For a break I’ll finally venture into regions better described by the title of this blog. When hearing about la corrida, one usually thinks of bullfighting as practised (most famously) in Spain, but a while ago I watched a travel documentary and discovered that the Balkans offer another version of it, called korida. It does involve bulls, but in most ways it’s very different from the southwestern version. Maybe most importantly, if you would really like to see corrida but cruelty deters you from visiting a “real” one – be it for ethical reasons or because you simply can’t watch it – you’re welcome to Bosnia and Herzegovina! (though it’s still a not very enjoyable activity for the animals, of course)
Where?
It is practised in many places in Bosnia. Reportedly the name korida is a modern invention for marketing purposes, while the most common traditional local name is bodljavina bikova (“bullpricking”).
The most famous event is organized in Grmeč area (Grmečka korida) in northwestern Bosnia, close to Ključ and not far from Mrkonjić-Grad, usually in August. Here is a short article (in Bosnian) about the 234th korida, held in 2006. Place names probably mean nothing to you, but let me write anyway that this source says that it was previously held on Međeđe brdo, while since 1996 it’s located on Popovića brdo near Oštra Luka. In 2005 it was honoured by a post stamp issued by Republika Srpska.
but korida is also held in many places around Sarajevo. It’s also been exported a few times to Serbia, e.g. Srem region and Novi Sad.
How?
Unlike the more famous version, it’s a fight between two bulls, not a man and a bull. Two bulls clash their heads and then push, push, push… until one of them gets bored. The winner is the bull who chases his opponent away, usually towards the spectators. There are no Plazas de toros, but an ordinary lawn would do. This means the people are totally unprotected but usually there’s plenty of space to run to if the losing bull fancies the crowd a bit too much. The way a bull loses a match means the animals are very rarely seriously hurt.
Evidence:
– photos from a small korida (around 4000 visitors)
– Video clip in Slovene and Serbo-Croatian from the RTV Slovenija travel show Čez planke: Pasje leto (07.01.2007) –> start watching at 1:12:50
– 9-minute video from a smaller event near Sarajevo and “best of 2005“
If you understand Bosnian:
– a witty report from a big event (88 000 people) at Čevljanovići 30 km north of Sarajevo
Elsewhere
There are apparently other events like this one around the world, as I saw a very similar picture in a Turkish travel magazine, in an article about northeastern Turkey.
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