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The Art Of Bullfighting

 

            
             As a young man in the beginning of 1993 I saw my first bullfight in The Plaza de Toros, in Cartagena. That late afternoon was enough for me to experience what is good and what is bad. The bravery and skills of the Matadors were enough to fascinate me, while the brutality of it all made me a little bit sick. .
             While doing the research this unknown of which side to pick was stronger, I found out that Ernest Hemmingway, a great writer, was troubled by the same decision in "Death in the Afternoon" (1932). After finishing all my research I developed a greater respect for those magnificent bulls and the entire celebration of bravery found in the art of bullfighting. .
             The history of bullfighting can be traced back to the civilization of Crete, in Greece. It started when Caesar found the Iberians playing with wild bulls; he was astonished and fascinated by their courage. The Spaniards and the Moors followed the tradition, but this time they where riding a horse to fight the bull. It was not until a nobleman was rescued, back in the 17th century, by a peasant named Francisco Romero that the art started to flourish. This peasant confronted the bull on foot, evading him with his hat and then killing him with a sword. Nowadays there is rules and regulations to follow, making a bullfight a great ordeal. .
             First the bull is let loose in a big circled ring called Plaza de Toros. The bull has stuck to his back a little colored flag, representing the breeder. He has to be of 3 or 4 years of age and they usually have an average weight of 480kg. The fight is divided in three tercios, but before any of this episodes start the Matador and his seconds flash their pink and yellow cape to the furious bull that is attacking anything that moves. When the first tercio is about to start, the crowd and the Matador are announced by a series of trumpets being played in the background. Then two big horses come in the ring, heavily protected they are being ridden by the Picador.


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