The Trip: Day 18 Part 2

Bullfighting is an old tradition in Spain. It was passed on to much of Latin America, and is even practiced in parts of France (or so I'm told). It began as a way to prolong the festivities surrounding the killing of a bull and the party that followed.

The first bull fighting ring was built in the mid-18th century in Seville.


From there it spread. Every step in a bullfight is ridgidly controlled and dictated by tradition. It is often likened to a dance, an alaborate ritual that will lead to the death of one or the other of the contestants. Each step is announced by the band and controlled by the president of the bullfight.

The first players are the Picadors. These are men on horseback with long pikes. When the bull charges the horse they stick it to make it bleed and thus weaken the bull. Before they added the protective covering many horses were killed by the bulls.


Next come the banderilleros. These in my opinion are the craziest of the bullfighters. They run right at the bull, jump up to reach over the horns and stick these colorful sticks into the bull's shoulder. This is to add to the show, and to make the bull mad.

Then it is the turn of the matador. He is the star of the show. There are three per bullfight and each fights two bulls. The most famous are household names throughout Spain. They guide the bull with their red cape. They display their bravery in two ways, by guiding the bull ever closer to them, and by moving their feet as little as possible. As they guide the bull the crowd gets more and more into it. There is a fine line however, because if the matador plays with the bull too much the bull may tire and not be a worthy adversary when it comes time to kill it.

The last step is the killing of the bull. The goal of the matador is to drive the sword into the heart. If done correctly it takes no more than a few seconds for the bull to die. Occasionally they miss the heart. This results in a failed bullfight and dishonor. Generally though the thrust is successful.

After the fight it is up to the President of the bullfight to decide if the matador deserves a trophy. To earn a trophy the matador must have fought well and put on a good show. The audience participates in theis process by indicating that they enjoyed the performance by waving wight flags. When we went one matador earned a trophy. The trophies that they earn come from the bull. A good bullfighter earns an ear...a great bullfightes earns two ears, and the best earn two ears and the tail.


All in all we had a great time at the bullfight. I have wanted to go for a long time. I enjoy tradition and ceremony.