Pamplona (in Basque also Iruña as the second official name, and Iruñea according to the Royal Academy of the Basque language) is the capital of the Autonomous Region of Navarra and the centre of the Pamplona basin on both banks of the River Arga. It was founded in 74 B.C. by the Roman general Pompey and fell into the hands of both Visigoths and Muslims between the 4th and 9th centuries. In the 10th century the clans of noblemen achieved so much autonomy that this led to the constitution of the Kingdom of Pamplona, which was the name they gave it in tribute to the city as a political and religious symbol, then considered “the heart of the land of the Vascones " (the Basques of the Roman period). In the late 11th century the monarchs Sancho Ramírez, Peter I, and Alfonso I of Aragon led an intense campaign to reconquer and repopulate the area. With the arrival of Frankish and other merchants Pamplona began to grow, although it became divided into three parts that quarrelled amongst themselves until 1423, in which year King Charles III fused the three quarters into a single entity. With Navarra becoming part of Castile from 1512 to 1515, Pamplona came to be an outpost of the crown against France and a process of modernisation began that was not interrupted until the Napoleonic invasion of between 1808 and 1813. After the Peninsular War, liberal ideas made themselves felt in Spain and Navarra in particular suffered the consequences. The active Pamplona bourgeoisie and the administrative bureaucracy were able to create a space for their ideas with the reform of the local charters. The Madrid Government attempted to curtail Navarra's tax autonomy and in 1839 a major demonstration took place in Pamplona, in tribute to which the Monument to the Charters was erected. Urban expansion began in about 1888, although the city walls remained intact until 1915 when part of them was destroyed. The 20th century was one of expansion with urban, technological, economic, social, and cultural growth. In addition to being an administrative centre, Pamplona is also the financial and commercial centre of Navarra. Population: 197,275

Tourist Information: Pamplona Tourist Office, Espoz y Mina, 15 ( 94 822 07 41). Booking Office, Eslava, 1 (with Plaza San Francisco). More information at www.pamplona.net

Youth Information Youth Information Centre, Ferrán, 32. Free internet access, message board, library & working assessment. Pamplona 's Document Centre and Youth Information– DIME, Goroabe, 36 – Ground floor. Open Monday to Friday 9:00 to 20:00, Saturday from April to June 9:00 to 14:00.

Weather: Pamplona is surrounded by mountains that act as a protection barrier. The average weather is 4ºC higher than other places at the same altitude, which is so grateful during the freeze winters in Navarra. Also, there is more humidity that raises because the presence of the Arga river, although it's not raining as much as other mountainous places. This is the current weather:

Telephones: Pamplona's code number is 948, even for local calls. For international calls dial 00 plus the country code you wish to call. Public telephones works with coins and prepaid cards on sale at newsagents. For telephone information dial 11888 or 11822.

Airport: Pamplona Airport - PNA is placed 6 km from the city, in the counties of Noáin y Esquiroz (948 16 87 50), being communicated with the urban bus number 21 which goes each 20 minutes from the airport station from Monday to Friday from 6:00 to 23:30 and from the stations of Yanguas and Miranda from 5:30 to 23:00. During the weekends the last bus goes out of the airport at 23:00 and from the stations of Yanguas y Miranda at 22:30, with a frequency of 60 minutes (taxes 1,10 €). The airport offers approximately 5 flies per day with Madrid and Barcelona. The closest International Airport is Bilbao Sondica, around two hours from Pamplona (159 km).

Train Station: Renfe Pamplona Iru ña Station, Plaza de la Estación, 1 (Domestic Information and ticket booking, 902 24 02 02; International Information, 902 24 34 02; Online Booking Information, 902 15 75 07).

Bus Station: Pamplona Bus Station, Yanguas y Miranda, 2 ( 948 21 70 12). Bus 16 stop in front of the station, but most of the lines stop in Plaza Merindades. To know the bus services of Navarra consult the following URL: www.autobusesdenavarra.com

Public Transport: Pamplona is a quite fine communicated capital, although during Sanfermines the transports are really crowded. That's why is important to plan previously the trip. Single ticket for Transporte Urbano Comarcal - TUC buses cost 1 €.

