So by know you've read the nightmare that was my Saturday night.  Pure bloody, vicious insanity I tell you!  I am still amazed I made it out without some crazy disease or something.  I was covered in bites though.  30 or 40 of them and when I first woke up and saw them I was dreading the itching that would soon follow.  Thank god that the itching at its worst wasn't too bad.  The first thing I did Sunday morning was go downstairs and write my blog at the hostel computer about the night and inquire where the best place to get some bug spray was.  El Cortez Ingles would be the obvious choice but there was nothing open on Sunday.  When I say nothing. . . I mean NOTHING.  It was crazy.  I ate dinner at Burger King because it was the only restaurant open (and it was cool to order a beer with your "meal"!).  This super nice guy from New York named Fernando was in the lobby area when I was sharing my nightmarish story and asking about the bug spray and he offered to pick me up some on his trip to some far away open store.  I really didn't believe he would find any and was thrilled to death when he stopped by a bit later with a magical bottle of anti-bug juice.  Thanks again Fernando!!

 

I spent the day on Sunday walking down the waterfront to the Plaza Espana which was very pretty.  Then I wandered my way back up to my starting point, weaving my way in and out of local parks, buildings, universities and whatever I ran across.  I ate lunch at Starbucks because Burger King and Starbucks were my only open options this Sunday.  Later when I got back to the hostel I ran into Fernando again and we started talking about travel plans and he had just gotten a ticket to the Alhambra.  We'd talked about it a little earlier and he knew that I had had a hard time getting one.  Somehow he magically got a ticket by clicking the buy button at the exact moment someone cancelled theirs.  It was crazy good luck on his part.  He was so nice and helped me try to get a ticket.  We spent a bit of time online trying to see if the same magic would happen for me but it never did.  I talked to Fernando a bit about my temptation to forgo Rhonda and Granada since I couldn't get tickets and instead surprise Pablo in Madrid.  I looked up train and plane tickets (thanks again to Fernando for turning me onto kayak.com--best site for plane tickets ever!) and came up with a very doable plan B. 

 

I had a lot of fun talking with him and we decided to head over to the other side of the river bank to have a drink and hang out, then went over to Rubec's for tapas.  We parted ways for me to go to the bull fight and he went to do other stuff.  But we made plans to meet up at the hostel later that night to go try and take on some of the Sevilla nightlife.  I'm honestly thinking that I did not go to Sevilla during it's most social season but I still had a good time.  I knew that even if Sunday wasn't a crazy night for going out at least the two of us would have fun.  Now let me tell you about the bullfight. 

 

I have always wanted to see a traditional bullfight to see what happens.  Depending on the country you are in or part of the country bullfights range from a bunch of dressed up guys just clowning around with the bulls but nobody really gets hurt to bulls getting speared and killed after to the fight away from the eyes of the audience or right in front of the audience.  This bullfight I was attending was considered the most traditional sort with three bullfighters, matadors if you will, each fighting two bulls in a three-round fight.  Three matadors, six bulls, battle to the death.  I'll just give you a flavor of what happens because it is rather gory and I don't want anyone to get upset or grossed out.  What struck me the most in the entire process was that while the bullfighters are some of the most highly statured people in the community, what takes place and the utter unfairness of it for the bull (sorry but he pretty much has a snowballs chance in hell of doing anything but dying) makes it seem like something I wouldn't be too proud of.  Let me tell you what I mean with the process of the fights.

 

So the day was beautiful and sunny and I didn't mind my seat in the sun.  It did get a little warmer than I would like but not a big deal and it was around 4 in the afternoon so the hottest part had passed.  I was really nervous to bring my camera in because they said on the ticket that they were not allowed and would be confiscated but I had it hidden in a pocket that wouldn't be searched.  There were no searches and I think every third person was taking pictures or video so I did take a few video clips and photos.  The pomp and circumstance of the event started with the three bullfighters, I'll remind you these were the amateurs, riding in full regalia on horses followed by back up fighters (I think they were pro's) and assistants on foot all prancing around the large ring in the arena that seated up to 15,000 people.  It was a big place and it was probably 1/3 full of spectators.  There was no announcing or anything to tell you what was going to happen or who was who but after 2 minutes of prancing and the owners of the ring doing something, everyone cleared the ring and the first match began. 

 

As I said, there are a series of three stages to the fight.  In the first stage the bullfighter rides a horse that is decked out in full leather protective gear and hhe uses two spears for this round.  He has six or seven assistants who all run around the ring waving capes--colors don't matter, the bulls only track motion.  As soon as they are all in the ring they release a bull.  The bulls in this event were not quite as large as the one's the pro's fight and I want to say these were like 450 kilo where the big ones are like 600.  I didn't have that in my notes, going from memory so if I'm far off don't freak out!  The bulls are quite big no matter what.  A lot of people feel that bullfighting is a positive thing because if it wasn't for the sport this particular breed of bull would be extinct.  The breed is naturally very aggressive when provoked and is known for their die-hard fighting ability.  If it wasn't for this sport, no one would keep them around.  This isn't a big selling point for me but it is a big deal to a lot of locals.  So when they release the bull the assistants run around trying to get the bull's attention to get him riled up and charging as they cowardly run behind these big protective walls while the bull rams his head into it trying to figure out where the guy went. 

