Text: Elena Ilarregui &
Mª Jesús Garayoa

The capital of Navarre is a far cry from being the peaceful city that seems. In its streets, entertainment and amusement are guaranteed to everybody

Under an appearance of a quiet town, Pamplona hides: a place full of history in which is possible to find all kind of comforts.
And this is known by its about 186.000 inhabitants who are checking, for some time to now, how a lot of buildings are being restored and built in order to improve their quality of life. In this sense, for example, it is necessary make a reference to the new auditorium that will serve, in the future, to celebrate a lot of concerts and performances.

Then, the privileged geographic situation of the capital of Navarre, near the “Cantabrico” Sea (Bay of Biscay) and the Pyrenees, and its perfect size, not quite small but no very big, makes it the ideal place to live in. So, the next question is what people in Pamplona do in their free time? The answer is complicated but we are trying to talk about it.

Cinema, running and a cup of coffee

Young people’s hobbies in Pamplona are not especially extraordinary. For example, during the week, they love going to the cinema. So in the capital of Navarre there are a lot of cinemas in which films directed by people from all over the world are shown.

However, not all young people from Pamplona love culture. That is the reason why most of them prefer spending their free time playing sports. Talking about this, we must say that in the main town of Navarre, there are many parks, like “Media Luna”, “Taconera”, “Yamaguchi” or “Vuelta del Castillo”, where people go walking, running or playing football.

Then, there is a group of young people in Pamplona that opt for going to a cafe shop or to a bar in order to meet with their friends. They enjoy talking about problems, worries, good news... and making plains for the future.

Mountain or beach?

On Saturday and on Sunday, young people’s priorities change. Probably, because after spending five days working or studying they prefer doing something different and amazing at weekend.

In summer, for example, many times they go to the beach with their friends; they normally visit a specific zone in the “Cantabrico” coast: Guipúzcoa. Perhaps young people love going there because if they drive across the highway called “autovía del Norte”, they can arrive in San Sebastian in only forty five minutes.

Then, in the hot season, there are a lot of young people who also like climbing mountains or going to the countryside. And afterwards, when the weather becomes rude, many of them rent a pair of skies and go to Pyrenees in order to use the best snow rinks (although they frequently return to their houses with a broken leg).

Finally, there is another group of young people in the capital of Navarre who love remaining in the town at weekend. Probably, because on Saturday night they like going out with their friends: they drink, dance and laugh together. For this reason, there are a lot of pubs, bars, and discos in Pamplona that are situated principally in the “Casco antiguo” (downtown of the city), and in “San Juan”, (one of the oldest suburbs of the capital of Navarre).

Better at home

Middle aged people in Pamplona are, however, more sedentary than young people. In this sense, they don’t like very much going out during the week. For this, they remain at home reading newspapers, listening to music or watching TV (despite the fact that actual television programs have not quality).

Anyway, sometimes, after a hard day of work, they decide to go for a walk across the downtown of the city. In those occasions, they like buying some roast chestnuts that are typical in Navarre.

Also, but not very usually, they spend their afternoons going shopping to the mall (hipermercado).

Good bye, couch potato!

On Saturday night, middle aged people in Pamplona, in general, stand up from their armchairs and leave their home. Normally in order to have dinner or to go to the cinema/theatre with their friends. The goal is clear: spending a little part of the money that they have been saving during the week. (Although there is a group of people, composed basically of women, that prefer remaining at home cooking and preparing some desserts for offering to their family on Sunday).