We went to see Portugese bullfighting in Lisbon last night. We had driven up from the Algarve, dropped our car off at the airport and taxied to our guesthouse arriving around 4:00. We bought our tickets to the bullfight online and relaxed for awhile since the event didn’t start until 9:45.
Our taxi driver had given us quite an education on his city during our drive. Not only did he treat us to some classic Fado music, but he shared a video of the Portugese bullfights so we would know what to expect. He also recommended a restaurant near the arena that he said served the best Portugese salt cod dish in the city.
Campo Pequeno, the Portugese bullfighting arena, is quite a way from our guesthouse so we decided to try the metro system to get there. The metro is very easy to use in Lisbon so we got to our stop near the restaurant with no problem. Using googlemaps we were able to route our walk to the restaurant (and to the arena after dinner). The restaurant, Laurentina, was quite nice but we both decided that salt cod is really not our thing. Onto the main event!
Portugese bullfighting is very different from what we saw in Spain. For one thing they do not kill the bull (at least, not in the ring). They start with a horseman (caveleiro) who attaches a number of beribboned barbs to the bull while teasing the bull to chase them. While the caveleiro is retrieving his next barb, the matadors distract the bull and help to further wear him out for the next act. This is where an eight-man squad of forcados line up in front of the bull. The lead guy yells at the bull and stamps his feet until the bull charges at him. Upon impact, this guy grabs hold for dear life while his team piles on to bring the bull under control. Once the bull has stopped fighting, one of these guys grabs him by the tail and the rest let go. The bull spins him around, creating a bulls-eye in the sand. He then let’s go, the bull stops, and they bring in a small herd of cowbell wearing cattle to help herd the bull out of the ring. It is quite a spectacle!
Great start to our visit to Lisbon.
