An injured leg, a coat, a sword and a rampaging bull.
A little work this morning and then Wendy feels the need for protein so we head down to a restaurant 10 yards from our apartment that we haven't been to since my first day here last October.
I'm not too hungry so I plan on just having, essentially, scrambled eggs with shrimp and mushrooms. Wendy's looking over the menu and announces they have ostrich in a mushroom sauce.
"I'll have that."
"You're kidding?"
"Nah. New horizons and all that."
I've gotta tell ya, it tastes a whole hell of a lot more like beef than chicken. It even looks like beef with a rare pink center. It does have a little bit of a gamey, almost venison after taste to it that was also appealing and unique. I'd order it again and as a piece of advice, if you're ever in a strange place with strange food and don't know what to order, I can assure you, the ostrich tastes a lot like a steak. Go for that.
From there we walked up to Fnac to buy some more blank DVD's and "Clerks II." On the way in we saw a book called "Madrid Oculto" which explores some of the more obscure places to visit in Madrid as well as some bizarre and interesting things that happened in the past.
One of the coolest things I have ever heard was a story Wendy translated aloud to me as we walked back home.
A 600 kg bull (over 1400 lbs) destined for the ring, escaped from his corral and rampaged through the streets of Madrid, injuring a few and badly goring a 60 year old woman. However, as he rounded one corner, he met a matador - Diego "Fortuna" Mazquiaran walking with his wife. At the time, Fortuna was recovering emotionally and physically from a leg wound another bull had given him in the ring.
Fortuna assessed the situation immediately, got his wife to safety, took off his coat, and slowly approached the bull and started doing passes, distracting it from the crowds and further rampages. A sabre was brought to him, but the weapon proved insufficient for killing the bull. He ordered a young boy to run to his apartment and get his sword.
Fifteen minutes later the boy returns and had to fight his way through the large crowds that had gathered and were cheering Fortuna on in his attempts to occupy the bull. With no Picador, no Banderillero's, nothing to tire the bull out or to make him lower his head, he faced the bull alone. His first thrust only enraged the bull and he desperately had to flail his coat to get the bull's attention away from the crowd again. On the second attempt, he sunk the sword in deep, killing the bull.
The crowd began waving the customary white handkerchiefs signalling that he should be awarded an ear, then hoisted him on their shoulders and took him to a bar. Later, the populace insisted that he be awarded the highest medal Madrid had to offer and it was so.
I'm not too hungry so I plan on just having, essentially, scrambled eggs with shrimp and mushrooms. Wendy's looking over the menu and announces they have ostrich in a mushroom sauce.
"I'll have that."
"You're kidding?"
"Nah. New horizons and all that."
I've gotta tell ya, it tastes a whole hell of a lot more like beef than chicken. It even looks like beef with a rare pink center. It does have a little bit of a gamey, almost venison after taste to it that was also appealing and unique. I'd order it again and as a piece of advice, if you're ever in a strange place with strange food and don't know what to order, I can assure you, the ostrich tastes a lot like a steak. Go for that.
From there we walked up to Fnac to buy some more blank DVD's and "Clerks II." On the way in we saw a book called "Madrid Oculto" which explores some of the more obscure places to visit in Madrid as well as some bizarre and interesting things that happened in the past.
One of the coolest things I have ever heard was a story Wendy translated aloud to me as we walked back home.
A 600 kg bull (over 1400 lbs) destined for the ring, escaped from his corral and rampaged through the streets of Madrid, injuring a few and badly goring a 60 year old woman. However, as he rounded one corner, he met a matador - Diego "Fortuna" Mazquiaran walking with his wife. At the time, Fortuna was recovering emotionally and physically from a leg wound another bull had given him in the ring.
Fortuna assessed the situation immediately, got his wife to safety, took off his coat, and slowly approached the bull and started doing passes, distracting it from the crowds and further rampages. A sabre was brought to him, but the weapon proved insufficient for killing the bull. He ordered a young boy to run to his apartment and get his sword.
Fifteen minutes later the boy returns and had to fight his way through the large crowds that had gathered and were cheering Fortuna on in his attempts to occupy the bull. With no Picador, no Banderillero's, nothing to tire the bull out or to make him lower his head, he faced the bull alone. His first thrust only enraged the bull and he desperately had to flail his coat to get the bull's attention away from the crowd again. On the second attempt, he sunk the sword in deep, killing the bull.
The crowd began waving the customary white handkerchiefs signalling that he should be awarded an ear, then hoisted him on their shoulders and took him to a bar. Later, the populace insisted that he be awarded the highest medal Madrid had to offer and it was so.
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