Taxis: Unlike other cities, taxis don't use to stop in the street, that's why a useful advise is to go to a taxi station or make a phone call. Fare 1 applies during working days from 6:00 to 23:00 in the A zone. Cost 1.90 € when the fare starts, 0.70 € each kilometre & 15.79 € the waiting hour. Fare 2 applies during working days from 6:00 to 23:00 in the B zone and weekends and holydays from 23:00 to 6:00 in the A zone. Cost 2.80 € when the fare starts, 0.928 € each kilometre & 20.297 € the waiting hour. Fare 3 applies during weekends and working days from 23:00 to 6:00 in the B zone. Cost 3.281 € when the fare starts, 1.154 € each kilometre & 25.247 € the waiting hour. Airport supplement 2.15 € and stations 0.50 €. Phone services have an additional cost of 0.90 € with the fare 1, 1.50 € with the fare 2 & 2 € with fare 3. Tele Taxi San Fermín, 948 35 13 35. Radio Taxi, 948 22 12 12.

Vehicles: During Sanfermines driving is not recommended because a lot of streets are blocked and is rather difficult to find a parking place. During these days aditional parking places are available at the entrance of the city and the blue zone is not working, although the municipal crane service ( 948 17 40 00) use to be really strict with offenders.

Lost & found office: City Hall of Pamplona, Plaza Consistorial ( 948 42 01 00). To pick up an object is necessary to accredit the its property. Personal documents will be sent by certificated by mail to the personal addresses or embassies.

Emergencies: For all kind of emergencies, 112; Medical emergencies, 061; Local Police: 092; National Police, 091. Civil Guard: Avenida Galicia, 2 948 29 68 50.

Medical Assistance: Navarra Hospital, Irunlarrea, 3 (942 20 34 92). San Juan de DiosHospital, Beloso Alto, 3 ( 948 23 18 00). Virgen del Camino Hospital, Irunlarrea, 4. Mutua Navarra, 24 hour Medical Assistance ( 900 21 21 00). San Miguel de Pamplona Clinic, Beloso Alto, 6 ( 948 29 60 00).

24 hour pharmacies: Farmacia Teresa Garcia Armendariz, Zangoza, 25. Farmacia Goyena, Abejeras, 2. Farmacia Ldo. Ricardo Rodriguez, Manuel de Falla, 14. Farmacia Astiz, Avenida Zaragozako Etorbidea, 21. Farmacia Autobuses, estacion de autobuses (Galería). Farmacia Lda. Ana Indurain Arrue, Teobaldos, 12. Consult schedule online.

Restaurants: Europa, Espoz y Mina, 11. It's a well-known restaurant for its elegance and excellent service. Josetxo, Plaza Príncipe de Viana, 1. An elegant noble house which has been restored with modern installations. Don Pablo, Navas de Tolosa, 19. Typical restaurant-bar. Shamrock, Plaza Félix Huarte, 3. Modern and youth restaurant whith giant sandwiches. La Chistera, San Nicolás, 40-42. A downtown restaurant with classic and elegant decoration. Otano, San Nicolás, 5. A typical bar for "tapas" during the day, and a pub during the night.

Cafés: Cafe Iruña, Plaza del Castillo, 44. Placed in a castle's square of the XIX century. Cafe Brasil, Abejeras, 8. Baluarte, General Chinchilla. Cafe Vienés, Basotxo. Peaceful cafeteria surrounded by gardens and trees in Taconera Park. El Alivio, Ermitagaña, 2.

