The city of Pamplona (Iruña in Basque) is situated in the foothills of the Pyrenees near the northeast corner of Spain.  It is the capital city of Navarra, one of Spain's 17 autonomous communities (something like states in the U.S.).  The name Pamplona was originally Pompeilona, after the Roman general Pompeyo who founded it in 75 BC.  The Moorish Arabs took the city from the Goths in 716 AD, but it was recaptured by Charlemagne in 778.

Situated in the center of a bowl-shaped valley or cuenca, Pamplona has changed in complexion over the centuries, which is natural for a city that has so much history.  In the 16th Century, after the Reconquest of the Iberian peninsula, Pamplona was fortified with immense walls, ramparts, and the enormous Ciudadela (citadel), which today still stands largely intact in the center of the city.  Today's Pamplona retains much of the old along with a growing modern perimeter that supports a thriving population of about 200,000.  It is one of Spain's most prosperous cities.

The region of Navarra, with the capital Pamplona roughly at its center, is diverse in terrain and culture.  The North of Navarra resembles the Basque provinces to the Northwest in both geography and in demographics.  Green mountains are home to pastoral villages with a particular style of Basque houses: white washed exteriors with naturally brown-red cornerstones and red tile roofs.  This style of houses can be seen to vary slightly from one valley to the next, signaling each community's micro-culture.  There is more Basque spoken in this region than in southern areas of Navarra.  The West of Navarra is centered around the city of Estella (Lizarra), a medieval city built into a steep valley.  Vineyards throughout the West indicate the proximity to Spain's flagship wine region, La Rioja.  This is not to undervalue the wines of Navarra, which are equal in quality and variety.  To the South there is the Bardenas, a strange mixture of steppe and desert terrains leading to the city of Tudela, Navarra's second largest population.  In the East are the Pyrenees, the giant snowy barrier beyond which is France, although at one time Navarra's territory extended several miles into what is now French, engulfing the famous city of St. Jean de Pied de Port.

It would be an injustice here not to mention the Pilgrim Road to Santiago de Compostela.  The road, which is a chain of many "roads" (some of which are merely dirt paths - we've walked them) that extend from France (a pair of alternative routes) to the northwestern Spanish region of Galicia, directly to the city of Santiago de Compostela.  The historical Santiago is the Apostle James (Sanctus Jacobus > Sant Iacobo > Santiago).  There are numerous apocryphal tales surrounding the alleged activity of this saint in Iberia, but one of the most famous is that Santiago appeared in the Battle of Lepanto (year?) and led the Castilians to an important victory over the Moors.  This legend won St. James the nickname Santiago Matamoros (the Moor-killer), a role in which he is often depicted, holding a sword and trampling dark-skinned men under his horse.  The other main image of Santiago is the Peregrino (Pilgrim), in which he is shown holding a walking staff and wearing a scallop shell on a string around his neck.  This is the standard gear of the Spanish pilgrim even today. 

The Pilgrim Road crosses the width of Navarra, dividing it roughly in half, but the road that crosses Pamplona is but one of two branches of the Road that originate in France and connect just west of Pamplona in the town of Puente la Reina.  The Road has a very long history and still attracts a steady stream of intrepid pilgrims year round, though mostly in the warmer months.

In the U.S. the word Pamplona, if it rings a bell at all, is sure to evoke just one image:  el encierro, the running of the bulls.  Thanks to Hemmingway, it has become the object of international interest since the early part of the 20th century.  His book Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises centers around a trip to the fiesta of San Fermín the 9-day festival of Pamplona's patron saint.  From July 6 through 14, the entire city of Pamplona is transformed into an enormous party, 24 hours per day during the whole week.  Everyone from grannies to babies dress in all white with a red sash, scarf and perhaps a beret.  Each day at 8AM the festival is brought back to life with the day's encierro.  The bulls are released into a corraled series of streets that lead to the bull ring, where several of the creatures will be tortured and killed for sport.

Sanfermines are more than just encierros and bull fights; there's drinking too!  But seriously, there are all sorts of cultural events, which they announced daily in the newspaper.

The population of Pamplona more than doubles during the Sanfermines, which attract tourists from Spain and the world over.  During the rest of the year, Pamplona is strictly home to its natives, and the odd philologist.  It is a very unicultural city, or bicultural if you consider that Navarra is both Spanish and Basque .

Pamplona is also the seat of the Opus Dei, an organization of Catholic faithful who devote their lives to the pursuit of sainthood.  Some of lay members  are celibate and live in communal, single-sex homes.  Their presence in Pamplona is most evident at the private University of Navarra, which they founded in 1958 and still operate.

This religious undercurrent makes Pamplona the most conservative city in Spain, hands down.  This, alongside the mayhem of the Sanfermines, the encierro, the beauty of Navarra and the explosive politics make Pamplona a truly unique city.  The rector of the University has said that in Navarra, no one feels that they are a stranger: extraño.  I would add that this is because everyone here is strange: extraño.