Bull Fight

We had quite a busy day the other day. We went to class and discussed the spanish play we are reading "Luces de Bohemia" and then went on a short "field trip" right outside the building to see the Corpus Chrisi parade. The streets smelled wonderful (lined with rosemary) and there were lots of people watching the procession of the brotherhoods and religious "floats". We also got to spend time with Haley's Intercambio (after having to bike two to a bike to get there) at his apartment's pool which was really nice. BUT the most interesting thing was going to la Novellada (bullfight for young torreros and young bulls). We learned that bottlecaps are not allowed in the bullring and are confiscated by the police because the visitors often get frustrated and throw them. We also learned that if they are pleased with the bull and the bullfighter they wave white cloths in the air and say "bien". We also learned that there is special music that helps the viewers separate the different stages of the bullfight- the beginning passes with the pink capes, the stabbing from the horses, the humans who stab the bulls with colorful piercers, and then the final bullfighter with the red cape to mask the blood. While it was a great cultural experience we had to close our eyes because we felt badly for the bull (and Tirion kept talking about how the bull could climb up the stands like in extreme vacation home videos).

It was really hot and we had the cheap seats in direct sunlight but that made for some awesome pictures. WARNING if you don't like blood or don't want to see the suffering of animals do not read/ scroll forwards.