Posted by Steve Linder on Thu, Nov 19, 2009
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Bull Riding Basics
If you happen to be in Costa Rica at the right time of year, a fun thing to do is going to the "bull fights". Unlike most bull fighting in other countries, Costa Rican bull fights do not harm the bull. On the contrary, you are most likely to see damage to the bull fighter. Local cattle ranches provide the bulls for free. There is a makeshift stable set up with a bunch of bulls that have been gathered from their typical free range fields for this once a year event.
Our first time
We had our first experience years ago and Kristina and I climbed into one of the make shift but permanent bull rings found in many cities and towns. There is a ring in Ojochal, full of weeds except for one weekend a year. We were there to see Las Corridas a la Tica, Costa Rican Bullfighting. I was surprised to see the ring full of younger men, between 15 and 25 toreadors (bullfighters) wandering the ring in wait of the bull, as well as a few on horseback. Some had capes while others had short sticks and tin pans. I thought that this didn't seem very fair to the bull. During the festivities the area around the ring fills with food vendors, musicians arts and crafts exhibitors and rides and entertainment for the kids.
This is Crazy!
The announcer introduced the first bull fighter and the crowd waited in suspense. The first bull fighter (loco) appeared in the ring RIDING THE BULL. He had no saddle, just a short rope to hang on for his life. Within a few seconds, the bull had ejected the rider and then tried to stomp and gore the rider as well as anything else in its way. I've never seen people get out of a ring so quickly as the other men (locos) in the ring attempted to keep the rider from getting gored or trampled, as well as themselves. The bull had other plans and managed to quickly empty the ring of all but the few horseback riders, whose job was to corral the bull out of the ring to ready the ring for the next victim (I mean rider). Occasionally the promoters would release a half dozen bulls into the ring when things were slow or the toreadors started getting cocky. Those bulls could clear the ring in six seconds flat. Watching grown men swan dive over 5 foot high cattle fencing is a sight you rarely see.
Why do it?
I turned to the person sitting next to me and commented that they must get paid a lot of money to do this. Nope, no money was his answer. There must be a great prize I said next. No prize was the reply. Why would anyone risk their lives riding a 1400 pound angry bull I asked? He pointed to all the woman perched around the ring and explained to me that this is a right of passage to the best girls in town.
Drunk driving?
A new law requires that all participants must be sober. One has to ask why a sober person would do such a thing! One bull came out of the gate and just wandered around. The toreador rider tried to incite the bull but it just kept walking. He finally got off and made the walk of shame while the crowd cat called and whistled. That's the bull I want I thought.
I can't watch anymore
We watched four or five more riders and got to see the Red Cross in action. We won't let our workers ride either. The Red Cross volunteers their services for the event. They had set up a triage unit for the not so fortunate riders and ring runners. We finally had to leave the ring after seeing the bull find another unfortunate play toy, tossing a toreador across the ring like a straw doll. As we walked around the festival outside the ring, we occasionally heard the crowd groan, indicating that the bull had won another round.
Don't miss this annual event if you have the chance but do try to avoid getting on the bull...
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Posted by Steve Linder on Tue, Nov 17, 2009
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A visit to the Boruca Indian Indigenous Village
The Adventure: As we drove further up the ridge I realized that even if we had wanted to turn around, the road was too narrow to even consider it. If we slid off the road on either side, we would surely plunge to our death. We were headed to the village of the Boruca Indians, one of the last indigenous tribes left in Costa Rica.
A Quick History: When the Spanish arrived in Costa Rica, there were very few native people to be found. Even before the Spanish had actually arrived, the diseases brought by the white man were already traveling down the isthmus of Central America. When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the Boruca Indians were fierce fighters and managed to escape the battle with the Spaniards. Today, the Boruca Indians celebrate each year with a Fiesta de los Diablitos, the festival of the little devils, which takes place early in February each year. During the festivities, the males of the tribe dress in carved wooden masks and the event begins with a battle against a masked bull, to symbolize fighting the spirits to save their homes.
About the Boruca: The Buruca Indians are part of the tribe of the Talamanca, named after the river located just below their reserve. The Boruca people live on land granted to them by the Costa Rican government in 1956 in one of the first indigenous land grants in Costa Rica known as the Reserve Boruca Terraba. Their land is located along the bank of the Terraba River as well as high atop the frontal ridge in the Talamanca mountain range, just south of the town of Palmar Sur. The Boruca tribe had it's own language although there are only a few elders who still speak it. The tribe has long been self sufficient farming corn, coffee, beans, cassava, papaya, pigeon peas and rice. The Boruca tribes have chosen to live in isolation, raising money through sales of carved wooden masks and woven articles.
Real World Pressure: Recently the public utility ICE has been trying to build a dam in the Terraba River just below the location of the Boruca tribe's reserve along the river. The dam would flood the area now home to many of the tribe. The construction of the proposed Boruca hydroelectric Dam would require many of the tribe to relocate. As in the past, the Boruca Indians continue to fight a battle to save their lands from being taken from them by outsiders.
Getting There: A visit to the Boruca village atop the Talamanca ridge is a breathtaking experience. It is an easy day trip from the southern region of Costa Rica but making the visit requires 4 wheel drive and is not for the squeamish or those afraid of heights. It is an easy afternoon trip from our developments.
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