The Giants and their Troupe open Sanfermin 2010

06/07/2010. Giants, Big-heads, and Kilikis represented by their president Mari Ganuza, celebrate their 150th anniversary by launching a mass txupinazo

At 12.00 p.m. on the dot, the most famous fiestas in the whole wide world opened to the shout of "Viva Sanfermin, Gora Sanfermin". The president of the association of Giants and Big-heads, Mari Ganuza, accompanied by the Kiliki Caravinagre and the big-head Alcalde lit the wick of the opening rocket which has set off nine days of non-stop fun and partying.

On their 150th anniversary, The Giants and their Troupe have been the protagonists of the start of the Sanfermin fiestas. Along with the president of this association, the rest of the board members (Juantxo Echaide, Mikel Agós, Josetxo Aranguren and Víctor Barandalla) were beside the txupinazo balcony of City Hall. Inside, the place was filled with authorities and guests. At the last moment, there was a big surprise with the appearance of Caravinagre and Alcalde, the only carton figures from the Giants and their Troupe inside City Hall and who became the center of attraction for everyone there as just about everybody wanted that immortal snapshot taken beside the popular Kiliki figure.

Although the streets of Pamplona were filling up from the early hours of the morning, it was at exactly midday when the fiestas exploded and tens of thousands of people have tied on their red neckties. Mari Ganuza fulfilled the tradition as he hailed the packed crowd with the classic shout of "Pamploneses, Pamplonesas, Viva Sanfermin, Gora Sanfermin".

From that moment the swarming crowd spilt on the surrounding streets of the square in the old part of Pamplona. Within minutes every bar was overflowing with people and drinks. People were squashed into the classic streets such as Jarauta, Estafeta or San Nicolás, where the alcohol was already showing its effects on some of the younger crowd.

The fiesta will now continue non-stop over the next nine days, until, all too soon, the mayor of Pamplona will declare from the very same balcony the official closure of the fiestas.