Pubs & Clubs: Garrick, Iturrama, 20. Disco-bar. Garazi, Calderería, 36. Young people and good music. Cool, Navas de Tolosa, 11 - downfloor. Modern pub placed in the centre of the town. Boulevard Jazz, Plaza Félix Huarte, 6. Pub for jazz fans. Winkel, La Oliva Monastery. Karaoke bar. Bar Sevilla, Plaza del Castillo, 12. Tapas bar. Bar Subsuelo, Plaza del Castillo, 44. One of the biggest discos in downtown. El Negro Zumbón, Monasterio Zilbeti, 11. Bar Gorriti, San Gregorio, 16. Another classic venue. Bar Keops, Compañía, 2.

Gay venues: Bar Nicolette, Tejería, 34. An elegant and comfortable bar. Alakarga, Plaza Monasterio de Azuelo, 1. Bar mostly for lesbians. Aldata, Plaza Navarrería. Mineo, Avenida Bayona, 32. Bar open from 21:00 to 4:00. Reverendos, Monasterio de Velate, 5. Club open from 00:30 to 6:00.

Times changes, timetables and prices vary continuously, attractions that were once interesting are no longer so a year later, and others that were not even mentioned become a must in no time. For this reason, at infoidiomas.com we are always updating and we would be grateful if our clients would tell us about details and information that has become obsolete. We will acknowledge them by publishing their names in future editions.

There is a sharp contrast between the modern city of Pamplona, with its numerous gardens and wide avenues, and the medieval walled town with its narrow side streets, plazas, and ancient monuments. In contrast to other cities that keep their old and new parts quite separate, it tastefully combines tradition and modernity in the same places.

Medieval castle walls

The walls, which are amazingly long, were built between the 15th and 18th centuries and run parallel to the River Arga. At its end near this river stands the bullring, which is outside the walled part of town. This bullring, which is mentioned by Hemingway in his works, is one of the most important bullfighting scenarios in Spain, especially during the Sanfermines festival when it becomes the finishing point for local youths who run the bulls. Close by the visitor comes to the Plaza del Castillo, which is where bullfights were held until 1893; it was subsequently occupied by cafés as from 1910. This plaza continues to be the “heart of Pamplona ” in many respects. On its southern corner rises the Navarra Government Palace, which was built in the mid-19th century and was the headquarters of the County Council until 1984. It houses the chapels of Santa Maria La Real, San Fermín, and San Francisco Javier; its Throne Room and Government Council Room are outstanding. Behind the church of San Ignacio de Loyola stands the Monument to the Navarra Charters, which was erected in 1903 from voluntary subscriptions as an allegory to Justice, History, Autonomy, Peace, and Work. If we pass the Romanesque 12th-century church of San Nicolás and the Monument to Saint Francis of Assisi, we come to the Comptos Chamber in Calle Ansoleaga, a charming Gothic house from the 14th century which served as the Mint and the Accounts Court of the Kingdom of Navarra, which King Charles II made the controlling body of the royal finances in 1365.

The Cathedral of Santa María is Gothic in style and was built between 1397 and 1530 on the ruins of a Romanesque church of 1124; it is one of the most important religious buildings in Spain. Its façade is neoclassical in style and was executed by Ventura Rodríguez in the 18th century. Remains of the former Romanesque church can still be seen in the Navarra Museum and in its refectory. Its Gothic cloister is considered to be one of the finest in Europe. In the central nave the visitor can admire the Mausoleum of the alabaster Kings, which was executed in 1415 in the Burgundian style with the recumbent figures of King Charles III of Navarra and Queen Leonor. The Diocesan Museum -at Calle Dormitalería, 3- the former refectory of the canons built in 1330, contains the relics of the Lignum Crucis (Wood of the Cross) and the Holy Sepulchre ( open from 16th September to 14th July Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 14:00 hours and from 16:00 to 19:00 hours, on Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:00 hours; from 15th July to 15th September Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 19:00 hours, and on Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:30 hours; adults 4.14 €, children 2.45 €, groups of over 15 people 3.15 €, pilgrims 2.30 €, and youth card holders 3.10 €).

