Welcome back!! I know it took me a while to write another update. But here it is.
So this past Sunday Jenn and I went to Madrid. It was Spain’s National Holiday so there was going to be a huge parade! We had to take the high speed train at 9:30 to get to Madrid on time, so we planned an hour to get there. The station is only on the other side of Toledo, but with the bus system, you can never be too sure. So we waited..and waited..until 9:00. Now we’re both pretty nervous that we’re not going to get there on time. Luckily, there was no traffic and we were able to transfer buses without a hitch. We walked onto the train at 9:23…that’s only 5 minutes before they close the doors. We got very lucky to say the least.
So we weren’t sure what kind of parade to expect, but I figured there would be bands and floats and fun things. Not the case at all. October 12 is the day Spain celebrates it’s military and it’s fallen soldiers. Every troop of every branch of the military marched in the parade. It was so cool. I wish I would have known what each troop was and why some got applauded and others didn’t, but my host dad was able to fill me in when I got home. Just a little sidenote: my host dad is great. He is the person I go to with all my Spanish history and culture questions. It always sparks a great discussion and I love learning new things!
So after the parade we met up with some other students from the Fundacion in Toledo who were also there. We headed to the Rastro (which is the big Sunday market). Now most of you know I’m extremely directionally impaired. But you would be so proud of me (DAD!) I have now mastered not only the Toledo buses, but also the Madrid metro and airport. I’m not going to lie, I’m pretty proud of this accomplishment. I can do anything if I have a map! We got to the Rastro and it was seriously chaos! There were people everywhere and there was pushing and shoving and the browsing was not so enjoyable. I did buy a Spain flag for 3 euro though for my dorm room next semester. I was very excited about that!
After the Rastro, Jenn and I had ANOTHER challenge. To go to another plaza in the huge city of Madrid and find out where we had to pick up our bullfight tickets. We had no address for the place, all we knew was that it was in the Plaza de Carmen. We found it without any problems!!! It was this little hole-in-the-wall ticket vendor and we got the tickets with no problems. We went to McDonalds for lunch then. I know what you’re all thinking, you’re in Spain, why are you eating McDonalds…well let me tell you, Spaniards love their cuerdo (pig) and I was missing some Wisconsin vaca (cow) so we enjoyed delicious cheeseburgers and french fries. It made me so happy, even though I haven’t felt so full in my whole time abroad.
Then we took the metro to our final destination…the Ventas…aka the bullfighting arena. It was built in 1929 and has so much history behind it. Spain is famous for bull fighting and let me tell you, I was not disappointed. We had awesome seats and got to experience a great part of Spanish culture. At the beginning of the fight, all of the matadors and their assistants parade into the ring. They have the coolest looking costumes and are very proud of what they do. It ALMOST made me want to be a matador (in Spanish it’s called a torero). There are 6 total bulls to be killed and 3 toreros. Let me explain..there are 5 stages to a bull fight.
Stage 1: The assistants (6) all are in the ring. The bull is realeased and they basically take turns waving their capes at the bull. They make the bull work a little before anything else happens.
Stage 2: There are 2 men on horses that come out. The assistants try to keep the bull’s attention but eventually they see the horses. The horses are blind-folded and covered in metal armor so they’re safe. The bull charges the horse. While the bull is doing this, the man on the horse stabs a spear into the bull’s back to start the bleeding.
Stage 3: The torero comes out (without a cape) and gets handed these colorful spear/bobber looking things. The goal is to stab these things (there are 6 total) into the bulls back. It’s very dangerous, but cool to wactch.
Stage 4: The torero now has his red cape and again makes the bull work a little and tires him out. He has to do this until he does such a great job at one run that the crowd cheers for him.
Stage 5: The torero has his cape and his sword. This is when the bull dies. It’s sad, but eventually the torero sticks his sword into the bull’s back. And then slowly the bull just sits down on the ground..and dies. Then there are 3 horses that come in and drag the bull away.
I have to say, it sounds gruesome, but it was so cool. The toreros were so dramatic, it was almost like watching a theatrical performance. I have added a video for you all to watch. The reason I look down at the girl in front of me was because I forgot I was taking a video. I’m such a loser. We left after the 4th bull and made our way back to Toledo. This is why my host dad is so great. When I came home I had all sorts of questions about the different military branches and about what they do with the bull after the fight and they were all answered. The bulls are sold afterwards (all the parts) to different butchers. The meat is very expensive, but a delicacy in Spain. Apparently the tongue and testicles are the best. (I’m just telling you what I heard). There is a saying that “you grow what you eat” here, so I guess it’s appropriate then.
Now for the title of my blog…”Con Ojos Cerrados (with closed eyes)” . I still am super sketchy about eating certain foods here, especially meat. Rabbit, bull, partridge, snails, and a lot of other things are all very common here. This is gross to me. So as my host dad says, “come (eat) con ojos cerrados”. This is the best advice I could get about eating food here. I’m much better off if I don’t know what I’m eating, but I can tell you I have successfully eaten a ridiculous amount of onions AND eggs. Things I have never really liked before.
I also played with Photo Booth tonight with my host mom and sister. They loved it!!!! It was so much fun. We just had a really great night talking. I was so happy to be able to spend quality time with them. It really makes me miss spending time with my family back home. And I definitely appreciate it a lot more.
This was a pretty long post. So thanks for sticking through it to the end. I’m sure I missed some things and had more stories to tell, but this will do for now. Until next time.
Abrazos,
Amy
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