Pamplona bull run fiesta ends with candlelight ceremony

PAMPLONA (AFP) - Thousands of revellers raised candles in the air and swayed back and forth as they sang a mournful song to mark the end on Saturday of Spain's most famous bull running festival in Pamplona.


'Poor me, poor me, the San Fermin fiesta has come to an end,' the crowd sang just after the stroke of midnight in front of city hall in the Plaza Consistorial as fireworks lit up the sky above.


'People of Pamplona, the San Fermin festival is over. Thanks to you we have enjoyed the best party in the world,' Pamplona mayor Enrique Maya shouted from the balcony of city hall to cheers from the crowd just before the singing began.


The nine-day San Fermin festival, which dates back to medieval times, features concerts, religious processions, folk dancing and round-the-clock drinking, with bars allowed to stay open until 6am.