23 Nov 2022

Worth Travelling 18,000 Miles

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Andrés Roca Rey enters the arena every afternoon with the intention of “fighting with the greatest possible truth.”

Christopher North went all the way to Lima, Peru to see one matador at work, and the very long trip was clearly worth it.

I have just made a 13,000-mile round trip to watch a bullfight. I’d like to tell you that I also went to admire the exquisite latticework of Lima’s 18th century balconies, to savour the city’s matchless cuisine, to linger reverently in its Viceregal churches. Doing so would make me come across as a more rounded human being. But the truth is that I went for one weekend and for one matador.

And what a matador! Andrés Roca Rey is the world’s Número Uno, the first Peruvian ever to claim the top spot. Eighteen months ago, interviewing him for this magazine, I wondered whether he could rise any higher. He was already the torero of the moment, combining easy grace with suicidal courage. But this summer in Spain, he went up another gear, triumphing in plaza after plaza, culminating in an extraordinary performance in Bilbao. Despite being badly knocked about by both his bulls, he came back with such unhurried elegance that with a unanimity I have never known before, the critics proclaimed it the corrida of 2022.

Peru, like many less developed countries, gets excited when one of its citizens achieves recognition overseas. Even those Peruvians who have no interest in toreo know about Roca Rey — rather as English people who know nothing about cricket know about Ian Botham. To watch the return of the national hero to the ring where he began his ascent — that, surely, was worth an 18-hour flight. …

I made my way to the 257-year-old Plaza de Acho, the greatest bullring in the Americas. Bullfights in Lima are always special, but the buzz that Sunday had a different quality. You could sense the excitement everywhere — among the touts, the anticucho sellers, the lines of police. Crime in the Lima borough of Rímac is normally rife but that day even the muggers and pickpockets were more interested in getting hold of tickets.

Lima brought forth the fatted calf for its famous son. Before the opening parade, we were treated to a performance of the national dance: the marinera, performed both on foot and on that other national symbol, the Peruvian pacing horse. Bands from the army, navy, air force and police played marching tunes. Then 14,000 voices belted out the national anthem. Afterwards, high on the patriotism of the moment, they chanted against Peru’s Leftist president, Pedro Castillo.

A modern bullring, like a Roman amphitheatre, is a forum for public grievances. I happened also to be in the Plaza de Acho in November 2000, when word came through that Alberto Fujimori, the effective but corrupt autocrat, had resigned. It was fascinating to watch the news rustle through the stands. The Fujimorista crowd noticed a Congressman who had been accused of taking a bribe to vote against the president. Without any pre-arrangement, they began tossing coins at the poor fellow until he was driven, puce with rage, from the ring.

RTWT

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3 Feedbacks on "Worth Travelling 18,000 Miles"

Boligat

I’ve seen two bullfights. The first was in 1970 in Madrid. It was exciting and then really, really dull. In a typical bullfight there are three matadors and each one gets two bulls for a total of six. If anything happens that a matador cannot finish his bulls, the next guy has to take care of them and his own two.

That day the first bullfighter dispatched his first bull and then the next bull gored him and he as taken out of the ring. That was exciting. The next bull fighter came in to finish that bull. The bull gored him, too, and they had to take the matador out of the ring. That was exciting. The third matador came in to finish that bull. He finished that bull, then had to finish the next two bulls that the second matador didn’t get to. THEN he still had to fight his two bulls, which he did. Five bulls in total and it was really boring. He didn’t dare get too tired, so nothing flashy, just get in and get out. Very, very boring. Oh well.



Univ of Saigon 68

The fix is in. The picadors lance the bull’s neck muscles so that it can’t raise it’s head in the end of the fight. So if your thing is watching a man torture an animal to death, this is just up your alley.



OneGuy

Funny coincidence; I also saw a bull fight in Madrid in 1970. I enjoyed it, a great spectacle. Bravery, skill and excitement. The bulls are huge, the crowd was huge. I would go to another one if I had the chance.



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