Poster 2015 San Fermín Festival

The poster entitled Kilikón, has won the contest for San Fermin Festival 2015 and will announce Pamplona´s Festival 2015. The poster has as its main protagonist, the  Caravinagre gigant who´s one of the main characters of San Fermin Festival and very dear for the local people.   

The author of the poster of this famous Gigant during the San Fermin Fiesta is  Javier Erice. 

http://www.sanferminbalconies.com/ 

The brave Bull or toro de lidia

The story of the wild breeding has more than three centuries since the Spanish breeders started selecting the bulls for bullfighting in the eighteenth century; We are, therefore, to the world's oldest cattle breeders.

 The bull is considered the most representative emblem of Spain outside our frontiers. Such is its appeal that has been exported to neighboring countries: Portugal and France, and has arrived to the American Continent.

There is an anti-bullfighting movement that is totally against the cruelty that the bulls experience. The bull advocates maintain that if it were not for the bullfights, the brave bulls would have extinguished. Bullfights are popular all over Spain. Pamplona´s Bullfight Arena is only open during the San Fermin Festival.

www.sanferminbalconies.com

"San Fermín 2015" poster

On Monday March 2nd the period to submit the different proposals for “San Fermin 2015” Poster has been begun and will run until 25 March. As in previous years, the format of the poster is 100 centimeters high by 70 wide and must be in a foam based support and packed accordingly. One of the most important rules is that the text must include the text 'Pamplona / Iruña. San Fermin 2015 6th to 14th July / Uztailaren 6tik 14ra '.

2014 Poster

Following the dynamics of past editions, the jury will select eight finalists and then a voting period will open for those citizens who want to choose the official poster winner. The winner will receive a prize of 3,600 euros and he/she will have the privilege of announcing the upcoming fiesta. Last year 546 posters where submitted to this contest, 205 of which were from Pamplona, ​​112 from other places of Navarra´s County , 217 came from other Spanish regions and the remaining 12 came from abroad. Last year´s winning poster, titled “The Great Team” by its author Ignacio Domenech from Alicante, Spain obtained 25.3% of the votes given by the citizens voting.

All the works can be submitted from Monday to Saturday from 10.30 to 13.30 pm in the Office of the Citadel of Pamplona (Avenue del Ejérctio s/n). All the rules can be downloaded on the website www.pamplona.es

The competition is open to domestic as well as foreign authors, who may submit only one work, original and unpublished, using their free technique. LET´S GO!

The Snow to Pamplona

These days the snow has come to Pamplona. In the pictures you can see the Running of the Bulls Monument along with Plaza del Castillo, Hemingway´s favorite place. Its appearance is almost deserted so different to what you´ll see during the San Fermin Festival.

These days the snow has come to Pamplona. In the pictures you can see the Running of the Bulls Monument along with Plaza del Castillo, Hemingway´s favorite place. Its appearance is almost deserted so different to what you´ll see during the San Fermin Festival. 

Plaza del castillo. Pamplona.

Urederra River

Most people visiting San Fermín party do it for fun, to meet other customs, experience the running of the bulls, see young people running on the Dead Man Corner ( Estafeta´s Curve) and so on. Ernest Hemingway enjoyed the San Fermin Festival and then he found out the way to relax among the beautiful natural places of Navarre. 

One of them was the Urederra River source and yesterday was chosen one of the Seven Natural Wonders of rural Spain. Is a wonderful place, full of charm. If you visit Pamplona during the SANFERMIN and you decide to stay longer, this will be worth visiting as is less than an hour from the capital, Pamplona.

Autum in Pamplona

During the last San Fermin Festival the recorded temperatures in Pamplona where lower than what we are use to. The records obtained from the meteorological stations of Navarra´s Government, have confirmed the cold temperatures in fact the recorded temperatures were the lowest in the past 30 years. Now we can understand why we were so surprised!  

However, in Pamplona, ​​autumn temperatures were very atypical. In September and October we have enjoyed higher temperatures than in July, during the San Fermin.

Chicago Bulls and San Fermín

Chicago Bulls, founded in 1966,  is the NBA´s professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois. This week they have unveiled their new 'spot' for the new NBA season, which has just begun. This promotional video that evokes the San Fermin festival, will be projected just the game and is aimed to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the United Center Court.

In it, the bulls herd silhouette dominates the famous city in the northern of United States, where the shadows become reality with the roar of a herd that conquest its streets. The pitch black Bulls, 'assault' the different avenues to finally reach the United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls.

Creating a video for the games is a tradition for the Chicago Club, in fact this is their sixth project directed by Michelle Harris. It´s worth commenting that the previous one, was directed by the Wachowski Brothers Studio in 2006, very known for being the authors of The Matrix trilogy. 

