We departed from Donostia /San Sebastián and began the next leg of our journey to Pamplona. We met our local tour guide, Leo, in Plaza del Castillo (a large public square) in the heart of the city of Pamplona for a walking tour of the city. Leo started off by sharing a brief history of Pamplona and the city square where we were standing. Leo covered a lot of ground by explaining that Cafe Iruna, one of the main cafes in Plaza del Castillo, was a one-time hangout of American author Ernest Hemingway during the time that Hemingway lived in Pamplona. Cafe Iruna was also the first cafe in Pamplona to be have electricity and Leo told us when it first had electricity the locals were terrified and avoided going there at night. Additionally, Cafe Iruna is where Ernest Hemingway wrote the first draft of his novel "The Sun Also Rises". Having read "The Sun Also Rises" as part of my duties tied to being an Academic Decathlon in the past, the fact the book is celebrated is not only surprising, but for me exists on the same level of anything written by William Shakespeare, a perfect way to level out that wobbly coffee table in your first apartment as an adult. Moving on.
Leo then walked us through the winding streets of Pamplona to the location of the starting line for the annual "Running of the Bulls" that takes place in the streets of Pamplona from July 7th - 14th. The more details our local guide, Leo, shared with us really increased the bewilderment among a lot of us in the group. 1) People do this by choice. 2) People enjoy running in front of bulls that have horns that are sprinting for nearly a half mile to the finish line and risking their health by getting gored, trampled, etc. by living, breathing bulls. 3) The whole concept is wild!
After visiting the route of the "Running of the Bulls", Leo took us to some other notable sights of Pamplona including an overlook that looked over the former defense walls whose initial purpose was to defend the city of Pamplona from attack. The view was even more spectacular because it was shortly before sunset.
As we wound our way back to Plaza del Castillo, Leo wrapped up our walking tour and we reconvened with our EF Tour Directors Edu and Silvia to be awarded with some free time and explore some of the local shops.
Then we headed back to Plaza del Castillo to regroup for attendance and head to our hotel to check-in, have dinner at the hotel and get some rest in order to be ready for another big day.
Sidenote: many of the hotels we stayed at required you to slide a room key into a slot to be able to turn the lights on in the room. In Pamplona, not only did your lights turn on in the room, but the TV did as well. My TV came alive on BOM radio, which was a full-on techno station that immediately turned my room into a solo dance party. I was so impressed, I had to knock on the door of the room next door, where Payton, Anthony, and Max were staying to share the news about BOM radio. It was nuts!
Overall, Pamplona was a vibrant city, especially in the city center and Plaza del Castillo, because the streets were bustling with people and since it was a Saturday evening, the city was really starting to come alive with the locals beginning their Saturday evening festivities in the numerous restaurants, cafes, and taverns.
To Be Continued...
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