Pamplona, Spain’s Running of the Bulls: Photos, live webcams and anti-bullfighting protests from San Fermin

July 7th, marks the first encierro of San Fermin 2009 in Pamplona, Spain, also known as the “Running of the Bulls.” In the photo above a runner is getting knocked down at the dangerous Curve of Mercaderes. BullRunning.com called the event’s first day a fast and clean run. Pamplona’s main newspaper, Diario de Navarra, said there were just four injuries, none from the horns of the bulls.

I had always thought the Running of the Bulls was a singular event, but there is a bull run every morning at 8 a.m. from July 7 through July 14. Today, the bulls were from the ranch (ganaderia) Alcurrucen. But the encierro is just one part of the Festival of San Fermin, which kicked off on July 6 in front of the Pamplona’s City Council building with an event called the chupinazo. At 12 p.m. the mayor of Pamplona ignited a rocket to announce the official start of the festivities.

In the above photo taken by Alexandria Browning, a huge crowd waits in front of Pamplona’s town hall with bandannas held high in anticipation of the rocket. Those who come to the event can expect to be sprayed by sangria during the excitement.

BullRunning is providing coverage of the festival. There is a webcam of the plaza at the bottom of its home page, photos and blog posts, practical travel info for tourists attending the festival, and you can follow on Twitter (@bullrunning) as it links to notable events, other bloggers and Twitterers at San Fermin.

USA Today reported that the economic downturn has affected the turnout this year. Merchants are feeling the pinch, hotel rates are down, and Pamplona’s City Hall cut its budget for the festival by 10%.

In the above photo, a runner is caught inside a bull’s horns at the beginning of the course on Calle Santo Domingo.

A second later, the runner is tossed by the running bull.

Depsite all the excitement around San Fermin, there are those who oppose the Running of the Bulls. It’s common for the protesters to be nude and wearing banderillas or barbed darts that are stabbed in the bulls’ necks during bullfights.

In the photo above taken by Alexandra Browning, animals rights protesters affiliated with PETA and AnimaNaturalis, and hailing from 23 different countries, participate in the annual protest against treatment of bulls during San Fermin on July 5. Participants were called on throughout the protest to hold signs in their countries’ languages at the front of the group.

But it’s not all about bulls and bullfighting. In the picture below taken by Patricia Pomés, a toddler is offering his pacifier to one of the festival’s giants. The tradition helps parents train their children to stop sucking on the pacifiers, or chupetes, and is considered a symbol of growing up.

— Jen Leo, Los Angeles Times Travel & Deal blogger

[Photos: From the first 2009 Running of the Bulls on July 7 during the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, Spain; Credit: When not credited individually above, the photos are courtesy of BullRunning.com]

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 7, 2009 at 12:27 pm by Jen Leo and is filed under Europe, Festival, News, Tips & Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.