Travelers that have ever been to Spain in August probably still smell like tomatoes. Why? Entire Spain smells like tomatoes that month, but don’t worry, that’s actually very fun!
See, the Spanish have one of the most incredible and fun festivals in the world. It’s called La Tomatina, and the name probably suggests the meaning. The festival consists of hundreds of people attacking each other with nothing less and nothing more than tomatoes. Big, red, spicey tomatoes … at your face! Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?
While the festival is said to have started in Buñol in 1940s, no one actually remembers how it all started. Some say the origins lie in a very innocent incident with kids fighting with fruits and vegetables. Another option suggests that townspeople would meet their city council with a handful of tomatoes, when they were not pleased with their work. Whatever the origin, the festival has been taking place every year. It has already become a tourist magnet, attracting extreme-lovers from all around the world
The popularity of the festival is so huge that the city of Buñol decided to limit the number of tomato-throwers. Moreover, there are a number of rules that every tomato thrower must follow.
First, the tomato fight lasts for one hour from the start of the canon shot. Everyone stops when the last second of the hours ticks. Secondly, everyone is asked to squash the tomatoes, before throwing, otherwise it can hurt like a bullet! You’re not allowed to throw any other object but tomatoes. Also, you cannot throw your own T-shirt, as it might do more damage than the tomatoes.
Here are a few more tips you should follow to survive the one-hour fight.
- Ladies are advised to wear a bathing suit underneath the T-shirt. They will get wet and might even end up with a torn or no shirt at all!
- Don’t wear any shoes, or if you do, make sure they don’t come out. No heels, no flip flops, you can wear tight sneakers to make your movements easier.
- Never wear cloths you like. They will definitely become entirely unwearable after that one hour! Moreover, you might even lose them and see on a stranger after the festival.
- No matter how big the temptation is, don’t go in if you’re allergic to tomatoes or citrus fruits. There is not one or two tomatoes! Once you step into the battle, it’s really difficult to escape the attackers. You might get stuck there and … something bad will happen.
- Don’t look for a nice place to view the festival, unless it’s protected by super strong glass. If they see a clean and untouched person, the entire crowd will focus on you!
- Stay away from the lorries or, at least, be extremely careful.
- Don’t bring anything important like money, passport, documents, a camera that is not waterproof, and so on.
See, it’s not that crazy! People do follow the rules after all. That’s why you don’t here about dozens of people dying in the middle of a tomato fight. If, for some reason, you can’t participate in the fight, you can still visit the village. There are many other activities you can enjoy! Whatever you do, remember it’s La Tomatina and you must have nothing else but fun!
