This was the view from our balcony. Notice there is no one around. People seemed to stay in bed a little later than I am used to. It was so relaxing to just sit there and drink my tea. Nothing to do, nothing to worry about. What a life!!
Beth and I were going to Mass at the local Church. Beth called reception to book a taxi.
Beth and I headed to the lobby - there were two taxis outside - a minivan and a regular taxi. Tom & Sarah and Ralph & Debbie were all going. Apparently the others had ordered a taxi for the 6 of us - we didn't know that the guys were going to Mass as well. There was some bickering in Spanish between the two drivers. Tom told us to get into their taxi, and that was the end of it! I still felt badly about the other driver who lost his fare. Until I saw that the Church was just around a couple of corners in Elvira!!
The Church was not too large and was quite modern on the inside which surprised me.
The Mass was in Spanish. So were the hymns but boy could that choir sing! There were only a few of them but they were rocking! What spirit! What enthusiasm! I was very impressed. There was a guitarist - no organ for these folks. And they sat in the first couple of benches on the front left hand side - no choir loft. I loved it.
I like to go to Mass in different churches when I travel. I'm not overly religious - in fact I have become quite a doubting Thomas as I grow older. I believe that it is how you lead your life - what is inside you - that counts. If you lead a good life - helping others in whatever ways you can, I don't think it matters what you call yourself - Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, agnostic, atheist, whatever. But I still love to visit Churches - I loved Westminster Abbey in London and was looking forward to the Cathedral in Seville. This Church in Marbella or Elvira was very simple. I was surprised - I guess I expected an older, more traditional Church. But this was lovely. I remember Aunt Nellie Keohane told me to always make a wish whenever I went into a new Church or whenever I saw a white horse. Not sure if there is a correlation, but I do it. So I made a wish, and then lit some candles - one for a coworker's mother and others for more personal reasons.
We waited outside the Church for the same taxi to pick us up again. We headed back to the Marriot. We were all going out to dinner at 2pm to San Martino's restaurant in Elvira. Ralph and Debbie were celebrating an anniversary so Charlene had checked ahead with the restaurant for a little champagne.
Julie was our chauffeur - Joan was the copilot - Beth and I were in the backseat. We had a bit of trouble finding the place - I think we went by 2 or 3 times - but finally arrived. Charlene and her group were right behind us.
Beth outside the restaurant - it was too breezy to sit outside.
It was a lovely restaurant - we were the only ones there at 2 o'clock! The food and wine started and kept coming - it was delicious. We had a great time - everyone seemed to have clicked after the dinner on Friday night and the trip to Tangier yesterday - we enjoyed each other. We toasted Ralph and Debbie on their special occasion - it was too bad Ralph had to head back on Wednesday - although a couple of people tried to talk him into staying.
We headed back to the hotel before our next adventure - a bullfight! When I decided to go to Spain, the first thing I thought of was a bullfight. I was disappointed to learn that the season ends the end of September. So imagine my surprise when we saw posters for a bullfight right in Marbella!! All right, it was with young bulls and young matadors, but it was a bullfight.
So we headed out and got a parking space in front of the bullring.
The statue below greeted us. Manolo Gonzalez was considered one of the best and most charismatic bullfighters in the 1940s and 1950s. He grew up in Seville and started in the ring in Madrid at 16. He was in 78 bullfights in 1949!!! He retired in 1953 and then raised bulls for the ring.
Below is one of the entrances to the bullring.
Julie had bought our tickets in advance, but others had to head to the ticket window. The poster we had seen was this one above the ticket window.
I had expected the place to be full but most of the people were on our side. And the tickets were very expensive. Below the matadors and their assistants enter the ring.
We had seats right in the front row. I was sitting beside a girl from Dublin and her husband from Belfast. They said every year a friend lets them use his house here on the Costa Del Sol. They love the warm sunny weather. They had never been to a bullfight but always wanted to go.
The bulls were smaller than I expected - 3 year olds someone said. I remember living in Sneem and being afraid of the Breens' bull down the road. These bulls didn't hold a candle to the Irish bulls I had seen.
The apprentice matadors or toreros wore colorful outfits. I read somewhere that they are based on Andalusian clothing - they are beautiful.
The matador would shake his cape at the bull who would then charge the cape. The matador tried to have the bull make a series of passes at the colorful pink cape. Sometimes it looked like the matador would thrust his saber or sword into the bull's shoulders.
Then the banderillas came out with decorated daggers or pointed sticks. They would try to plunge these into the bull's shoulders.
This caused bleeding which weakened the bull.
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| Guy on left has the decorated daggers or sticks.
There were no picadores - men on horseback who try to stab the bull with a lance. Maybe because these bulls were two young.
With the bull bleeding, the matador and his assistants would try to wear him down by shaking their capes to excite him into charging. I thought it was a little lame at first, but those matadors had some close calls with those horns!!
Eventually, the bull would fall to his knees. Then someone came out and gave him the death blow. It wasn't the matador in these bullfights who killed the bulls, and this surprised me.
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This horse had chains that were attached to the dead bull.
The horse dragged the dead bull off the field. I'm just thinking that I didn't make a wish when I saw this white horse - I was too surprised at his role in things!
There were two matadors - the crowd liked the one who was in 3 fights. This young man was on his knees at one point twirling that cape when the bull charged! That was quite tense. He pranced and preened in between charges by the bull - all formal moves that he learned during his apprenticeship. The young matador had blood on his outfit from the bull - I was wondering how his clothes were cleaned!
There is much controversy over bullfighting. In the end, I'm glad that I saw one. I wouldn't go again unless it was for a famous matador and much, much larger bulls. Five young bulls were killed this evening. Was that necessary? Someone said that the bulls are raised solely for a bullfight - they live a charmed life with nice accommodations, plenty of food, good pastures - until it is time to go to work. I don't know. It is a Spanish tradition - it is dangerous. But to kill all those young bulls. I'm thinking of that matador whose statue is outside the ring. He was in 78 bullfights in one year! 78 dead bulls from one matador. I think I'd like to try a bullfight with a mature experienced matador and larger mature bulls - I think then, perhaps, I could see it as art.
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