Dating, Love & Relationships Around The World

The young men of Spain must have trouble getting suitable employment. First we had the “running with the Bulls” held yearly. Each July thousands pack into Pamplona to start Spain’s most famous bull-running fiesta. The bulls run along the narrow street 825 metres (half a mile) to a bull ring. The bull runners dash along in front of the bulls, aiming to feel the breath of the bull on their backs, getting as close as possible – all the while trying to avoid getting gored by their horns.

The young men of Seville aren’t going to sit back while Pamplona gets all the glory. They decide to hold bloodless bullfights (originated in Portugal). The premise is very simple. A bull charges against a “Forcado”. The Forcados’s face a bull weighing half a ton and with their bare hands attempt to make it lower its head!

Sounds easy doesn’t it!

The Forcados form a line facing the bull and the caras or the main front man (who volunteers for this job?) eggs the bull on by “playing” with it and taking steps forward if necessary to get it to charge. Once the bull runs forward the first forcado times his jump onto the bull’s head. Now that he’s in position and is holding the bull’s head securely, six forcados jump upon the bull in the same fashion as the first forcado, piling upon themselves and grabbing the bull while
one forcado grabs the bull by its tail. The last guy gets to grab his tail (if you’re thinking about applying for a job as one of the forcado’s, this job would be my pick)

Technorati Tags: Spain, running with the Bulls, Pamplona, bull runners, Seville, bloodless bullfights, Portugal, caras

Bookmark It

IDS Tags: Europe, Humor, Spain

It seems that many times in life our decisions backfire and we spend endless time rehashing the spontaneous action. Fortunately a split second decision paid off for the parents of this 9 month old baby girl. The childs parents along with 29 other people were trapped in the fire in Ludwigshafen, Germany. The child and her parents survived the blaze.

With the staircase destroyed by flames, adults also jumped for their lives while others formed human ladders to help save people trapped inside, police and rescue workers said. Children from lower floors were handed to rescue workers atop an ambulance. Some who jumped missed rescue nets laid out by police.

The residents of the building were believed to be immigrants from Turkey.

There were nine deaths in the blaze including five children. Another 28 people were injured in the blaze.

Police did not release the name of the policeman who caught the child, but said he was injured after he fell to the ground and struck his head. He was treated at a hospital and released.

I believe the story epitomizes the endless gratitude we owe our much maligned Police and Fire departments. The quick action by bystanders and apartment residents is a tribute to the resourcefulness of man in a time of crisis.

Technorati Tags: fire, Ludwigshafen, Germany, rescue, Turkey, policeman, Police

Bookmark It

IDS Tags: Europe, Germany, Turkey