The city of Pamplona in northern Spain celebrated today, Thursday, the beginning of the famous (Chupinazo) festival for bull running, which lasts for nine days, with massive ceremonies and fireworks. In the main square of the city and all the balconies overlooking it, thousands of revelers dressed in white, typically stained with red wine, celebrated by throwing and tasting it, turning everything into a shade of pink.
After hearing the sound of fireworks signaling the start of the festival, crowds chanted "Viva San Fermín" in reference to the city's patron saint whom they honor. A musical band then played traditional tunes with wind instruments and drums in a festive procession in the square.
This year marks the one-hundredth anniversary of the first visit by the famous American writer and novelist Ernest Hemingway to the festival, which became globally known through his 1926 novel "The Sun Also Rises."
