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Running With The Bulls, But The Fear Is Financial

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Summertime is Spain's festival season. Villages across the country will honor their patron saints with more wild parties. But come September, a hangover just might be waiting.

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Every July, up to 1 million people gather in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona for nine days of merriment.

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The San Fermin Festival, with its famed running of the bulls, is always a huge fiesta but seasoned locals say the celebrations were a bit muted this year because of Spain's dismal economy.

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Running with the bulls down narrow cobblestone streets is a timeless tradition.

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Every year there are adrenaline junkies, tempting fate.

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Some revelers drawn to the festival are Ernest Hemingway fans, enchanted by The Sun Also Rises, his 1926 novel that popularized Pamplona's signature fiesta.

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Water is thrown from a balcony during the "Chupinazo," the official opening of the San Fermin fiesta on July 6.

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The 24-hour street parties had the same sticky sangria residue underfoot and the same nightly fireworks exploded — even though the San Fermin budget was slashed 8 percent this year.

Credit Daniel Ochoa de Olza / AP

This year, visitors to Pamplona seemed to be more cautious about spending money than normal, given the country's poor economy.

By editor

Originally published on Mon July 16, 2012 4:07 pm

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As a journalist, I came to Pamplona to see if Spain's dismal economy would dampen the spirit of the country's biggest summertime festival, the running of the bulls. Spaniards take their partying very seriously, and if there were even a hint of melancholy in their chants of "Viva San Fermin!" it might mean the economy devils had won.

11:03 pm

Sat July 14, 2012

The Id, The Ego And The Superhero: What Makes Batman Tick?

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Christian Bale as Batman in The Dark Knight Rises.

By Linda Holmes

Originally published on Sun July 15, 2012 10:11 am

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When you look at Batman with a coldly analytical eye — and he's hard to avoid these days, with The Dark Knight Rises set to come out Friday — a few things stand out as potential red flags: the secrecy, the lair, the attraction to danger, the blithe self-sacrifice, the ... cape.

It's unusual, all of it, you have to admit. Sure, he's handy to have around in an emergency, and you can't beat a fella who can be summoned with a giant light in the sky in the event you've got no cellphone reception.

But is he entirely ... well?

11:03 pm

Sat July 14, 2012

Following The Trail

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By Will Shortz

Originally published on Sun July 15, 2012 10:11 am

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On-Air Challenge: For each category, name something in the category starting with each of the letters in the word "trail." For example, if the category were "books of the Bible," you might say Timothy, Ruth, Amos, Isaiah and Leviticus.

Any answer that works is correct. And you can give the answers in any order.