La Corrida de Toros

Between studying for two tests and preparing for my upcoming trip to Ireland and Paris, I have had little time for many cultural adventures. That is until this weekend. I visited the Capilla Real where King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel are buried, as well as the enormous Cathedral built by Carlos V. And not only did I attend my first bullfight but I also got to wade through the craziness that is the celebration of the Virgin of Angustias. I know I have mentioned this whole saint thing before but today was the day that the wooden figurine of the Virgin was paraded all around town and the place was packed! Stall after stall of vendors selling dried fruit and chestnuts literally roasting on an open fire filled the streets. The most popular places were those selling the "Torta de la Virgin" which is basically a huge pastry filled with chocolate. What would have usually taken me a 30 minute walk to get home from the Plaza de Toros took closer to an hour because of the crowd.

But back to this bullfight. I know I have mentioned the Spanish tradition of bullfighting before but now having actually seen a complete corrida here in Granada, I feel like I have a little more to go on than just here-say from various Spaniards. So yes, here in Spain the bull is killed and at first, I was shocked and a little disgusted watching it. However as the corrida went on, despite my best intentions, I began to enjoy it. I don't think I can ever get used to the killing part but there really is something noble about the bulls. Think about it this way: (PETA people are going to hate me) hundreds of thousands of cows go to slaughter every day for our hamburgers, yet here, that animal is glorified. Red meat is not very popular in Spain and I actually had a hamburger the other day made of ham. The bulls used in corridas are worth thousands of dollars and are viewed by fans as the protagonist in the whole show and treated with respect.

So here is how it works. First, the matador uses his bandera to get the bull to charge just to show the audience how strong the bull actually is. I think at this point, if the bull was viewed to be not fit to the task, they would send it home. Then two men on horseback (their horses are covered with armor and wear blindfolds. This is the part that bothers me the most) known as picadors come out and stab the back of the bull once. Usually the bull ends up charging the horse who stands there and takes it, though I assume the horse doesn't get hurt because of the armor but I don't really know for sure. Then the matador is given smaller stakes to put in the bull's back, which he does with no protection. Finally, he uses the smaller red cape to do some amazing fancy footwork before killing the bull with a carefully aimed sword.

In this particular corrida, one of the matadors actually was shoved to the ground and his leg was mauled bad enough that he was bleeding through his pants and had to wear a sort of tourniquet. However, he came back better than ever and proceeded to do some crazy maneuvering. For example, once he got on his knees and coaxed the bull over with his bandera; he did this more than once. Another time, he had one hand on the bull's back and it was almost like the two of them were dancing together. When a matador does really well, the audience will stand up and wave white flags and if the bull is exceptionally brave, they will display the body to the audience.

I know this may sound horrible and as we left the stadium and were greeted by a few protesters, reality set back in, but I actually really enjoyed the experience. I have heard that in Mexico, they do not actually kill the bull so that would perhaps be better to see. However, now I feel like I understand a little more about the sport and the culture behind it. One thing I do have to say though. Do not, DO NOT watch your first bullfight on TV. Without the atmosphere and the band playing the Paso Doble in the background, I can imagine that would be horrible...