I wish that this year the Spanish player Pau Gasol will help the team to be successful and decides to visit Pamplona and see a “real” running of the bulls from the Dead Man Corner (Estafeta & Mercaderes St). 

To watch the video, clik below: 

http://www.diariodenavarra.es/noticias/deportes/baloncesto/2014/11/04/la_promocion_sanferminera_los_chicago_bulls_por_aniversario_182257_1052.html

San Fermín Txikito Festival

This weekend was difficult to walk around Pamplona! Yesterday hundreds of parents with their children, came to watch the Giants and Big Heads. There are many families with children who decide to take their holidays during the San Fermin Festival (July) and run away from the crowds, so this is the perfect time for their children to enjoy the music and dance of the Giants and their entourage as in during the real San Fermin Fiesta. 

In Basque language, Txiki means . So San Fermin Txikito is the San Fermin Festival concentrated just on a weekend. Imagine the ambiance as for this  year, 127 activities were scheduled. 

San Fermín Chiquito is held at this time of the year because is close to the martyrdom dates of the Saint Fermin, the anniversary of which was Thursday July 25. But we will talk more about this in another post.

Jack O' Brian: Australia; In Memoriam

On July 18^th  2014, the Boeing 777 airline of Malaysia flying  from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed in Donetsk in Ucrania, as you know this area is where the armed conflict between pro-Russian and Ukrainian took place. Unfortunately, a missile shot down the plane and dramatically ended the lives of all those on board. Event the USA government confirmed that the plane was shot down by a surface to air missile. 

Fifteen days later, Navarra´s newspaper on his Sunday supplement illustrated a full report with recent photographs of the deceased. This is when I found out that a young Australian with his SAN FERMIN scarf was among the passengers. This post is dedicated to him, so that his memory remains in those places where it was during the San Fermín Festival. From the bottom of my heart I wish that his beloved ones will remember him as the  that image of camaredereie and joyfull expression that appears in the photograph I saw. In Memoriam

The new Running of the Bulls regulations 2014

The new running of the bulls regulations has eliminated the police barrier that used to contain those running at Santo Domingo´s Hill. As you know, the corrals with the  bulls participating on the bull run are just few meters away. This police barrier prevented the runners to meet the bulls too soon as a safety measure as these are one of the most dangerous meters of the itinerary because the bulls run at a high speed due to their short legs.

It has been assessed that this is an avoidable risk for the local police in Pamplona. Instead, it has been painted a line of contention that runners should not cross. So for first time in history, the amazing image where we could see on the tv how the police were holding the runners to avoid them to encounter the bulls too soon will not occur. To get an idea of the situation at the beginning of this video you can see the last time this happened.

Four Nobel Prizes in Literature

They followed the trail of Ernest Hemingway, Miguel Angel Asturias of Guatemala (1968) Nobel Prize for Literature; Derek Walcott, West Indian (1954); Mario Vargas Llosa (2005).

I even venture to include in this section the playwright and screenwriter Arthur Miller, Prince of Viana Prize for Literature in 2002.

Edward Kennedy

The San Fermin festival have had a great impact on big leaders of the world of politics and American business. Although their trips used to be "incognito" there are several records of Edward Kennedy visiting San Fermín in 1962.

(according to private photo Carmentxu Ocariz published in recent dates in a local newspaper and Caroline Kennedy (daughter of John F. Kennedy) in 1972, as with many other young Americans, whose experiences are so well described by writer James A Michener in "The drifters".

Around the same dates, as you can appreciate in the picture, his brother JFK visited Mexico in the mid of a great popular clamour. He was received by the then President of Mexico at that time, Mr. Adolfo López Mateos.

1962, July 13

Orson Welles

Orson Welles, with two Oscars and numerous other awards as a screenwriter and film director visited Pamplona, ​​San Fermin, three times., 1955, 1961 and 1966.

 In the photograph can be seen smoking a cigar while attending an evening bullfight. In the early 2009, the American Film Institute proclaimed that the film Citizen Kane, directed by Orson Welles in 1941, was the best film of American Cinema.

In the 60´s during his visit to San Fermin Festival, we don´t know if it was a consequence of the economic problems he was under because of his films shootings or if he was just forgetful but the truth is that during the last time he stayed at the La Perla´s Hotel in Pamplona, nowadays the only 5-star in the City, he left without paying their bill. 

Obviously the hotel didn´t claim.

Henry Ford II

In 1987, the motor car magnate, Henry Ford II the grandson of the founder of Ford Car Industry flew to Pamplona to assist the San Fermin Festival from Houston in his private plane, nothing less than a Boeing 727.

