Ok! This is the one you have all been waiting for! And sadly, it will not be as good a rendition as the one I wrote out the day of, all hopped up on adrenaline and all. Poo. Oh, well, you should have been there.
Ok, so after my two nights barely sleeping on buses and a park bench, Shane let me take a nap on his bed in the hostel (it is much to busy during San Fermin for me to actually book one of my own) while he went to the opening ceremonies. Apparently it is a CRAZY crush of people... ok, maybe is should be CRUSH, as in literally, because he says you could not move unless the crowd willed it, and then, only in the direction that it was going... people were being carried out over head who were unconscious and/or bleeding. And they were spraying champagne and sangria all over each other. Great times! Sad I missed it, but maybe next year. ;)
Not that the party stopped then. Oh, no! It continues throughout the week, 24/7, no joke. Shane came back to get me after the opening ceremonies, and we walked the Encierro (path the bulls run), so that he would know what he was dealing with the next day, and then partook in some of the festivities. Which involves a lot of sangria, and running around shouting "Ole, ole ole ole!" and "San Fermin, San Fermin!". I of course, did not partake in either.
Yeah, right! Well, that ended me up not sleeping on the floor of Shane´s hostel, but instead on the ground in the park with some New Yorkers Shane and I met. Shane actually made it back to the hostel, though, which was good, because he was running the next day. Not that he got much sleep, since he had to get up around 6AM for the Run.
I did not make it too the sidelines for that... I watched from the screens in the square, but I did not know if Shane had actually run until our (luckily appointed before partaking in the festivities) meeting after he got out of the Plaza del Toros. Then we stumbled back to our hostel to attempt to sleep.
Ok, let me explain the Running of the Bulls, for those of you not in the know. The Encierro is lined on both sides either by buildings or two rows of fences (so the spectators are not gored by passing bulls, I assume). The first one is on the seventh day of the seventh month, and does NOT start at 7AM, contrary to popular belief (although you should be on the course by then), and the run starts at 8AM... not on the dot, though, these are the Spanish we´re talking about. They shoot off a rocket, and open the door to let out some large bulls that have been kept away from people (in other words, NOT tame), with some very not nice looking horns. From there, they run 840 meters (a little over half a mile) through the town to the Plaza de Toros, where they are rounded up and taken away. Then it play time for all those who made it into the Plaza (you have to be ahead of the last bull... no one can run the whole encierro, so you usually start atleast half-way through in order to get here).
This play time involves about 5-8 smaller young bulls, with their horns capped, being let out one at a time to run rampant among the crowd of runners who are ballsy enough NOT to jump over the wall. Though, apparently, on the first day, one of the bulls made it over the wall. Lol. These bulls are not nearly as scary, but still enough to make run away. When each bull is tired out, then the let out a HUGE, but tame bull, and bring them both back in.
Ok, now, most of you already know this, actually, probably everyone, because I get excited an can´t keep things to myself, but I know that last paragraph from a first hand basis, because I RAN WITH THE BULLS. Ok, not with. Away from. And really far ahead. I´m not THAT stupid, guys, come one.
After talking to Shane the first day, it became apparent that if I started far enough ahead, I would be in no danger (from the bulls, atleast... the frightened crowd was something to be wary of as well)... so, the second day, we got up early, dressed in our red and white, and made our to the Encierro. I stayed with Shane until the first rocket went off, then I took off jogging, slowly working up to a dead run, knowing that the bulls were no where near, but kept feeling like they were, because of the electric fright of the crowd. Shane stayed behind to actually get close to the bulls, and run with them.
When I made it in the the Plaza, there were already a couple hundred people, mostly behind the wall... what a bunch of whimps! As planned, I went left and clambered over the wall, so that Shane could find me once he made it in. Then I puked... too much running and adrenaline and fright! I stayed behind there until after the first few bulls, the adrenaline got the best of me, and I went over, but still clung to it, while watching Shane play. I wanted to play, too, but I went out into the ring in between bulls one time, and as soon as they let another one out, I was against that wall before I knew what I was doing. Yay for instinct!
So... I am totally going next year! That adrenaline rush is addictive! I now want to do all sorts of crazy things, like maybe sky diving and bungee jumping. Woo!
Ok, I´m tired of writing now. And I have to pay for interney access here.
Next updates: Munich (beer!) and the Czech Republic (gorgeous!)
