It's the time of the year when Quito explodes with celebration. These guys already like to party, but during the Fiestas de Quito, they party harder. The festivities started on a small scale in November, but they culminate on the 5th and 6th of December.
Bullfights are a very popular part of the fiestas, though killing the bull is now prohibited. So they just taunt the bull to the point of exhaustion, stab it, and then take it out of the ring to kill it behind closed doors. I would prefer that the bull be put out of its misery. I wish I had photos/video of the bullfight I went to yesterday. The stadium was packed with people in Panama hats (which are actually from Ecuador) drinking sangria out of goatskins and yelling. The actual bullfight was interesting. It starts out with about 6 guys teasing the bull to get it to run around. Then, men on horseback come out and stab the bull from the horse. Then two separate guys come in and stab the bull from the front (an amazing feat of agility, I must say). Then, finally, after the bull has been stabbed at least 5 times, the main bullfighter comes out--he's the "artist." He does some nice, graceful swooping motions with the cape to tire out the bull. By this point, blood is running down the side of the bull's back, his tongue is out, and he's breathing heavily. And then the fighter stabs the bull one last time, and the bull is led out of the ring by red flags on poles. To his death...
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| María Elena and Orlando ready for the bullfight Azucar in the background! |
And a wonderful 21st birthday to finish off the Fiestas de Quito. Mario took us to breakfast at the Magic Bean, a wonderful gringo restaurant in la Plaza Fosh.
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| sooo full |
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| con mi hermano Mario |
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| un cumpleaños maravilloso! |
