History & Culture

Navarra is an astonishingly varied part of Spain and exceptionally beautiful, especially to the north, where it meets the high Pyrenees, creating a land of soaring peaks, deep valleys, tranquil pastureland, swift-flowing rivers and streams that rush southward, chasmic gorges and thick forests of oak and beech. It is a pastoral landscape of the most luxuriously verdant valleys, where cattle graze and quaint villages of distinctive architecture appear. Navarra gradually levels off to the south in the Ebro Valley, where the climate is appropriate for vineyards, vegetables and wheat. Such is the variety of climates that in a corner of the province known as Las Bárdenas, there is even a mini desert.

Navarra shares borders with the Basque Country, Aragón and France and has historical and cultural links with all three. It is a region filled with old towns and villages, with palaces and mansions, cathedrals and monasteries. Clearly marked in Navarra is the great pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela. From all over medieval Europe pilgims arrived to Navarra -the first stop on Spanish soil after the Pyrenees were crossed- where their different routes converged to form one tidal wave of humanity making its way to the great shrine of Saint James in Galicia. The route enriched Navarra with Romanesque churches and chapels and with hospitals and inns for those who walked the Way, creating a magnificent religious, cultural and artistic legacy.

 

A proudly independent people, the Navarrese guard their local liberties which historically gave them special privileges and governing autonomy. The jota dance and its accompanying stirring songs is just one manifestation of the region's pride and self esteem. So too the local gastronomy, which features the finest red peppers and delicate white asparagus, lamb stew with red peppers, local trout sautéed with serrano ham, well-cured Roncal sheeps milk cheese, and canutillos (custard pastry horns). Wines of Navarra are typically clarets and rosés, served slightly chilled. Pacharan, a liqueur of bilberries and anise, is another specialty of the region.

Attractions

Navarra's tourist magnet today is the world famous July festival of San Fermín that was vividly described by Ernest Hemingway. Bulls are set loose in the streets of Pamplona, and for a few heady moments each day for eight consecutive days, locals and foreigners alike taste the thrill of the bullring and join in the dancing, singing, parades and processions that take place in the streets of the city.

 

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