bullfight

Last weekend, I was so lucky as to have the wonderful Lia Giannotti in town, visiting me and the wonderful city of Madrid. However, I was not so lucky as to have the opportunity to see a bullfight, or corrida de toros.

Lia´s boyfriend, Barclay, had bought us three tickets, without our knowledge, and of course we weren´t going to turn this cultural experience down. Barclay happens to be from Texas, and was probably more excited than a little boy on his first trip to the zoo. Soak up the pictures below, and decide for yourself if maintaining this custom is really worth keeping up the cultural tradition...

There are two major bullfighting rings in Madrid. We went to "Ventas", one of the most important architectural works in the north-east part of Madrid. I have to admit, it was beautiful.
The term "bullfighting" seems self-explanatory, but in reality there is a lot more to it. I imagined one man, one bull, one ring. It still sounded unfair, and I was far from correct.

To begin with, each event consists of six bulls, two for each matador. The matador then has several assisstants: two picadores (lancers), three banderilleros (flagmen), and a mozo de espada (sword page).

Each match consists of three separate phases which are marked by a trumpet sound. During the first phase, the team of toreros come parading out into the bullring, shortly followed by the bull. The matador performs a series of passes to impress the crowd, while also testing the animal´s feroicty. One picador on horseback then takes the opportunity to lance a sharp stick into the bull´s lower neck to draw the first blood, which usually results in the bull´s attack of the horse.

The horse is covered head to toe in protection, but before the 1930s, this was not the case. In those times, it was common that more horses than bulls died in one event. But protected or not, I saw more than one fall, and could not imagine the panic it must have been experiencing.
During the next stage, the three banderilleros each attempt to stab two colorful, sharp sticks into the bull´s shoulders. At this point, the bull´s smooth back is stained with a velvety dark blood. It now supposedly charges with its head bent lower to ease the pain, thus making it easier and less dangerous for the matador.

Finally, the matador enters the ring alone with a sword and red cape. This is the final stage during which the matador demonstrates his skill with several risky passes.

If the audience is particularly impressed by the matador´s performance, they will wave white handkerchiefs so that he may be awarded one of the bull´s ears. On the other hand, it is also tradition to protest the killing of the bull, if he has fought particularly well. This is done by a sort of clapping rhythm, and the bull is allowed to leave the ring alive, returning to the ranch where it came from.

However, I would imagine that the final stage eventually leads to the matador´s stabbing the sword in the bull´s back. The bull lasts for more or less 20 seconds after that, falling first on it´s fore-legs, and then toppling over it´s own weight.

Seeing the bull fall was probably one of the saddest sights I have ever witnessed. It was as if the bull knew and understood the injustice of what was happening. I have to admit--I´ve never been a supporter of this tradition, but I had never spoken against it. It´s as if it was a legend, a fairytale, that wasn´t reality until I saw it with my own eyes. Thanks to Barclay, I have photos to document. I had to cover my eyes.

The silver-lining to this cloud: the outfits work wonders for the ass.