Pamplona Cathedral

To the south beyond the walls lies the Parque de la Media Luna (Half Moon Park), which was designed by Víctor Eúsa in 1935 as a vantage point over the plain formed by the Arga River, where the monument to the violinist Pablo Sarasate (1844-1908) stands out. The nearby Parque de Tejera continues parallel to the river and includes the towers flanking one of the edges of the city walls. The adjacent Plaza de Santa Maria la Real is the location of the Archbishop's Palace, a baroque style building which was built in the 17th century. Following along the walls, the Puerta de Zumalacárregui was one of the six city gates; it affords access to the Parque de Santo Domingo, which is the third of those situated between the walls and the river. From here the following monuments can be visited: the Town Hall on the Plaza Consistorial, of which only the 18th-century baroque façade remains of the original structure; the Seminario de San Juan Bautista -at Calle Mayor, 2- which houses the Sarasate Museum ( open Tuesday to Saturday from 11.00 to 14:00 hours and from 18:00 to 21:00 hours, and on Sundays from 11:00 to 14:00 hours); the Municipal Archive -at Calle Mercado, 11- which is where the document of the Privilege granted by Alfonso the Battler to the Franks of the quarter of San Cenín in 1129 is kept ( open Monday to Friday from 8:30 to 14:30 hours); and the Royal Archive -at Calle Dos de Mayo- located in the former Palace of the Kings of Navarra, a 12th-century building that was recently restored by the architect Rafael Moneo. It contains one of the most extensive collections of medieval archives dating from the 10th century.

The Burgos or quarters constitute the old part of the town. Those of San Cenin, Navarrerías, and San Nicolás were three separate settlements that had long quarrelled among themselves until in September 1423 Charles III of Navarra announced the Privilegio de la Unión, a charter that brought the three villages together and ensured the city's peace and prosperity. The church of San Cernin or San Saturnino -at Calle San Saturnino- is a Gothic style defensive construction that was erected in the 13th century to pay homage to the patron saint of Pamplona.

The Navarra Museum -at Calle Santo Domingo, 47- is housed in the building of the former Hospital de Nuestra Señora de la Misericordia, which dates from the 15th century and has a plateresque façade. It contains archaeological remains from between the Palaeolithic and the Visogothic eras, stone objects ranging from Roman times to the Renaissance, and a magnificent series of Gothic mural paintings. It is worth singling out the valuable 11th-century Hispano-Arabic chest from the Leyre Monastery and its art collections, which range from a canvas by Goya to an exhibition of contemporary art ( Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 to 14:00 hours and from 17:00 to 19:00 hours, and on public holidays from 11:00 to 14:00 hours; entrance 2 €, free on Saturday afternoons and Sundays). Continuing along the wall, the Parque de la Taconera is the oldest green area in the city, and is watered by fountains such as that of Neptune, a neoclassical work by Luis Paret, and commemorative monuments such as that to the Navarra tenor Julián Gayarre (1844-1890), to the composer Hilarión Eslava (1807-1878), to the writer and politician Navarro Villoslada (1818-1895), and that to the Immaculate Conception ( open 24 hours a day). Along one side stands the church of San Lorenzo, inside which can be seen the Chapel of San Fermín that was inaugurated on 7th July 1717. Its current façade dates from 1901 and was designed by Florencia Ansoleaga ( open weekdays from 8:00 to 12:30 hours and from 18:30 to 20:00 hours, and on public holidays from 8:30 to 13:45 hours and from 17:30 to 20:00 hours). To the south the extensive enclosure of the Ciudadela (Citadel) can be found, a fortified complex of five bastions that was erected between 1571 and 1645 during the reign of Philip II. Its construction is based on the Vauban system which is similar to that of Antwerp and is acknowledged as being the best example of Renaissance military architecture in Spain. Its inner rooms are now used for exhibitions and concerts ( the park can be visited Monday to Saturday from 7:30 to 21:30 hours and on Sundays and public holidays as from 9:00 hours).

