The Bulls Of San José: Costa Rica’s Amateur Bullfighters

Every year around Christmas, massive bulls and “Improvisers” descend on bullrings around San José, Costa Rica’s capital city. The Improvisers are members of the public who get drunk, put on fluorescent t-shirts, leap into the ring then chase and annoy the bulls. Bullfighting was brought to Costa Rica by Spanish colonisers and is still hugely popular in the small Central American country. Bullfighters there don’t kill the bulls, but animal rights protesters still sometimes stage protests against the events. I spent Christmas with the amateur bull-botherers of San José, and some of the people determined to end their booze-fuelled fun. Episodes of Keep Going: An Unexpected Travel Podcast are currently coming out every two weeks, in the usual podcast places and with full videos on the pod's YouTube channel. Subscribe to get episodes as soon as they land. Writing, recording, narration: Jamie FullertonSound editing: Samira TazariMusic: Olguita AcuñaPodcast artwork: Nini Giunàshvili Tickets and information for the Pedregal bullfighting: Torosalatica.crZapote bullring: Google Maps linkKaren Elena’s San José animal rights group: Coordinadora por la Liberación Animal on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.