Navarre

Introduction

Running With The Bulls

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Navarre is a region in the central north of Spain, bordering the Spanish regions of Basque Country to the northwest, La Rioja to the southwest, Aragon to the east and southeast, and the country France to the north. It has roughly 600,000 inhabitants living in an area just over 10,000 square kilometres, about a quarter of the Netherlands. Navarre is considered to be part of the bigger Basque Country, that also includes the Spanish and the French regions of Basque Country.

Cities

• Pamplona - the capital, with half of Navarre's population living in the metropolitan area.
• Tudela

Events and Festivals

Running of the bulls; day time party

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Running of the Bulls

The running of the bulls is the highest profile even of the Saint Fermin Festival. The course is about 825 metres long and goes through 4 narrow streets in the old city center. The only requirements for entering is being over eighteen, choosing a street to run in and starting to run at the right time. Before the run starts people pray to Saint Fermin to protect them and dress in a white shirt and pants with a red waistband and neckerchief. It is also common to run with a rolled day's newspaper to distract the bull's if necessary. The fastest part of the run is up to Santo Domingo and across the Town Hall Square. The event is not without danger. Around 200 to 300 persons are injured every year and since 1910, 15 people were killed in the running. The last person killed was in 2009.

Running of the Nudes

Since 2002 a few days before the Running of the Bulls, the Running of the Nudes is staged as a protest to bullfighting. It started with a couple of streakers in 2002, but quickly grew into a annual event with hundreds of participants. The running of the nudes is backed by a couple of animal rights groups, including PETA.

Getting There

By Plane

Pamplona Airport (PNA) is a small airport outside Pamplona. There are regular flights every day operated by Iberia and TAP Portugal to Barcelona, Madrid and Lisbon.

By Train

RENFE, the Spanish Railway Company, has trains to Pamplona to several cities, including Madrid and Zaragoza.

Sleep