The annual Tomatina festival, also known as the "battle of tomatoes", takes place in the Spanish town of Bunyol, near Valencia. For those who do not know what it is, we have collected some photos from tomato festivals of the past years.
The history of the origin
The La Tomatina Festival started completely by accident. On the last Wednesday of August 1945, a parade of Giants and Big-headed figures takes place in the town of Bunyol. One participant's Big head fell off, which made him very angry and began to destroy everything in his path.
In a fit of rage, he hit a vegetable counter. In response, people started pelting him and then each other with tomatoes. This continued until the local police stopped the tomato battle.
The following year, some pranksters played out a pre-planned quarrel, and then began throwing tomatoes at each other, which they brought with them. The police again dispersed the hooligans, but this case marked the beginning of an annual tradition.
How is Tomatina going today
Until 2013, the festival had a small number of participants, but it grew from year to year. Therefore, since 2013, you can get to Tomatina as a participant in the battle only with a pre-purchased ticket. 20,000 passes are sold annually, which is so much, considering that there are only 9,000 residents in the Spanish town of Bunyol.
A few days before the tomato battle, a paella competition is held in the city square — dishes made from rice, vegetables, seafood or chicken. An analogue of pilaf, a national Spanish dish, especially revered in Valencian cuisine.
In addition to the culinary competition, the celebrants will enjoy tomato fireworks, performances by various musical groups and medieval parades. On the morning of the last Wednesday in August, a long oiled pole is put on public display. At the very top of the pole hangs a piece of delicious ham. She will get to the one who can get to her on an oiled pole. As soon as the ham falls, the tomato battle begins!
The fight usually lasts about an hour, then fire trucks hose down the streets. To wash themselves, the participants also use hoses, which are kindly provided to them by local residents. Some participants go to wash in the Los Peñones pool.
The city street is also becoming clean. Citric acid in tomatoes cleans all surfaces well. On average, about 145,000 kg of tomatoes are spent on the battle.
Rules of participation
The City Council prescribes a short list of instructions on the safety of participants and the festival:
- Don't throw anything but tomatoes.
- Do not tear your clothes.
- Crush the tomatoes before throwing them, so as not to harm others.
- Throw tomatoes only at the targets you see, so as not to harm others.
- Do not throw tomatoes directly into buildings.
- Keep a safe distance from the trucks.
- Follow the instructions of the security staff.
The tomatina ends after the second starting pistol shot. The cheerful, excited crowd, having washed up, continues to celebrate in local bars. And firefighters in their big cars are clearing the streets of the city of tomato paste.
Phrase of the day
If a tomato is a berry, can ketchup be called jam?
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