandered the streets. Every little street we turned down was full of people partying. Throughout the day we were drinking Sangria, it is basically red wine mixed with fruit juice and as the day progresses people start pouring it all over each other. By mid afternoon I was drenched in Sangria and quite drunk so I made my way back to camp for the night and rested up for the bull run the next day.
We woke up at 5.00am on the Tuesday in order to get into Pamplona and find a spot in the crowds of runners. (I will describe my run in detail in the next post.)
After the run we again returned to camp and chilled out for a few hours before returning to Pamplona. Back in Pamplona we took a walk through the streets which were all filthy, full of rubbish and smelt disgusting. We walked the track we had that morning sprinted down. A few drinks later and I forgot about the smell and had a great night.
Another early start the next day as we wanted to be in town to watch the race. This time from a safe distance in the arena. I went in with Ross and Andy and we found a seat and watched all the idiots run with the bulls. It was enjoyable to watch but not quite as thrilling as being in the centre of it all.
Following the morning bull run we made a trip to San Sebastian a famous coastal Spanish city. We spent the day wandering the streets. Andy and I made the short trek up to the Jesus statue with fantastic views over the beach and the buildings. In the afternoon when the sun came up we relaxed on the beach. We returned to camp and headed straight to the beach again and went for a quick surf.
Our final day in Spain was quite lazy as we prepared ourselves for another epic bus ride home. We arrived back to London early Friday morning said goodbye to everyone and made it back to Ross' in time to watch a day of cycling and cricket on television. The craziness was over.
We were part of a PP Travel tour for San Fermin fiesta in Pamplona. Our first day was quite relaxed and when the sun came up late in the day we made our way to the beach for a swim. In the evening we went on a small pub crawl through the beach front bars. I didn't drink a lot as I was saving myself for the week ahead.
On Monday we made our way into Pamplona to attend the opening ceremony of San Fermin, the annual feista held from the 6th to the 14th of July. Locals and internationals pack the streets and started drinking. At 12.00 a cannon is fired to mark the opening of the festival. Just before 12.00 everybody holds waves their scarf above their head and the party officially begins.
The Spanish start cheering and singing. I joined in wherever possible. My mates Andy, Anna, Ross and I where at the main square for the 12.00 kickoff. We decided to stay there as the party was still kicking off but it was not as packed as the town hall area. For the rest of the day we wandered the streets. Every little street we turned down was full of people partying. Throughout the day we were drinking Sangria, it is basically red wine mixed with fruit juice and as the day progresses people start pouring it all over each other. By mid afternoon I was drenched in Sangria and quite drunk so I made my way back to camp for the night and rested up for the bull run the next day.
We woke up at 5.00am on the Tuesday in order to get into Pamplona and find a spot in the crowds of runners. (I will describe my run in detail in the next post.)
After the run we again returned to camp and chilled out for a few hours before returning to Pamplona. Back in Pamplona we took a walk through the streets which were all filthy, full of rubbish and smelt disgusting. We walked the track we had that morning sprinted down. A few drinks later and I forgot about the smell and had a great night.
Another early start the next day as we wanted to be in town to watch the race. This time from a safe distance in the arena. I went in with Ross and Andy and we found a seat and watched all the idiots run with the bulls. It was enjoyable to watch but not quite as thrilling as being in the centre of it all.
Following the morning bull run we made a trip to San Sebastian a famous coastal Spanish city. We spent the day wandering the streets. Andy and I made the short trek up to the Jesus statue with fantastic views over the beach and the buildings. In the afternoon when the sun came up we relaxed on the beach. We returned to camp and headed straight to the beach again and went for a quick surf.
Our final day in Spain was quite lazy as we prepared ourselves for another epic bus ride home. We arrived back to London early Friday morning said goodbye to everyone and made it back to Ross' in time to watch a day of cycling and cricket on television. The craziness was over.
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