Bull fighting is tragic ... regardless of the extent to which they torture the animal – we lived in Costa Rica where they don't kill it – and based on that, we attended one and it was basically a drunken orgy of young men teasing and cajoling the animal to fight back – and always an audience thrill when one of the teasers was chased by the bull. It's certainly a lingering remnant of patriarchy where men have dominion over, well, everything. Of course, while we're pointing a sharp finger at Portugal, a country we live in at their pleasure, it's a good reminder that the U.S. government was putting migrant children in cages under Trump, a prime example of entrenched patriarchal values. Just sayin'
We live very near campo pequeno and find the mall to be a convenient place to pick up groceries and sometimes by KFC! When the bullfight date is close, a car drives through the neighborhood announcing it with an excited and loud voice. That always gives me hope they are not getting very many customers and maybe it’s dying.
I came from a state that has an annual rodeo in every major city. I found those too to be so cruel to animals basically either terrifying them and/or torturing them. But every year it was a huge event. I think sometimes people just want to not think of how cruel
the acts are for the selfish act of “entertainment.” I would lay odds that bullfighting will stop long before rodeos in the US.
So that's what the circling car was yelling about! I thought it was odd timing for an election and couldn't see signage from my viewpoint. Thanks for that information!)
I did not realise this ghastly 'sport' was still going on in Portugal, I'm horrified, sad and disappointed. How can everyone in their right mind think this is in any way justifiable or entertaining?
Wow! Nancy, it seems we Campo Pequeno residents love our mall. 😄 Yes, I agree that it seems like it's run-down by American standards. I thought the same thing when I visited it less often. (I actually think most of the malls are versions of what we had going on in the states in the 1990's; lots of chrome and so BRIGHT.) The place grows on you and it really is full of all types of stores and people so that's a plus. This is a great neighborhood to live in and our leafy green Campo Pequeno square is one of the reasons. (BTW. Totally agree about bullfighting being animal cruelty. Thank you for calling it out.)
Interesting topic , thanks. I had always heard that in Portugal the bulls were finished off and delivered to the butcher back stage. But not living in a bull fighting town I don’t know how the general public reacts. In Seville once we were in a sidewalk cafe and watched as hundreds and hundreds of people dressed to the nines filed past us, many carrying little blue and white striped cushions (sold nearby). When we asked the waiter what the heck, he said “ Toros”. And I know from a friend from Seville that it’s a grand occasion! Catalonia has forbidden it, so maybe one day…
That night we had walked from our neighborhood to Campo Pequeno to meet up with a good friend. :-). As we walked, we noticed that the restaurants were overflowing at 19:00 (really unusual) and the diners were mostly men. We rounded the corner and could hear the protests and knew what was about to happen Thanks for shinning a light on such an archaic practice
I grew up outside of Philly too. I remember those tv channels well. However I never caught the bullfights? Thanks for the great and informative article.
I am by no means a supporter of Bull Fighting. But some facts please, not emotional hyperbole. The photo shows SPANISH bullfighting, where the animal is tormented, tortured (Picadores, with lances) and then killed. A disgusting practice. In Portuguese Bull Fighting, there are no Picadores, and the animal is not tortured, or killed afterwards. It is very rare blood is seen. The "Sport" is already losing favour, and many of the arena's are now redundant, and closed down in Portugal. It will die out in a generation.
There are some kind-hearted people in many towns who feed cats - usually older women. In Braga and in Entre Os Rios I was told that they stand next to the feeders while the cats eat so that others don't put poison in the food.
Portuguese age 40+ who live in the countryside think nothing of torturing animals. Although legally barred you can see dogs on chains everywhere. Many chained dogs died in the fires a few years ago as their owners could not be bothered to free them before they were burned alive. Few "pets" are spayed and neutered, their offspring are summarily dispatched. Meat is eaten every day, often more than once a day. So if you are looking for an animal-friendly place to live, Portugal is not it. As some of the other posters have said, and was also stated by the few animal rescue organizations in the country, it will take a generation to change attitudes toward animals - unless of course immigrants help to accelerate that. Supporting rescue groups, voting for reduced VAT on veterinary care (the PAN party proposed that 2 years ago, and it was turned down) and reporting animals whose situations are clearly in violation of the law can all help. Let's get together to do what we can.
There is a group of people in VRSA that distribute food to the many stray cats in the city. I offered them money to spay/neuter the cats and they said they would use the money for food. When I explained they would need less food if they spayed the cats, the leader of the group told me "The cats have a right to live as they wish."
Love all your articles, appreciated the ones on Croatia. We are doing the same cruise in a couple months! We live just around the corner from the bullring. When we 1st came here, we thought it was a mosque! I have to disagree about the mall. It is not failing. The food court & other restaurants are always busy, as is the Pingo & movie theater. Going to see Chris Isaak there in a couple weeks.
At least the VRSA bullring has been torn down. I believe it stood in the giant empty lot just east of the Aldi. When doing my research to move to Portugal I was thrilled (briefly) to learn they did not have bull fights like in Spain where the bull is killed. That good feeling was short lived when you learn the outcome was basically the same for the bull in the end. There seemed to be a pride in the fact the bull was not killed. Just razors stabbed into the back and shoulder muscles. Torture is torture. Hopefully one day the kindness of humanity will win out over culture and tradition.
