Bullfighting and a Special Lunch

Our guide Francisco used to give a talk on the street about bullfighting; until the wife of a bullfighting enthusiast allowed him to bring the Rick Steves tour group in. He collected bullfighting memorabilia and was joined by other collectors. She never had any interest in bullfighting until meeting him but she was glad to free up the living room where he had constructed a replica of a bullring by establishing this collection and enjoys sharing the passion of her late husband with others. She opens the collection solely to the public the week of San Fermin. As a person who has been raised around bullfighting the sport has appealed to Francisco. He told us that as Christianity gained in popularity it became unacceptable to have Roman gladiators, lions and criminals tear one another apart in the arena and bullfighting replaced this culture. The bull is poked by two stabs from the piccolo. The bullfighter attracts the bull through the motion of the cape and his objective is to save the bull. The performance is judged and if the result is negative, the bullfighter must kill the bull by one accurate stab through the spinal cord. It is a dangerous occupation that pays about €60,000 per fight. This generous lady served us tapas and drinks as well. Then we were treated to lunch at one of the private Basque Men’s Clubs where the men in the group
serve the ladies! You gotta love this matriarchal society!Read more