Cool Facts
15 Amazing Facts About La Tomatina – For Kids
#La Tomatina 2020
August end marks the beginning of the very famous annual Spanish festival, La Tomatina, held in the Valencian town of Buñol.
It takes place every year on the last Wednesday of August between 10 AM and 11 AM.
La Tomatina is considered the "World’s Biggest Food Fight" with about 40,000 participants.
It is believed that La Tomatina started way back in 1945 when a man was pushed off a float during an annual carnival parade. In a fit of rage, the man picked up tomatoes from a vegetable shop and started to throw them at every person in sight.
The festival was initially free for participants from 1945 to 2012, but in 2013 the Mayor of Bunol imposed a 10 euro entry fee for non-residents.
In a fight that lasts for just an hour, around 150,000 tomatoes meet their fate.
Interestingly, Buñol does not grow tomatoes at all!
For the festival, tomatoes are specially grown in Extremadura, a beautiful tourist destination situated 570 km away from Bunol.
There are two strict rules to be followed while enjoying La Tomatina- throw only squashed tomatoes and do not throw anything other than a tomato.
On The day of La Tomatina, Buñol’s population swells from just 9,000 to about 30,000.
Before the actual fun starts, participants get to enjoy parades, firework, and paella (Valencian rice dish) cooking contest.
The festival starts after any enthusiastic participant climbs the greased wooden pole known as Palojanon and pulls the ham, which hangs on the top.
Once the fights end, fire-fighters wash the streets and people down with hoses.
The city looks very clean after being washed, due to the disinfectant properties of tomatoes.
In August 2015, the festival was acknowledged by the Internet giant Google by making a Google Doodle of La Tomatina.