 

The bull clearly looks confused with the entire process.  It is only his instinct that drives him to charge at this waving motion in front of him.  The assistants do this for 3 or 4 minutes until the bull is panting and frankly really confused.  Once the bull is in this state, the fancily-clad bullfighter directs his horse to get in close proximity of the bull.  Initially the bull isn't really interested.  The horse on the other hand is in a terrible predicament and I thought this was the worst part of the entire thing.  While the horses are in this protective wear that is like a giant leather drape that goes down to his knees and includes a headdress, he is in a very alarming situation because the headdress covers his eyes.  This poor horse has been in other bull fights and knows what is going to happen but can't see to do anything about it.  This is the only way the bullfighter could get him to go that close and not move when a bull comes charging at him.  How awful for the horse!  I felt terrible for them and it almost broke my heart to watch.  And of course the very first fight was the most dramatic of all.  Just so you know, it wasn't until the late 60's that the horses ever wore armor.  Most horses only lived to participate in a few fights before dying in battle or from complications.  Somehow that is supposed to make me feel better.

 

The bullfighter maneuvers the obedient horse who has no other choice but to follow instructions close to the bull.  The assistants antagonize the bull so that he moves in the right direction.  Then while they are still distracting him the bullfighter approaches the bull and spears him between the shoulder blades in a dramatic and very effective manner while the bull reacts and charges at the horse with the rider on it.  In this first round with the first bullfighter he delivered the first spear without a problem.  The poor horse took quite the blow with the bulls charge and you could hear and almost feel it even though it was on the far side of the ring from where I was sitting ($ seats = sit where action is).  From this far vantage point I could see blood clearly pouring down the bulls sides.  So now he is hurting and much more upset.  The assistants give the bullfighter another long spear and they repeat the process.  With this first matador he ran into a problem with the second spear.  He delivered it okay but didn't let go soon enough and as soon as the bull started charging and attacking you could tell he wasn't expecting the full reaction the bull gave.  Ahh, the amateur.  The bull charged a few times in quick succession and then lifted the horse with the fighter on him up in the air and flipped them.  The horse definitely got hurt and was freaking out because now he was on the ground, blindfolded and getting attacked.  Luckily he got up quickly and the bull had focused his attention on the fighter who was dazed and then got flipped a few times by the bull before the assistants could distract it and medics rush the bloody, unconscious fighter away.  It was a very dramatic sight and the sounds of the audience just intensified the experience.

 

Now you might think that this kind of thing happens a lot.  I would have too but from the tour the day before it was explained that this type of accident rarely happens.  For example in all of European bullfights there are maybe 5 injuries a year.  And there are a lot of fights--Sevilla has like 160 a year just in their city.  The last 2 deaths from fights were in 1962 and 1992 (I remembered and had put that in my notes!).  Somehow at the end of the event they let us know that the guy was still alive but he was a bloody, unconscious mess when they carried him out of the ring on a stretcher.  One of the other bullfighters came in to finish the other two rounds.  So round one is the two big spears delivered to the bull's shoulder blades on horseback while assistants work to tire the bull out.  The next round is where it just starts seeming really cruel and stupid.  With the exception of the first fighter's incident, the horse round is probably the safest for the fighter.  He barely even gets close, it is the horse that takes the brunt of it.  In the second round the assistants continue to tire the bull and after two significant spearings he is bleeding a lot and panting heavily.  He is confused, hurting and you just feel sorry for him.

 

The assistants do more work than any of the fighters and I felt like they put more of themselves on the line in the process, at least on the human side of the battle.  The bullfighter now appears on foot carrying two four foot long "bocadillos" which are short spears that have many barbed tips on them.  In this round the fighter puts three sets of spears into the already weakened shoulder blades and they stick in.  The barbs on them work deeper into the poor bull the more he fights.  Doesn't really seem fair or heroic at this point does it?  The bull fighter does get a lot riskier getting that close and you do see some close calls with the horns of the bull but he is getting so weak and tired that it isn't hard for them to find an opening and take it.  After all 6 bocadillos are in, there is an appetizer named after these spears fyi, the bull is covered in blood and exhausted.  A few of the bulls barely even remained standing for the last round, one broke a leg early in this second round and another one just fell over.  Very sad to watch the bulls at this point because their instinct is still making them try to fight but they just don't have the strength to do it and I swear from the far side I was watching that I could see the helplessness and sadness in their eyes knowing they weren't going to get out of this alive.

