On Saturday, a large, rowdy group of foreigners made their way to Cheongdo, a town not-really-famous-but-famous-in-the-fact-that-there-is-only-one-thing-coming-out-of-this-town famous for bullfighting. Apparently, it's in the type of town that will let you in to the ticket-only area if you say you need to use the bathroom based on a trust that you will exit again. Don't worry. My mama raised me right and I stayed inside and cheated the system (just kidding). Once inside the people turnstiles, an open forum area awaits you (pictured).
Shops line the outsides and various bull statue projects line the center walkway. We were fortunate enough to get there right when the hour long "break" of the day began, so we had plenty of time to stroll the grounds. After about 10 minutes of this, one tends to get bored, so we headed inside to view the panoply of traditional Korean performances awaiting us in the arena area (pictured...the arena, not the performances [unfortunately for you]).
After what seemed like three eternities, the main event resumed. Out came one bull followed by another, entering to the sounds of monster truck death metal. Suddenly their owners were pulling their heads together and, like a polar magnetic connection, they clicked together and began pushing each other at the horns.
As quickly as it began it was ended and a winner incoherently declared. This happened for the next two hours and we arbitrarily cheered for one bull over another and just as arbitrarily determined one the winner. Although foreign, it was still fun and we deemed it a success, finishing off the evening with a dinner consisting of beef. Ironic? Maybe, but not as ironic as this guy:
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