BULLFIGHT!!!
Bullfights have been a huge part of spanish culture since about 1726. There is a huge festival in Madrid for bullfighting. It lasts two weeks and there are daily bullfights. We were invited to go see a bullfight with some of the guys. It was....interesting.
I honestly thought I would be absolutely disgusted and terrified. Oddly enough I wasn't. Don't get me wrong, I did feel bad for the bulls.
There were three matadores and two rounds, which means there were six bulls killed. Sounds terrible, right?
The bull comes charging out immediately pissed. Before his release into the ring they already have him punctured in the neck. This is to keep him lifting his head to high and to piss him off. This, now very pissed off, bull is surrounded by four to five men with pink and gold muletas (fancy capes). These guys run the bull around to wear him out and piss him off more. Their job is also to try and direct the bull towards the area for the next step. Once they get the angry bull in position, a man on a horse ,the picadore, stabs the bull with a huge lance sword thingy. Don't worry there are two picadores in the ring, somone is going to stab him. Unfair advantage for the bull, yup. I felt bad for the horses too. They were blind folded so they would not get spooked and run away from the bull. They were also protected with armour, so that they would not be stabbed by the horns of the toro. I'm still not sold on them being fully protected though. I mean a huge bull with sharp pointy horns is CHARGING at full speed towards this poor blind folded horse.
Now the bull is really pissed and very wounded. At this point two more men in fancy pants and socks enter the ring, they're called banderilleros. They attempt to plant two banderillas, sharp barbed sticks into the bull's shoulders. You have to be very skilled for this job. The men with fancy capes have to keep the bulls attention long enough for these guys to run up and stab the bull on the back of his neck. You have to react quickly because this thing is already angry. Stabbing him with more sharp objects only pisses him off more, and you only have X amount of time to run away from the bull.
At this point el toro has now lost a lot of blood, but still very angry and willing to put up a fight. Here the matador enters the ring and approaches the bull. You know this guy is important because his cape is red, not frilly pink and gold.
Ok, so the matador now has to perform a "dance" with the bull. This is called faena. The point of this stage is to show his control and domination over the angry beast. It's also to wear out the bull. Once the matador decides to rid of the poor bloody worn out bull, he positions himself directly in front of the bull. They are face to face, eye to eye. Matador has his sword raised and pointing at the animal. They're both still, wating for someone to make a move. Why doesn't the bull charge the matador? Well el toro is tired, lost a tremendous amount of blood, and the cape isn't moving around to piss him off. The matador runs towards him and aims between the shoulder blades for the bulls heart. If it's a good strike it will kill the bull instantly. If not, then the matador tries again until the bull is D-E-A-D.
We watched this happen SIX times. By the sixth bull, I felt like it was watching nascar. Bored and waiting for an accident to happen. That's why people watch nascar, right? To watch the wrecks or finder binders. Yup, I was rooting for the bull at this point. I know the bull doesn't stand a chance, but for him to give the matador a good scare would of been nice. To sum it up we didn't want to see a human die. Like my favorite elf says, "Dobby never meant to kill! Dobby only meant to maim, or seriously injure!"
Bledi the bull , one of the bulls I named, gave us a show. He rocked one of the matadores hard. Put him on the ground and rolled him in the dirt. I honestly thought the guy needed to be taken out on a stretcher. He got up though, limped away, got a new sword, and went back for more! Ah! It was intense. Bledi the bull died along with the rest of them, but he did it with spunk and style.
Supposedly, after a bullfight you can go to the market and purchase the remains of the fighting bulls. The most prized items to purchase from the bulls body is the tail and tongue. SICK! I don't think I'll be joining in on that part of the experience.
Like I said earlier, it was gross, it was not pretty, but I wasn't completely disgusted. Will I go to more bullfights? More then likely I will go to just one more. Only because I told my friend I'd take her when she comes to visit.
Enough bull talk,
Kimee Paige
“Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death.” - Ernest Hemingway
At this point el toro has now lost a lot of blood, but still very angry and willing to put up a fight. Here the matador enters the ring and approaches the bull. You know this guy is important because his cape is red, not frilly pink and gold.
Ok, so the matador now has to perform a "dance" with the bull. This is called faena. The point of this stage is to show his control and domination over the angry beast. It's also to wear out the bull. Once the matador decides to rid of the poor bloody worn out bull, he positions himself directly in front of the bull. They are face to face, eye to eye. Matador has his sword raised and pointing at the animal. They're both still, wating for someone to make a move. Why doesn't the bull charge the matador? Well el toro is tired, lost a tremendous amount of blood, and the cape isn't moving around to piss him off. The matador runs towards him and aims between the shoulder blades for the bulls heart. If it's a good strike it will kill the bull instantly. If not, then the matador tries again until the bull is D-E-A-D.
We watched this happen SIX times. By the sixth bull, I felt like it was watching nascar. Bored and waiting for an accident to happen. That's why people watch nascar, right? To watch the wrecks or finder binders. Yup, I was rooting for the bull at this point. I know the bull doesn't stand a chance, but for him to give the matador a good scare would of been nice. To sum it up we didn't want to see a human die. Like my favorite elf says, "Dobby never meant to kill! Dobby only meant to maim, or seriously injure!"
Bledi the bull , one of the bulls I named, gave us a show. He rocked one of the matadores hard. Put him on the ground and rolled him in the dirt. I honestly thought the guy needed to be taken out on a stretcher. He got up though, limped away, got a new sword, and went back for more! Ah! It was intense. Bledi the bull died along with the rest of them, but he did it with spunk and style.
Supposedly, after a bullfight you can go to the market and purchase the remains of the fighting bulls. The most prized items to purchase from the bulls body is the tail and tongue. SICK! I don't think I'll be joining in on that part of the experience.
Like I said earlier, it was gross, it was not pretty, but I wasn't completely disgusted. Will I go to more bullfights? More then likely I will go to just one more. Only because I told my friend I'd take her when she comes to visit.
Enough bull talk,
Kimee Paige
“Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death.” - Ernest Hemingway
Kimee, I love your description of the bullfight! It felt like I was there. I hope your weeks are getting better!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog, not only fun but informative as well. We would love to highlight some of your posts on our own blog: http://blogmadrideasy.blogspot.com.es/ which you are free to visit and comment as well. We would love for our followers to view this blog and get some insight on what studying abroad entails!
ReplyDeleteHappy Travels!