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Published: September 17th 2008
Entry Procession
Everyone involved in the bull fight processes out while the band plays and the crowd cheers. Everyone wears brightly colored suits called "trajes de luces" or suits of light.The last day of the Ferias of Salamanca was Monday and it certaintly ended well.
I went to my first "Corrida de Toros" (bull fight) and I didn't leave early or close my eyes, as my host family predicted I would.
I met two friends from class at the Plaza de Toros where we handed over our tickets to the men in red berets who led us directly to our seats. The seat that I paid 34 euro for was in the sunny side of the plaza (the cheap seats, though I didn't think it was so cheap). It also happened to be one of the hottest days we've had so far in Salamanca, in the 80s (F), I think. The good thing about our seats was that it was located right next to the entrance way for the toreros (bull fighters) and bulls.
The fight started at 6pm with a big procession around the ring - everyone involved walked around the arena once while a brass band played and people cheered. After everyone leaves the pit, about 6-7 men in brightly colored suits come out with pink capes, then the bull is released. The men taunt the bull with the
Picadores
These are the guys that give a little pinch to the bull to make him mad and ready for a fight. The horses are blindfolded and wear armor, as do the men. Its just like A Knights Tale! capes and when the bull gets close they run away and jump over the wall! Only the torero actually stays in the arena the whole time, he uses the pink cape to observe how well the bull sees, how he moves, if he's really brave or more defensive. Once he's seen enough, the two picadores come out on horses and give the bull a "pinch" in the back to make him mad and weaken him a little bit. The funny thing is that the horses that they ride have to be blindfolded and wear body armor - I guess they'd run away if they saw a 550lb. bull running toward them. Now the "bull fight" actually begins - the torero gets his red cape and begins to "dance" with the bull. How good he is depends on how close he is to the bull and the type of movements he makes.
In a "Corrida de Toros" there are 3 toreros and 6 bulls (2 for each torero).
The first torero that I saw was a little boring, so was the second. The third torero, Miguel Parera, was really good - he was so close to the bull that he could
Cleaning up
These poor guys had to clean up the horse poop after the procession and rake the sand in between bulls. hug it as it ran by him! He had his two bulls running in circles around him with his red cape - and the crowd loved it. Everytime the bull ran through the cape, the crowd shouted "Ole." After he had killed his bull (yes, they all died), the people gave him a standing ovation and waved white hankies (I didn't know I was supposed to bring one). That signals that the people felt he was good enough to award him one of the bull's ears. When they continue to wave them, he is awarded another ear, then gets to take a victory lap around the arena.
All in all, it was a fun experience. Certainly not something I'd want to see everyweek (kind of like football), but it wasn't at all gory, and I hardly saw any blood. The worst thing about the bull fight were the chain smokers sitting in front of me.
After the toros, I hit the 'casetas' for tapas and a drink, then went to the fireworks finale by the river.
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