On my command, unleash.. tomatoes!
Posted: 24 August '10 by Niall
La Tomatina, Wednesday 25 August 2010
The world’s biggest food fight starts tomorrow at 11am!
The population of Buñol more than triples each year as thousands descend on the small Valencian town to join in the massive tomato fight, with over 100 tons of over-ripe tomatoes being thrown in an hour of fun and mayhem.
No-one really knows why the event began, just that the original celebration was held around 1945. “La Tomatina” lasts for a full week of festivities, but the food-fight itself takes place on the last Wednesday in August each year.
Trucks carrying tons of ripe tomatoes are driven into the town square and, at the signal to begin, all hell breaks loose! The tomato fight continues until 12 noon when a second rocket is fired to signal the end of messy melee.
There are a few rules so that everyone can enjoy themselves with the least chance of trouble:
- Crush the tomatoes before you throw them;
- Stop throwing tomatoes when you hear the second rocket;
- Don’t carry bottles or hard objects; and
- Diving goggles are a good idea – the acid from the tomatoes hurts your eyes after a while.
And..?
Well, because we can’t make it to Buñol ourselves, we thought that we’d celebrate the Tomato Festival in our own way by making our own Stuffed Tomatoes for dinner tonight – a tasty Spanish recipe which we’ll post tomorrow.
And you never know – Kelly might get more than she’s bargained for when she walks into the kitchen tonight too!
You can see more photos hereImage 2Image 3
Other information
You can find out more information by visiting the official La Tomatina website.
Credits – image 1: Sydney Morning Herald – image 2: http://www.latomatina.es – image 3: http://www.latomatina.es
Tags: News, orce serrano hams, spain, spanish food, Tomato
Categories: News
