http://www.azureva.com/gb/espagne/magazine/esmag2toro.php3

Olé! olé! When you hear these words being screamed in the arena at the maestranza in Seville, you can be sure that the matador facing the bull is winning over some of the most demanding bullfighting aficionados in Spain. We chose to attend a "corrida" during holy week in Spain: the toreadors Espartaco, Paco Ojeda and the much talked about Curro Romero were in the ring that day. Bullfighting can be art for some people, and sheer butchery for others. What is sure is that it leaves no one indifferent.

This centuries' old spectacle is governed by some very strict rules, which any self-respecting Spaniard must have engraved in his mind right down to the last detail. Though El Cordobes is probably the most famous bullfighter, a number of other matadors vie for a place in the public's heart at each temporada.

The corrida takes place in three stages called Tercios.

<DIR> <DIR>

In the first tercio, Varas as it's called, the matador provokes the bull with his cape. This is the stage in which he tries to discern the strengths and weaknesses of the animal. The picadors, on horseback, use sharp, brightly decorated sticks to wound the bull and to force it to keep its head down.

Then, the banderilleros, on foot, provoke the animal and plant three pairs of banderillas in the animals shoulders. This is called the banderilla tercio.

Then comes the muleta Tercio, in which the matador makes several passes with the bull. Each pass has a name. By doing this, the matador must demonstrate his courage and impress the crowd with the elegance of his refined movements. The estocade, the final death blow to the animal, is the culmination of the twenty minutes of confrontation.

</DIR></DIR>

The sharp and repeated clapping sounds of the spectators' fans, the whispers and screams becoming progressively louder in the arena, and the music that begins when Paco Jeda enters the ring... all of this, much more than the very regimented confrontation itself, is what marked us the most. The ambiance and the atmosphere in this beautiful really left an impression on us.