La Corrida de Toros, the bullfight!
Trip Start
Apr 27, 2008
1
20
27
Trip End
Jun 05, 2008
Seville,
Spain
Monday, May 26, 2008
Dear family and friends,
Like other countries of the world, when one travels from North (in this case, Barcelona), to South (Sevilla) things change. Hotter weather, of course, which means the people are more laid back. It takes effort to move when itīs warm. And the culture? It comes in the form on flamenco and bullfights, tapas and sangría, gazpacho and more jamón ibérico (air-dried ham for which most of Spain is known), with some art and religion thrown in for good historical perspective.
We were in Sevilla for 4 days and stayed in one of the neatest destinations yet, a building dating from the time of the Moors, renovated into very chic apartments
Bullfigters have tons of prestige!
. Glass and wood everywhere with exposed stone structures preserved from the original building. Beautiful, historical, comfortable and probably too sophisticated for us! Oh, and central. We could see via the map that the bullring was close, but it is quite disguised when not in use. Our apartment was directly behind it! A tour of the bullfight museum on Monday morning brought it all to life (or, in the case of the bulls, to death). Bullfighting is still very popular in Spain from Madrid south. When we cruised the crowd going to the bullfight one afternoon, we found they attract all genders (!), ages and classes. The bulls donīt discriminate! The season, spring to fall, is packed with fights. And what does this mean? That Spain needs to produce a lot of bulls (no bull)!Letīs say there are 3-4 fights per week and in an afternoon, 3 fighters fight, one well-known and the others up-and-comers (like a rock concert, I guess). The traditional fight, the corrida de toros, has three distinct parts. First, the matador (from the verb matar, to kill) or bullfighter, tests the bullīs speed, power and agility by urging it to pass him using a large pink cape. The bull is coaxed to attack a lancer on horseback, the picador, who tries to weaken the muscles at the back of the bullīs neck using a lance, which causes the bullīs head to lower, which is the purpose of this gesture.
Sue: Museum of Bellas Artes
The 2nd phase of the fight involves 3 of the matadorīs team, or cuadrillo, trying to place barbed sticks with ribbons into the shoulders of the bull which is intended to further weaken and enrage the bull. They ride on horseback, and before the animal rights people got involved (in the late 1920īs), all of the horses also died during the bullfight. The story is getting uglier, isnīt it?The 3rd part, the muerte or death, is when the matador gets the bull to pass him by using the small, red cape, the muleta, to taunt him into charging. At this point, the matador must judge the point at which to take the sword and make the final thrust into the bullīs shoulders and, hopefully, his heart. If you havenīt gotten ill by now, I will finish the story, which can be thought us as Spanish culture.
Interestingly, the Seville Corrida is run by a non-profit organization. That surprised us. The honored guests, such as the King and Queen of Spain, the president and his board, all have special box seats (in the shade where all of the good seats are). It is the president who decides if the matador has done a good job or not. If he has he gets the two ears and the tail of the bull which he subsequently throws into the audience. Just picture it! He could just be awarded one ear, or one ear and one tail. And he leaves the ring via the winnersī gate; the losers leave by, well, the loserīs gate.
Is the bullīs life ever saved? Yes it is. But donīt get too excited, for in Sevilla, in all of its recorded history, only one bullīs life has been spared (because the president at that time thought the bull deserved it)
Bellas Artes: Sorolla exhibit
. As well, a decade or so ago, a matador was killed by a bull (there have been few deaths of bullfighters, but there have been some). That bull was killed, as well as, his mother! The president didnīt want her propogating more killer bulls. Again, this is no bull.I asked if soccer is overtaking bullfighting in popularity, and the guide said that they are pretty much neck-in-neck, which surprised us. As well, the animal rights people havenīt made much of a stink about the "sport"--yet! Sevilla loves its matadores, as do all of the Southern cities of Spain. Enter a traditional bodega or restaurant and you will find photos of the famous ones on the walls and their bullfighting suits on display behind glass. It is a matter of bullish pride, I guess!
Ciao, Dick and Sue
Comments
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you are a very sick human being. to joke about those bulls is terrible. i want to slaughter you. bitch