Arrival Pamplona

We descended through mountains of mixed forest and fir trees and gradually came into what appears to be a flatter dryer area and into Pamplona. Our guide told us this is a prosperous and modern city that is a leader in the manufacture of green energy equipment such as windmills and solar panels. Home of the patron Saint Fermin and the annual running of the Bulls when the city’s population expands to 1.5 million. We quickly settled into our modern hotel in the city centre and had a couple of hours rest before meeting up at 7 pm for orientation to the city. The tour would pay for one drink and pintxos and then we were on our own.

NB about Running of the Bills and Pilgrims: This was one of the first regions to convert to Christianity in Spain in the 4th century AD. The scarves worn during Running of the Bulls are white, signifying holy and red, the blood of Saint Fermin. He was one of the first baptized and was decapitated by the Romans. In 711 AD, Muslims crossed over from Morocco at the Rock of Gibraltar. It was not until they crossed the Pyrenees that they were defeated by Charlemagne who then married a Muslim woman to bring peace to the area. The major Christian pilgrimages are to Jerusalem, the Vatican, and Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain where the relics of St James are. The latter was the most important pilgrimage as it could be accessed by much of the Christian world. In Pamplona, Pilgrims continue to enter through the old city walls at Portal de Francis and Calle del Carmen leads to the towers of the Cathedral.Read more