SANFERMINES

The Sanfermines festival in honour of Saint Fermín originated several centuries ago. However, it became known all over the world more recently thanks to the American writer Ernest Hemingway (see section above). The key moment of the festival is when enthusiastic young men dressed in traditional white attire with red sashes run before the bulls, as is customary in many Spanish towns in order to transfer these animals to the bullring.

Chupinazo in Sanfermines

The Chupinazo or inaugurating rocket is when the festival truly begins. A sea of red scarves signals the start of nine days of uninterrupted partying ( on 6th July at 12:00 hours at the Plaza Consistorial).

The Procession: Thousands of people dressed in spotless white join the civil and ecclesiastical authorities to accompany the image of the Saint, which is paraded through the old part of the town. San Fermín leaves his retreat in the church of San Lorenzo for a few hours and Pamplona shows him its admiration, devotion, and gratitude ( on 7th July at 10:30 a.m. along the streets of San Lorenzo, Rincón de la Aduana, San Antón, Zapatería, Calceteros, Plaza Consistorial, San Saturnino and Mayor).

The Comparsa: Eight giants representing four continents or races are preceded by an escort of cabezudos or kilikis (figures with huge heads), and zaldikos (horses). Watching the giants dance as they are carried by young men to the rhythm of the music of pipers and flute players is one of the finest sights of the Sanfermines. Although they parade in groups or comparsas, each one has a different facet and different functions.

Running the Bulls: This is the central event of the Sanfermines and is what has projected the image of Pamplona to the five continents. Live broadcasting of the run on television has added to the legend and has brought with it dangerous overcrowding ( from 7th to 14th July at 8:00 a.m. over a distance of 848.6 metres through the streets of Santo Domingo, Plaza del Ayuntamiento, Mercaderes, Estafeta, and hence to the Bullring; its average duration is 4 minutes).

The Bull Fair: This specific event dates from 1959, although the actual festivities have been going on for centuries. The Pamplona fair is known for being the first in the world to award a prize to the best bull ( from 6th to 14th July at 18:30 hours at the bullring).

The Peñas: These originated during the last century and group together some 5,000 people. Each circle or peña has its own shirt, coat of arms, anthem, charanga or music band, and its corresponding banners. They are everywhere, they make a lot of noise, and they are an essential part of the Sanfermines.

All information about Sanfermines in www.sanfermin.com

IRATI FOREST

One of the small rivers along Irati Forest

The forest is located in the Western Pyrenees of Navarra and can be reached from the pretty villages of Ochagavía and Orbaitzeta. It is a natural treasure that includes the protected areas of Mendilatz and Tristuibartea and the Forest Reserve of Lizardoia. The Irati Forest is set at the headwaters of the River Iratí in the Navarra valley of Salazar between the French border, Las Aezkoas, and the Roncal valley. It is the second largest and the best preserved fir and beech wood in Europe, an immense green region of 17,175 hectares that is still virtually virgin forest.

It is very well preserved and is an amazing sight, especially in autumn when the beech leaves turn yellow to make the forest a paradigm of this season. It is a leafy paradise of changing hues owing to the increasing presence of silver firs. Birds such as firecrests, chaffinches, robins, coal tits, wrens, and treecreepers bring the landscape to life. Mammals of the forest include foxes, wild boar, and roe and red deer. Not all of the forest is officially protected, but Mendilatz, Tristuibartea, and Lizardoia form three nature reserves.

Different areas of the forest have different degrees of protection, such as ZEPAS (Zonas de Especial Protección para las Aves or Special Bird Protection Areas), forest and nature reserves, and an LIC (Lugar de Interés Comunitario or European Union Site of Interest) is currently being established. The forest consists mainly of beech trees and to a lesser extent firs and quality pastureland.

To get there from Pamplona take the N-135 towards France as far as Aurizberri-Espinal; once you have passed this town, take the NA-140 and at Aribe then take the NA-2030.