Running of the Bulls - Pamplona

JG: For probably five years, I've wanted to go to the San Fermín festival in Pamplona, Spain, and run with the bulls. The tradition, the charm, the adrenaline - all of it. Over eight days in the middle of July, roughly a million people gather from around the world to engage in all-night concerts, parades, and revelry. For more than a week, there is no social class or hierarchy, hence the uniform white and red worn by every man, woman and child - each day, all day.

I looked forward to the bull running (natively called the Encierro) so much that I ran it not once, but each morning for three straight days. Sandy couldn't resist and ran it on the second day with me. And this was after the aforementioned revelry from about 10pm right through the night into the morning. It was an exercise in endurance, to say the least, and it was a blast. We met some great locals, and even a group of Swedes we still keep in touch with - some of them have been making the pilgrimage to Pamplona for over 30 years.

The Encierro itself is as advertised. A gradual anxiety builds amongst the runners until the rockets are launched, indicating that the bulls have been released. Then the murmur of excitement gets drowned out by the footsteps of runners prematurely jogging towards the bullring, and quickly gets doused by the full-on avalanche of bodies hustling down Estafeta Street, which is no more than six meters wide. You are jumping over, through, and around people to either make it to the end, or bailing off to the side in the event of danger. For 30 seconds, all I heard was people screaming and the clanging of bells around the bulls' necks. 

Let's go to the scorecard: 

Day 1 - winner. Made it to the ring and the 20 minutes or so of post-run entertainment with the bulls being let back in one at a time for a run at the masses.

Day 2 - loser. Big one. Got tackled by a mob of people behind me, losing my cell phone and left shoe (recovered the latter 15 minutes later and 100 meters/yards away, the phone remains lost in abyss of bad decision making).

Day 3 - push. This is only a push because I made it to the ring, but never into the ring as a straggling bull actually got hung up in the corridor leading up to the bullring....along with 30 of us runners, weaving our way around this thing. It took about 20 seconds for them to reopen the gates to redirect the bull into the ring, and that's about as close as I hope I ever get to a 1,200 lb bull.

SS: Nothing will EVER compare to this festival. The entire city is painted in red and white outfits and there are seas of people to the end of eye's reach. Little to no police presence (except for the actual run), people are gathered everywhere drinking and eating in the streets, parks, squares, or any place you can pull your butt up to at all during the day and all through the night. John and I stayed up mingling all night, every night for the first three days of the festival while we were there. (Yes - John partied all night, everyone!) It was some of the most fun I have had in years. 

The run... Since the festival started on a Friday night, Saturday morning being the the first and most important run, there was an extra amount of people in Pamplona - some for just 24 hours. Jam packed, I somehow managed to fight my way and get a prime spot on the fence to watch and record the famed 2 minute stampede. Now, just by watching I figured "that doesn't look too hard - I could totally do it!" 

So day two, I had my red skirt on and running shoes double knotted with John standing right behind me, he says "when I say run, I want you to run as fast as you can". Waiting through the premature runners, being shoved and pushed a little I suddenly hear "GO!!!!" It was an exhilarating, fearful, adrenaline ridden sprint hurdling over fallen people, dodging frantic runners and of course the 1,200 lb bulls (ten of them in total). I proudly made it into the bull ring and waited for Johnny who never came....  

Limping down the street with one shoe on, searching for his lost phone and other shoe, we now come to the real reason for our delayed blog posts. John had all our photos on his phone that has been donated to the Pamplona abyss. Thankful for iCloud, friends and international postal systems, he now has a new phone and restored our memories. Although, note the last photo below and that guy is still holding his phone...

Dinner with our new Swedish friends enlightened us of the history and importance of the festival, bringing a new level of respect for the tradition. Again I managed to get up on the fence (a 3 hour camp out) to watch the run on our final morning. A screen shot of the video below captures John running with the masses. I dared not to push my previous days luck and run again as I don't have the strength to fight the crowd. 

