Pamplona 2016

PAMPLONA : A MEETING POINT FOR 2016. THE FIESTA OF CULTURE

The Pamplona candidature has presented an innovative and forward-looking project with one clear intention: to depict the cultural diversity of the city. A work which has gradually taken shape over the months, developing the themes of A MEETING POINT, the FIESTA, and the Crossroads of LANGUAGES. This project is the outcome of participation between citizens, cultural actors and institutions from all areas of culture.

Our idea is clear: We want to re-invent ourselves. We are aware that there is much more to our Fiesta than is commonly known, a Fiesta that is considered to be the most international one of all. Pamplona offers the culture of its festive melting pot as an innovative contribution, a FIESTA as the celebration which brings us together, as an encounter with others, an encounter with diversity. In short, a way of getting to know others and experiencing new things, in an environment which is open to all. Pamplona is a welcoming city.

Another great theme in our project is the Crossroads of Languages. In their various dimensions, languages are the vehicles for communication and expression, the instruments of encounter and dialogue.

Fiesta and Language make the MEETING POINT a reality, the guiding concept and context of our candidature. A Meeting Point which is capable of uniting the Fiestas from all around the globe, a meeting place for cultures, languages and spaces, a MEETING POINT representing a positive attitude, innovation and change. This is the only way to build a diverse Europe, by promoting meetings and encounters with something different, with all events in public places. And this is the great advantage of Pamplona: it is highly valued for its streets, its squares, its unexpected spaces. Places where culture is created and experienced.