Bull's Eye

We've been trying to get hold of someone who could get us into the Praca de Touros for about a week without any luck. So we decided on just going there and look for a person with the right key. We met Ernesto who's working at one of the car mechanic shops and he showed us around.




Not surprisingly, the arena is quite impressive. The ground floor is divided between a handful of mechanical workshops, except for the entrance area who used to be some kind of shop or restaurant and one part in the back, who has been used by a church.

A a section of the ground floor, used by a church after the bull fighting closed down

When the bull fighting went on, most of the areas in the first floor was in use as a market place.

market place areas on the first floor

view from the first floor

The seating area is also all in concrete with supporting beams underneath. The angle of the seating is quite steep and creates a very defined and closed space inside the arena.






People we met in and around the Praca de Touros told us that the arena had been used some times after the bull fighting era, for boxing matches and concerts, but these days it is mostly left unused. Nevertheless, we ran into a small choir who used the place for rehearsals and they granted us a small performance.