UPDATED to correct dates.
So, I was online today looking for some information on persimmon wine. (I saw a documentary on television here and it looked tasty. I haven’t been able to find any and I’d like to try some if anyone has any advice.)
Anyway, I ended up reading up on Korean bullfighting. (Don’t ask me how this came up in the Google search.) Did you know that they have bullfighting in Korea? I didn’t, and I’ve lived here for almost two years.
The really interesting thing is that it’s actually bull fighting—as in, the bulls fight each other. There are no matadors and usually no death or serious injury. Both bulls walk away. This is not to say that it’s not a brutal pasttime.
With Bumyong showing signs of exhaustion, panting heavily, and dribbling from his mouth, Heryong swiftly turns sideways and frees its locked horns to lunge freely at the flank of Bumyong.
With a jolt, Bumyong turns tail and speeds away to the cheers of thousands of spectators, bringing the bout to an end and handing a three million won (around 3,000-dollar) cash prize to the owner of the winning bull.
Still it doesn’t compare to allowing several humans to terrorize, torture and gradually kill one animal and call it sporting. I’m not a fan. Can you tell?
From what I read, the Korean sport is more than 1,000 years old, making it much older than the more famous (to Western audiences) and ghastly Spanish version.
Korean bullfighting is mostly practiced in the still rural areas of North and South Gyeongsang Province, with the pinnacle being the annual Cheongdo Bullfighting Festival. This year’s festival takes place April 12 - 16, and you can find more information here. (There’s an English-language option, too.)
*Image courtesy of Seoul Selection.
Tags: bullfighting, culture, Korea, sports