 

Round three.  This is supposed to be the most dramatic but it really seemed more like mercy killing, with the exception that the mercy should have been shown to the animal long before.  In this round the fighter is on foot again, puffs up his chest and prances as authoritatively around the bull as he can.  He knows the bull doesn't even have the energy to charge and he walks around it like he should get all of the credit for this conquest.  Just doesn't seem like a conquest.  When he is done fluffing his feathers for the crowd, or some random girl he probably has in the audience, he takes a sword and spears the bull in the heart to kill it.  It is truly a relief at this point.  Then the fighter cuts off ears and/or the tail.  He need two of the three trophies from the fight to be successful--ears and the tail are each worth a trophy point.  Doesn't seem like a big accomplishment or challenge to take it from a dead animal.  The moment that is done horses come out and they rope the bull to the back of the procession, run the body around the ring to show it off and cart it to the back.

 

If you are wondering what they do with the dead bulls, I'll tell you.  Part of the meat goes to the owner, part to the bullfighter (along with $ prizes for both) and then the rest goes to the owners of the stadium who sell it to local restaurants who serve the meat up in tapas later that night.  It is supposed to be a big honor to eat the meat of a fallen bull.  I didn't have any myself.  So those are the rounds--two spears on horseback, six short devastating spears on foot and the final sword finish to a bull that can barely do anything but still stand if they are doing good.  How charming.  This repeats for 6 bulls as each matador gets to kill two bulls to try and earn his trophies.  There was a strange intermission where they let a really big bull out in the ring and assistants got him a little riled up.  Then they released like 15 cows into the ring and all of a sudden it was like a calm pasture with cows.  The bull calmed down, got really confused but wasn't going to attack the cows or anything.  Then after a minute they lead the cows out, spear the bull twice and then lead him off out of the ring.  We never knew what happened to him but with those injuries I doubt he would have made it long.

 

So, my take on bullfighting?  Really glad I went because it was interesting to watch.  The event was gorier than I was expecting to a point and I'm glad I wasn't sitting any closer, but I just thought it was sad.  I wasn't impressed by the esteemed fighters because I didn't feel like they did a lot of work and the bull was more victimized.  If anything bothered me the most it was the poor blindfolded horses.  I couldn't imagine being one of those horses knowing every time I'm suited up I'm going to get painfully charged from a direction I can't predict and by an assailant I cannot see.  I really hated that part.  Don't think I would go to a fight again but I am really glad I went.  I might have gone into a little more detail than I planned but now you really know what it was like to be there.  Now onto the rest of my night!

 

After the bullfight I went to the Burger King for a fancy dinner with a beer as my drink choice with the meal deal.  Felt crazy to drink beer out of a BK cup!  I met Fernando after dinner at the hostel and he had tried while online to get me an Alhambra ticket while I was at the fight.  Isn't he nice???  We would have had fun going together.  No luck there but while I was sad I was going to miss it, it also made my decision to go back to Madrid really easy!  I gave Fernando my hostel info and reservation in Granada and bought my train ticket back to Madrid for the next day.  I was so excited it was funny.  Part for getting to go back and see Pablo, part for just randomly changing my so thoroughly planned out trip and part for knowing I was really going to have some settled, down time that I really needed.  We got dressed up to go out to Boss, a well-known club there, and had one heck of a time hailing a cab.  We got creative, adventurous, looked around and finally found success with a cab.  The driver was a sweet older gentleman who was celebrating his 37th wedding anniversary with his wife the next day.  He gave us all kinds of marriage advice.  Didn't take notes though.  The cabbie drove us to where the club was and dropped us off but it turned out to be closed.  Not the right time of year??  We didn't know but wandered down the street to where a bunch of people were getting rowdy in an Irish Pub called Betis 54. 

 

The pub was lively, we had a good time, enjoyed some cheap beers, some amazing grape/berry vodka something that tasted like melted grape popsicle and then Fernando tried his first swig of Absynth.  Eventually we met Martin from Latvia who was a suave James Dean type character who'd moved to London and he introduced us to some of his other friends there.  We had a lot of fun hanging with Martin and then Jeff and Ashley who were from New York just like Fernando.  Those two were drunk but in a fun, amusing way!  Oh, a little about Fernando, he is a 28 year old sweetie with a great sense of humor (yes ladies, can't believe he is still available on the market last I heard) who does social work with autistic children.  His Spanish speaking skills came in handy as he grew up in El Salvador until turning 17 and moving state-side.  I think we made it back to the hostel around 3am, I hosed down THOROUGHLY with bug spray (although I'm sure they needed a few more days before feeding again!) and went to sleep.  Monday I woke up with only 2 new bites.  I packed and got ready to go back to Madrid to suprise Pablo and hope to god he was as great as I thought he was.  If not, I was going to need to find a place to stay!!  But you'll have to read the next installment to find out how that went. . . .