Every year from 6th to 14th July the city of Pamplona in Spain celebrates the festival of San Fermín. For nine days tourists and residents dress in traditional red and white and enjoy the continuous festive spirit that invades the streets.
To celebrate the ‘San Fermines’ fiesta, the Spanish Tourism Office in Dublin organised a barbeque at The Church pub, Jervis Street, on Sunday 3rd July. Trade and media were invited with friends and family to enjoy delicious food and excellent Spanish wine.
We were each given the traditional red scarf ,‘pañuelico’ and sash,‘faja’ and there were even some bulls there to join in the fun! Gonzalo Ceballos and Borja Bedoya from the Spanish Tourism Office duly donned bulls costumes. We even managed to have our own ‘running of the bulls’ in Jervis Street before gathering together for a group photograph.
Meanwhile in Pamplona, at midday on 6th July, the ‘chupinazo’ (rocket) was launched from the balcony of the town hall and the fiesta officially started. At 8.00am the following day the doors of the Santo Domingo corral were opened and hundreds of people ran in front of the bulls on their route through the old town to the bullring. Every morning during the festival there is a parade of ‘giants and big heads’ through the centre of the city for children to enjoy. The festival programme also includes open-air celebrations, concerts, dance exhibitions and, of course, bullfights.
San Fermin finishes at midnight on 14th July, when the crowds make their way to the Town Hall Square with candles alight and sing ‘Pobre de mi’, bidding farewell to the fiesta until the following year.
