La Tomatina

La Tomatina (Spanish pronunciation: [la tomaˈtina]) is a festival that is held in the Valencian town of Buñol, in the East of Spain 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the Mediterranean, in which participants throw tomatoes and get involved in a tomato fight purely for entertainment purposes. Since 1945 it has been held on the last Wednesday of August, during a week of festivities in Buñol. The event in 2020 was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain.

La Tomatina
La Tomatina in 2014
Official nameLa Tomatina
Observed byBuñol, Valencia, Spain
DateLast Wednesday in August
2020 dateAugust 26  (2020-08-26)
2021 dateAugust 25  (2021-08-25)
2022 dateAugust 31  (2022-08-31)
2023 dateAugust 30  (2023-08-30)
Frequencyannual

History
La Tomatina 25-08-2010.
Tomato battle at Tomatina in 2006.

La Tomatina Festival started the last Wednesday of August in 1945 when some young people spent the time in the town square to attend the Giants and Big-Heads figures parade. The young boys decided to take part in a parade with musicians, Giants and Big-Heads figures. The energy of jovialities caused one participant's Big-head to fall off. The participant flew into a fit of rage, began hitting everything in his path. There was a market stall of vegetables that fell victim to the fury of the crowd. People started to pelt each other with tomatoes until the local forces ended the fruit battle.

The following year, some young people engaged in a pre-planned quarrel and brought their own tomatoes from home. Although the local forces broke it up, this began the yearly tradition. In the following years, the young boys' example had unwittingly made history for thousands of people.

La Tomatina was banned in the early 50s, however this did not stop the participants who were arrested. But the people protested the prohibition and the festivity was again allowed with more participants and increased passions. The festivity was again cancelled till 1957 when, as a sign of protest, the tomato burial was held. It was a demonstration in which the residents carried a coffin with a huge tomato inside. The parade was accompanied by a music band which played funeral marches. The protest was successful. La Tomatina Festival was finally permitted and became an official festival.

As a result of the report of Javier Basilio, a broadcaster from the Spanish television program called Informe Semanal, the festivity started to be known throughout the rest of Spain. Since then, the number of participants increased year after year as well as the excitement about La Tomatina Festival. In 2002, La Tomatina of Buñol was declared Festivity of International Tourist Interest by the Secretary Department of Tourism due to its success.[1]

Description
Preparing the "palo jabón"

Usually, the fight lasts for about one hour, after which the town square is covered with tomato debris.[2] Fire trucks then hose down the streets and participants often use hoses that locals provide to remove the tomatoes from their bodies. Some participants go to the “Los Peñones” pool to wash. The citric acid in the tomatoes leads to the washed surfaces in the town becoming very clean.[3][4]

Since 2013 participation in the event has been restricted to the holders of paid tickets. In 2015, it was estimated that almost 145000 kg of tomatoes were thrown.[3]

The city council follows a short list of instructions for the safety of the participants and the festival:[5]

  1. Do not throw anything but tomatoes
  2. Do not tear clothes
  3. Squash tomatoes before throwing them to avoid hurting others
  4. Keep a safe distance from trucks
  5. Stop throwing tomatoes after the second starter pistol shot
  6. Follow the directions of security staff
  7. Only throw tomatoes to a target you can see, to avoid hurting others
  8. Do not throw tomatoes directly at buildings
  9. Have a great time!

In other countries
Throwing tomatoes from a truck

La Tomatina Buñol has inspired similar celebrations in other parts of the world:

  • Since 1982, the town of Twin Lakes, Lake County, Colorado has held a tomato fight called the "Colorado Texas Tomato War," in which Texans and Coloradans square off. The Coloradans also attempt to overtake the Texans' straw Alamo effigy, generally succeeding.
  • Since 2004 the Colombian town of Sutamarchán holds a similar event on 15 June when a surplus of tomatoes is harvested.[6]
  • In Costa Rica the town of San José de Trojas in the San Pedro district of Sarchí canton (Alajuela Province) celebrates a Tomatina during the local Tomato Fair.[7]
  • In the town of Dongguan in southern Guangdong province in China, a tomato fight is held on October 19, during which they use up to 15 tons of tomatoes.[7]
  • The City of Reno, Nevada in the United States also has an annual hour-long tomato fight that started in 2009. The event seems to take place on the last Sunday of August and is organized by the American Cancer Society. Organizers named the festival La Tomatina, and give full credit for the idea to the Spanish festival.[6]
  • In the Indian state of Karnataka, the Karnataka Government banned the hosting of such a Tomatina event in Bangalore and Mysore, after private organizers tried to organize one. Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda is quoted as saying: "In the name of 'La Tomatina' festival, permission should not be granted to waste tomatoes". A similar event planned in Delhi was cancelled after it received negative response from the public.[8]
  • Funtasia Island, Patna hosted a similar La tomatina Holi event on March 26, 2013 at Funtasia Water Park in Patna, India.[9]

See also

References
  1. Studio, Socarrat. "La Tomatina – Página oficial". latomatina.info (in Spanish). Retrieved 2017-08-20.
  2. Mullins, Deirdre (2009-06-26). "La Tomatina". RTÉ News. RTE.
  3. Harris, Jenn (August 28, 2013). "La Tomatina festival: 20,000 people, 130 tons of tomatoes, 1 big mess". The Los Angeles Times.
  4. "La Tomatina". The Taste of Spain. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  5. "The Rules of Tomatina Festival". Tomatina.
  6. Galván, Javier A. (June 19, 2014). They Do What? A Cultural Encyclopedia of Extraordinary and Exotic Customs from around the World: A Cultural Encyclopedia of Extraordinary and Exotic Customs from around the World. ABC-CLIO. pp. 309–. ISBN 978-1-61069-342-4.
  7. "La Tomatina Tomato Festival Inspires Tomato Battle In USA". Odd Culture. 2011-08-10. Archived from the original on 2016-07-23. Retrieved 2016-07-28.
  8. "Bangalore's Tomatina festival cancelled". NDTV 24x7. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  9. "Splash of La Tomatina adds to park revelry - Funmakers get drenched in tomatoes instead of gulal ahead of festival". Calcutta Telegraph.
  10. "Abhay Deol goes topless!". Hindustan Times. 2011-05-31. Archived from the original on 2013-01-25. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
  11. "Check out: Hrithik, Katrina, Farhan & Abhay shooting for Tomatina fest in Spain". Bollywoodhungama.com. 2011-03-19. Retrieved 2015-08-25.
  12. On location: ‘Walking on Sunshine’, Joanne O’Connor, 27 June 2014, Financial Times
  13. "Al Rojo Vivo | A Mickey Mouse Cartoon | Disney Shorts". Youtube. Retrieved 18 June 2020.

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