Bullfight

Bullfighting, though controversial, is a popular sport here in the south of Spain, especially during the spring and feria seasons. Neither Jose nor I had ever been to see a bullfight but were lucky when one of his students gave us two front row tickets for last week. We were both excited to go but I was a bit apprehensive whether or not I would enjoy the show seeing as how they kill 6 bulls throughout. 

Going to a bullfight during feria is definitely an event. You have to dress nicely because it is a place to see and be seen. We were seated in the shade (sombra) which was a blessing because the sun was hot that day and our spots were about the best you could have with a great view of the action. This was a nice teaching perk!

Headed to the fight

I am by no means an expert in bullfighting but the way it works is as follows:

Stage 1- the bull is released into the ring and after a few passes with the bullfighter and his team it is weakened by a guy (picador) riding a horse who stabs it with a big lance. The first bull knocked the horse over which was scary. The horses wear protective gear and are blindfolded so that they can't see what is happening. They didn't always wear protection and as you can imagine, lots of horses die. Each bull weighed more than 500 kilos and were basically pure muscle. They are fierce and angry and all but one put up a pretty good fight (the first that came out was sent back) before they were sacrificed.

Bull coming out of the gate

Picador

Stage 2- Next the bull is pricked with stakes called banderillas by other members of the bullfighters team. They are much smaller and stay put during the rest of the fight. The bull is usually pricked by six banderillas which are covered with colors like red and yellow (the colors of the Spanish flag) or green and white (the colors of Andalucia's flag). This stage serves to anger the bull so that he will have energy and continue to respond to provocations.

When the bull rushes, they will place the banderillas in his back

Stage 3- This is the most beautiful part of the bullfight, when the bullfighter and the bull begin their dance together. The bullfighter with his tight costume (traje de luces) represents the woman or feminine and the bull, the man or masculine. The bullfighter must predict the movements of the bull and try to control it as it passes around him. If he does this well you will hear collective "ole"s from the crowd. At the end of this stage the bullfighter will finally kill the bull, hopefully with a clean sword to the back of its head. If a fight has been a good one the crowd takes out white handkerchiefs and wave them to show their support and approval of a trophy for the bullfighter. In this case the fighter will walk away with an ear or two as a trophy depending on how successful they are. Only one of the 6 fights we saw ended in the fighter winning an ear.

Each of these stages is repeated with each new bull that comes out. It isn't repetitive since each animal is different and each fighter has got their own style. I was torn throughout this entire show as I tried to put to one side the fact that in essence an animal was being tortured. I think you have to see it as a cultural phenomenon, one that is historical, one that represents the eternal fight between man dominating beast, death vs. life, danger mixed with spectacle. The energy in the ring was unique and though  I realize it is not for everyone, I enjoyed going to this bullfight. 

Thanking the crowd after the fight with the bull's ear as a trophy