Every August, around 30,000 people flock to a sleepy Spanish town. Why? To throw tomatoes of course.
If throwing squashed tomatoes turns you on, I know just the
place for you. Bunyol, near Valencia
hosts its annual ?La Tomatina’ festival, and it has to be the biggest Tomato
fight in the world. The festivities begin early in the week, but the main event
occurs on the last Wednesday of August around 12 O’clock. High noon in a
Valencian village; I can just imagine Gary Cooper walking through the town
square with his tomatoes cocked.
This absolutely absurd, wonderful happening has grown to be
one of the most popular Spanish festivals, with people visiting from all parts
of the world. It’s refreshing to know that there are still enough nutty people
around, to turn a sleepy village of 9,000 people into a horde of tomato stained
lunatics numbering 30,000. Every hotel and guest house room is reserved during
the event, so either book early or drive in on the day. Alternatively, you
could take one of the hourly trains from Valencia, which is some 40
kilometres distant. Bear in mind, that if you are using public transport or a
rented car, it may be a good idea to take a change of clothing. The sheer
weight of numbers means that you are unlikely to get anywhere near the town
square, but don’t worry, the party spills over into the adjoining streets, and
if you really want to be pelted by soft tomatoes, I’m sure you’ll find a way. If
you do manage to find yourself in the town centre at the start of proceedings,
you’ll witness the strange custom of trying to retrieve a ham from the top of a
greased pole, which is supposed to signal the beginning of the fight, but in
reality it is very rarely claimed. This is just another quirky part of this
very unusual festival.
As is often the case, no-one knows for sure how this bizarre
event took root, but the most popular theory dates it back to 1945, when the
annual parade of ?Gigantes y Cabezudos’ was passing through the village.
Apparently, some youths attempted to join the procession, but only succeeded in
toppling one of the big-headed giants. The enormous figure took exception, lost
his cool and took the route of retribution, but being the lumbering monster
that he was, couldn’t catch the youngsters. As a final act of humiliation, the
boys took some tomatoes from a nearby vegetable stall, threw them at the ogre
and kept doing so until police arrived to quell the herbaceous outburst. That
should have been it, but the following year, the youngsters returned to the
town square with their own tomatoes, and started the whole thing again. Once
more the police had to intervene. The town council tried to nip the trend in
the bud, but the custom grew and grew into the biggest tomato fight in the
world. The only person who managed to halt the tradition was Franco, who banned
it because it had no religious content, but after his death the festival
returned as did many other activities which had been stopped during his
tenure.
There are in fact a few rules applied to La
Tomatina by the town council. Bottles are forbidden and it is frowned upon to
rip clothes, a rule which is ignored wholesale, whether the victim is male or
female. It is also considered good practice to crush tomatoes before they are
thrown. The wearing of eye protection is encouraged, though not mandatory, and
it’s a good idea to keep a wide berth of the lorries that deliver the tomatoes.
The final rule is that you cease throwing tomatoes immediately upon hearing the
second rocket that signals the end of the fight.
When the event is over and the streets are hosed
down by fire trucks , the acidity of the tomatoes ensures that the roads and
pavements are perfectly clean for another year.
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