Darril F. Zanuck

The great Darril F. Zanuck visited San Fermin Festival in Pamplona in 1963. One of the main producers during the golden age of Hollywood and founder of the Twenty Century Fox. 

He came back in 1964 with the actress Irina Demick who at that time was the female main character of " The longest Day", a huge film about the Normandy landing

Dennis Rodman

The first running of the bulls on San Fermin festival 2009 had an unexpected runner. Dennis Rodman was noted not only because of his height stood out from the crowd but his tattoos, piercings, rings, chains and a black cap made him extremely noticeable. He decided to wait the bulls at the final stretch of the Santo Domingo Hill, ran few meters very close to the bulls and then decided to turn away followed by several runners running the same part of the chosen itinerary of Running of the Bulls.

He arrived in Pamplona accompanying Ray Sabbatini who last year unfortunately, was diagnosed with multiple scleroris. Their goal: Raise money for a foundation that fights this disease and they were sponsored by Golden Palace Casino.

The famous NBA ex-player said he had been frightened and had not felt such strong emotions even when winning at the NBA´s. He said he had fulfilled a dream and declined to say goodbye to Pamplona because as stated, he will return!

San Fermín: The Festival of Joy

Sometimes the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona can be perceived as chaotic and far too wild. But is not so, on the contrary, its de Festival of  "Joy" and "Solidarity". Take my word for this as I´m not keen on big crowds but I have enjoyed San Fermin Fiesta for over thirty years!

Chupinazo

Although most risks appear to be around those wounded during the daily Running of the Bulls I can tell that the worst ones are for those driving intoxicated and with excess alcohol consumption. The police presence is immense: they are police controls on the motorway when you access to Pamplona as well as other policeman dressed in plainclothes that mixes with people on the main events.

Last year, before the Opening Ceremony (Chupinazo), on one of the streets next to the City Hall (where the Chupinazo takes place), there were tense moments before the deployment of a large Ikurriña (Basque Country Flag with a lot of independent content depending where its shown). Some youngsters threw few bottles and a girl from Madrid was wounded but although they were thousands of people at the Consistorial Plaza in that moment, the police managed to identify and arrest last September the alleged perpetrators.

Russian Tourists in San Fermín

This year, we are pleasantly surprised by the large number of Russian tourists who are participating in San Fermin Festival. Behind our American customers, Russian clients really appreciate and enjoy our VIP services.

Thank you very much!

Photographers and International Agencies

This post is a tribute to photographers of Diario de Navarra Newspaper that during Navarre San Fermín 2014 will be again at the forefront of the Running of the Bulls providing all the news of San Fermin Festival.  

José Carlos Cordovilla, Jorge Nagore, Javier Sesma, Eduardo Buxens Jesus Garzarón Naomi Larumbe Larrión José Luis Enrique Pimuolier Jesus Caso, Fernando Pidal, Pachi Calleja, Carlos Calleja, Aitor Esparza, Ruben Albarran, Cristina Abbey Koldo and Turrets Alberto Galdona.

Foto Jorge Nagore

By the way! The long crisis we are living has also affected the number of photographers who come to San Fermin. Some international agencies have covered the Running with the Bulls with only one photographer from day 11. In fact, the fateful last year, July 13 a curious thing happened. Nor EFE, Reuters, AFP and Getty had a single picture of what happened in the Plaza. My newspaper gave some images to EFE, and all agencies had to find different pictures of amateurs or freelancers who were in the Plaza.

I´m glad that a freelance photographer was over there to photograph that horrible moment.

The Running and The Bulls 2014 : United States

The 2014 San Fermin Festival, which this year will be recorded and broadcasted for the first time in HD, will be shown by Esquire Network in the States through NBC Universal, channel and millions of viewers will have the chance to follow them!.

Spanish TV will capture, as usual, all the details of the exciting bull run thanks to the 25 cameras placed along the entire running of the bulls itinerary (less that 850 mtrs) , which runs along the streets of the Pamplona Old Town, starting in Santo Domingo´s Hill and finishing in the Bullfight Arena.

In addition to the eight bull run starting on July 7 and finishing on July 14, the Esquire Network audience will also enjoy different images of the best bulls of the San Fermin festival in previous editions, as well as some of the highlighted moments of the festival along its history.

Esquire Network is a channel of entertainment and lifestyle on different areas from fashion to culinary lifestyle or travel. Aired in September 2013 in 75 million homes across the United States and is a division of NBC Universal.

In Spain, viewers have great interest in enjoy the San Fermin Festival on their home tv thanks to the Spanish tv. In 2013, they were seen by an average of 1,663,000 viewers, 70.7% audience share in La 1 (Nacional Spanish tv) and Canal 24 Horas. This means, the most watched seconds in history, after 2010.