Thanks again! Well, the father of a good friend of mine had fighting cocks in the backyard of his house. The man would tell his stories and I would listen out of respect. Sometimes it was interesting, but only because of the anecdotes (the discussions with friends and jokes between them) but not because of the fights. You see, when my friend and his brothers were taken by their father to help him, they stayed outside (playing the popular version of baseball in Venezuela) and told me that it gave them a bad feeling to have to pick up the dead roosters and treat the wounded ones. In reality, this is another tradition of rural areas or lower social classes (I imagine it’s the same in the Dominican Republic). Once, when we were at the beach house my family had , some friends of my dad took him to one , and he said he was never going again, ha ha ha.
Regarding bulls, in the plains states of Venezuela and also Colombia (called Los Llanos), there is a kind of “sport” called Toros Coleados. They release a bull and four or five riders try to grab it by the tail and knock it down. They don’t kill it directly, but they do beat it a lot, and I think many end up dying from internal injuries. I personally don’t like it. I’m very urban hahahaha, but unlike cockfighting, this is more accepted by society in general, since it’s done as a festival around the activity, I imagine, just like rodeo here or in the USA.In fact, some of my friends from college even went with their girlfriends, but more for the celebration, the food, and the music than for the activity itself.
Bullfights like those in Spain or Mexico are also held, but they are not as popular as they used to be. They are mostly practiced on special occasions during local celebrations.
Another very traditional, cultural, and widespread aspect throughout the country is “bolas criollas,” which is our version of pétanque.
Well, here’s a quick rundown of some traditions, although I was more into beaches, ha ha ha. In the 80s, we were more popular than Cancun!
