Bull Fights

 I enjoy bullfights and I wanted to share my enjoyment with you.  I am sorry that the quality of the pictures is not as high as I would like but all of the bullfights I have attended are held in the evening and the sun is going down and its not real bright.  Makes taking pictures as real challenge.  This page is mostly photo's so it might take a few minutes to load.  But I think you will enjoy them. 

And, yes there are no bull fights in Cuernavaca.  You have to go to Mexico City, but its only a bit over an hours ride away.   

To begin we are going to have a description of the bullfight.  I am going to quote you from Micheners Mexico.  They are describing how in a weekend with 18 bulls, 6 will be bad, 6 will be fair and 6 will be acceptable.  And someone asked with such lousy odds why do people go.. And the answer 

On some days you will see a bull of extraordinary bravery.  And there will be a bull and there will be also be a man.  And for twelve minutes out there on the sand you will see something that occurs nowhere else on this earth, the perfect dual between life and death.  You will see sunlight sculptured by a flaming cape.  You will see men on their toes daintily throwing their lives upon the horns, and at the end you will watch a man with a frail piece of cloth play a bull to death. People will scream with insanity from the tension.  Horses far from the scene will neigh, and when it is all over you will sit limp as death itself.  

I took this photo in the Mexico City ring.  Note the right horn, just inches from the matador.  A slight move of the head as he goes by and a serious injury to the matador.  Note the power and speed.  I really like this photo. It gives the real feeling of the bull ring. 

The fight itself...

The legal authority who will  supervise the fight and ensure compliance with custom is always a local luminary who is seated in a gala box at the highest point in the stands and is called the president.  He starts the festivities by waving a small white handkerchief.  Whereupon drums will roll, a trumpet will be sounded, and the musicians will break into the traditional bullfight music.  

The big red doors through which the matadors will soon enter in their resplendent parade are opened and out will ride an elderly man astride a fine white horse.  The Alguacil, as he is called, the constable enforcing the decisions of the president, will be handsomely dressed in a frilled costume of the eighteenth century.  He will ride across the ring and ask permission to open the small red door through which the bulls will explode into the ring.  Petitioning the president, he receives a big brass key, which holds high in the air as he gallops back through the doors to hand the ceremonial key to the attendant who guards the small door from which the six bulls will emerge one by one.  

No matter how many times you have seen the entrance of the bullfighters it is always a thrilling experience.  They come out not in single file, for that would denigrate the fellow in the last position, but side by side, as if all were equal, which is the case as the fight begins.  

During the first part of the bullfight the matador uses his large cape.  These capes are Magenta or a dull yellow, and they dominate the opening running, the matador's first passes the work with the picador and the positioning the bull for the sticks.  Only at the end of the fight is a red cloth, about 1/2 the size of the cape,  used.  The bull will charge anything that moves, no matter the color.  He does see the brighter colors easier in a bull ring but they are not real important.  The bull is a killer, not an art fancier. 

Banderilla's 
The Banderillo's  are the ballet stars of the ring.  They graceful approach the bull and lean in over the horns and insert their barbs into the neck of the bull.  Sometimes this is done by the bull fighter himself.  More often it is done by other members of his entourage. 

This is the kill, leaning in over the horns, placing the sword through the shoulder into the heart.  Note that this is a smaller Novela bull.  But its the best picture I have of the Kill. 

I thought these two photo's interesting.  The photoon the right was taken when Juli was 15 years old and a novice.  The photo on the left was taken when he was 17.  He hasn't changed much but the bulls sure have.  In the photo on the right Juli was fighting as a Novela and they use smaller and younger bulls.  As you can see. 

El Juli started fighting bulls when he was 14.  He came to Mexico as he could start fighting bulls here at an early age.  He has returned to Spain and has had tremendious success. 

Here are some links to some other bullfight Pages Please note that most of them are in Spanish.  There are very few bullfight pages in English.  It is after all a Latin Sport.

www.ElJuli.Com   Juli's site (one of the more popular bullfighters) 
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2002/595/pe2.htm Nice article on one of the greatest bullfighters.

I would also like to recommend some books
Or I'll dress you in Mourning  by Collins and Lapierre
Mexico by Michener
and many books by Hemingway

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