Bull fighting is tragic ... regardless of the extent to which they torture the animal – we lived in Costa Rica where they don't kill it – and based on that, we attended one and it was basically a drunken orgy of young men teasing and cajoling the animal to fight back – and always an audience thrill when one of the teasers was chased by the bull. It's certainly a lingering remnant of patriarchy where men have dominion over, well, everything. Of course, while we're pointing a sharp finger at Portugal, a country we live in at their pleasure, it's a good reminder that the U.S. government was putting migrant children in cages under Trump, a prime example of entrenched patriarchal values. Just sayin'
We live very near campo pequeno and find the mall to be a convenient place to pick up groceries and sometimes by KFC! When the bullfight date is close, a car drives through the neighborhood announcing it with an excited and loud voice. That always gives me hope they are not getting very many customers and maybe it’s dying.
I came from a state that has an annual rodeo in every major city. I found those too to be so cruel to animals basically either terrifying them and/or torturing them. But every year it was a huge event. I think sometimes people just want to not think of how cruel
the acts are for the selfish act of “entertainment.” I would lay odds that bullfighting will stop long before rodeos in the US.
You are so right about rodeos also being cruel.
So that's what the circling car was yelling about! I thought it was odd timing for an election and couldn't see signage from my viewpoint. Thanks for that information!)
Our 33 year old Portuguese teacher has assured us that her generation will succeed in ending the practice.
Tragic from the beginning of time. Turns my stomach and hurts the soul.
I did not realise this ghastly 'sport' was still going on in Portugal, I'm horrified, sad and disappointed. How can everyone in their right mind think this is in any way justifiable or entertaining?
Ugh, so cruel, torturous and barbaric. I think that says it 😖
Wow! Nancy, it seems we Campo Pequeno residents love our mall. 😄 Yes, I agree that it seems like it's run-down by American standards. I thought the same thing when I visited it less often. (I actually think most of the malls are versions of what we had going on in the states in the 1990's; lots of chrome and so BRIGHT.) The place grows on you and it really is full of all types of stores and people so that's a plus. This is a great neighborhood to live in and our leafy green Campo Pequeno square is one of the reasons. (BTW. Totally agree about bullfighting being animal cruelty. Thank you for calling it out.)
Interesting topic , thanks. I had always heard that in Portugal the bulls were finished off and delivered to the butcher back stage. But not living in a bull fighting town I don’t know how the general public reacts. In Seville once we were in a sidewalk cafe and watched as hundreds and hundreds of people dressed to the nines filed past us, many carrying little blue and white striped cushions (sold nearby). When we asked the waiter what the heck, he said “ Toros”. And I know from a friend from Seville that it’s a grand occasion! Catalonia has forbidden it, so maybe one day…
That night we had walked from our neighborhood to Campo Pequeno to meet up with a good friend. :-). As we walked, we noticed that the restaurants were overflowing at 19:00 (really unusual) and the diners were mostly men. We rounded the corner and could hear the protests and knew what was about to happen Thanks for shinning a light on such an archaic practice
Heartbreaking. I've also heard about the plight of the Podencos in Portugal - as an animal lover, I don't think I would last long in Portugal.
I grew up outside of Philly too. I remember those tv channels well. However I never caught the bullfights? Thanks for the great and informative article.
I am by no means a supporter of Bull Fighting. But some facts please, not emotional hyperbole. The photo shows SPANISH bullfighting, where the animal is tormented, tortured (Picadores, with lances) and then killed. A disgusting practice. In Portuguese Bull Fighting, there are no Picadores, and the animal is not tortured, or killed afterwards. It is very rare blood is seen. The "Sport" is already losing favour, and many of the arena's are now redundant, and closed down in Portugal. It will die out in a generation.
The photo is from a Portuguese bullfight.
There are some kind-hearted people in many towns who feed cats - usually older women. In Braga and in Entre Os Rios I was told that they stand next to the feeders while the cats eat so that others don't put poison in the food.
Portuguese age 40+ who live in the countryside think nothing of torturing animals. Although legally barred you can see dogs on chains everywhere. Many chained dogs died in the fires a few years ago as their owners could not be bothered to free them before they were burned alive. Few "pets" are spayed and neutered, their offspring are summarily dispatched. Meat is eaten every day, often more than once a day. So if you are looking for an animal-friendly place to live, Portugal is not it. As some of the other posters have said, and was also stated by the few animal rescue organizations in the country, it will take a generation to change attitudes toward animals - unless of course immigrants help to accelerate that. Supporting rescue groups, voting for reduced VAT on veterinary care (the PAN party proposed that 2 years ago, and it was turned down) and reporting animals whose situations are clearly in violation of the law can all help. Let's get together to do what we can.
There is a group of people in VRSA that distribute food to the many stray cats in the city. I offered them money to spay/neuter the cats and they said they would use the money for food. When I explained they would need less food if they spayed the cats, the leader of the group told me "The cats have a right to live as they wish."
Love all your articles, appreciated the ones on Croatia. We are doing the same cruise in a couple months! We live just around the corner from the bullring. When we 1st came here, we thought it was a mosque! I have to disagree about the mall. It is not failing. The food court & other restaurants are always busy, as is the Pingo & movie theater. Going to see Chris Isaak there in a couple weeks.
We did a quick walkthrough a few weeks ago when we were in Lisbon for a few days. Perhaps we were confused by the underground ....
At least the VRSA bullring has been torn down. I believe it stood in the giant empty lot just east of the Aldi. When doing my research to move to Portugal I was thrilled (briefly) to learn they did not have bull fights like in Spain where the bull is killed. That good feeling was short lived when you learn the outcome was basically the same for the bull in the end. There seemed to be a pride in the fact the bull was not killed. Just razors stabbed into the back and shoulder muscles. Torture is torture. Hopefully one day the kindness of humanity will win out over culture and tradition.
You do great research…never realized there was once a bullring in our new hometown.