Bullfights galore (umm, gore)

Hmm, this is what happened last week:

Last Sunday, Mitch came down from Madrid and we were supposed to see a bullfight. It had been rainy and cool for most of the weekend, but by the afternoon of the bullfight, it was dry and had warmed up a little. We went to the Plaza de Toros and were anxious for the bullfight to begin. A little after 6PM, the matadors and picadors came out and were examining the dirt. By 6:15PM, we still hadn’t seen a bull. Then at 6:20PM, a guy came out with a sign saying that the matadors had unanimously decided to suspend the fight because of the weather conditions. Everyone in the crowd then proceeded to throw their seat cushions into the ring and boo. There was a long line for ticket refunds, so we walked around the city (I finally took pictures of Sevilla, so check those out) and got ice cream, then went back and got our refund.

Nothing too exciting happened between Monday and Thursday; I just tried to get ahead in my homework, went to class, and hung out with Mitch, who didn’t have class at all last week, so he stayed in Sevilla.

On Friday, Mitch and I went to Itálica, the first permanent Roman settlement in the Iberian Peninsula founded in 206 BC, which was about a 20 minute bus ride from Sevilla. Itálica was also the birthplace of Trajan, the first Roman emperor from a Roman province, and his successor, his son Hadrian. Unfortunately, my camera died halfway through the trip, but I did get some cool pictures of some of the old mosaics and thermal baths, but will have to steal pictures from Mitch so that you all can see the amphitheatre, which was built for 20,000-25,000 people.

On Saturday, we explored two of Sevilla’s main attractions: la Catedral (Cathedral) and the Real Alcázar (Royal Palace). The views from la Giralda, the tallest tower of the Cathedral, were breathtaking. La Giralda was built in 1184 AD and was originally part of a mosque. The present cathedral was constructed on the site of the mosque during fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and is currently the largest Roman Catholic cathedral in the world. The Real Alcázar also greatly exceeded my expectations. The gardens and grounds of the palace are absolutely beautiful. I am excited that I can get into the palace and gardens for free with my Pablo Olavide student ID, so I plan on going back and reading in the gardens.

Mitch left on Saturday night, but on Sunday, my roommate Kelsey and I went to see a novillada, a bullfight with young bulls and less experienced matadors. Even though we had never seen a bullfight before, we could clearly tell which matadors were better. There were three matadors that each killed two bulls. The first matador was not very good and the first bull suffered for awhile before it finally died. The second and third matadors were pretty good and both received standing ovations from the crowd. I took a lot of pictures and recorded several video clips, but please watch at your own risk as they are a bit bloody.

I didn’t have class today, so I worked ahead on some of my homework and got some last minute things together before I leave for Morocco on Wednesday morning! Oh, I also voted today! Make sure to look at all of my new pictures and I will blog again next week after I return from Africa!