During the middle-ages it was the done thing that aristocracy rode on horseback to fight bulls, known as 'suerte de cañas'. In the 18th century this tradition was abandoned and the poorer population invented bullfighting by foot, known as 'La Corrida'.
A Corrida starts with the 'paseillo' - everybody involved in the bullfight enters the ring and presents themselves to the public. Two 'alguacilillos', on horseback, direct themselves to the presidency and ask for the keys to the 'puerta de los toriles'. Behind that door the bulls await. When the door opens the first bull enters the ring and the show begins.
It consists of three parts, 'tercios', which are separated by the sound of a horn. In the first, the bullfighter uses the 'capote', a large purple and yellow coloured rag. Two picadores enter on horseback, armed with a lance-like object.
The second round is called la 'suerte de banderillas', in which three 'banderilleros' must stick a pair of 'banderillas' into the attacking bull's back. The final 'suerte suprema' sees the bullfighter using the mulet - a small red rag. He shows his authority to dominate the bull, before killing the beast with his sword.
Beaches
There are 30 kilometres of beaches on the eastern part of the Costa del Sol (Axarquía), stretching from Rincón de la Victoria to the boundary with the Province of Granada.
Torre del Mar, Torrox and Nerja have long sandy beaches. And for those who prefer no white bits there is a nudist beach at Maro, where the beach is conveniently surrounded by small cliffs. All beaches are located fairly near to the main N-340 road, so it easy to reach them by bus or car.
This side of Malaga is far less cosmopolitan than the likes of Torremolinos and Fuengirola, where the invasion of Brits has turned them into ‘mini-Englands’.
Tourists will find east of Malaga retains far more Spanish traditions and culture.