All in all, an incredible experience that I would recommend to everyone. Although you must read the "rules" of running first. Check out www.sanfermin.com to see more videos and pictures. 

Bilbao and San Sebastián

JG: On somewhat of a whim, we opted to head to northern Spain to the town of Bilbao, with a day trip to nearby San Sebastián. Great decision, as we found Bilbao to be one of our favorite cities. Clean, cultured, small but buzzing with activity, great architecture around every corner, and the best tapas and pintxos (smaller, gourmet version of tapas). I tell you this: we are bringing the latter back to North America with us.

Much of our time was spent navigating the steep streets and market squares, with regular helpings of pintxos along the way. Visited the Guggenheim museum, which is impressive (though, arguably, more so for architectural allure than art content). Not to mention the 40-ft dog made of flowers (see pics). 

Took a bus to San Sebastián for a day trip, which has a similar feel to Bilbao but a bit more upscale and resort-like, with the city built right along the Bay of Biscay. Checked out the aquarium and learned about the city's history as an important port city and fishing town dating back 500 years. Wished we had stayed longer to sample the cuisine more, as it's our understanding the city contain more Michelin starred restaurants than anywhere else on this planet. 

SS: I fell in love with Bilbao. Not really knowing too much about the city before hand, it exceeded any and all expectation  one could have. A clean, swimmable river through the picture sweet historic buildings that lined it. Quiet, yet a bustling city with all amenities, great shopping and seriously amazing food. The pintxos are gourmet mini tapas that are made of and full of love. We has ostrich carpaccio, foie gras delights, tuna chunk in oil with diced shallots, salmon empanadas, curry chicken baby wraps, and the list goes on and on. Luckily I took photos and made lists of ingredients to bring home these precious pleasures! The Guggenheim museum is a true work of art, designed by a Canadian! ;) This titanium and glass structures oozes beauty. 

San Sebastián is also a gem that is not so hidden. Although it's swarming with tourists, the old town streets are historic and quaint with a beautiful castle upon a coastal hill over looking the perfect semi-circle beaches on each side. The aquarium was the highlight of our visit as it displayed a variety of marine life and an abundance of the city's history. 

Barcelona

JG: Off to mainland Europe and our first stop was Barcelona for a few days. Stayed in the El Raval neighborhood - right in the center, very hipster, funky area close to all the action. We checked out a barrage of Midieval architecture (which carried into the ensuing few weeks), along with the churches and buildings of Antoni Gaudí, which seem to be aesthetically love it or hate it (like Gothic meets Willy Wonka). Pretty impressive whichever side you take, especially his Sagrada Familia work. 

Captain Shenanigans B.Gil (my sister Bernadette) joined us for a few days on her way to her own vacation in Croatia. We all rented bikes and went around the bulk of the city center - from the sea up to Park Güell, about 10-15 km in all. We toured some bars and restaurants in the area - good primer for later on during the Spain leg, when the food became spectacular.

SS: Barcelona.... Always has been and still is one of my favorite cities in Europe. The culture, atmosphere, sites and general feeling of the city is spectacular. Coming from Morocco we welcomed the cooler weather, 28°C/85°F, and the readily available supply of liquor! In celebration of Bernie's arrival and no alcohol for 2 weeks in Morocco, we decided to get after the what seemed like an endless supply of sangria. In classic Bernie style, the shots started to flow along with 3/4 glass vodkas and for the first time this trip my head saw the inside of a toilet. Shocking, I know. 

We spend our hangover walking the city admiring Gaudí's work of art, enjoying delightful tapas and catching up. The next day we rented bikes and got a full view of the city from the two highest hills around Barcelona (yes, on a bike, uphill), riding to and from all corners of the city. 

John and I spent our last day soaking up some sun on one the most popular local beaches (Ocata) just outside of the city, a much needed down time. 

Another first of the trip - I have come across the only dog that I hated. Yappy, biting rat-dog needed a beating.