Who cast that first fateful tomato that started the La Tomatina revolution? The reality is no one knows. Maybe it was an anti-Franco rebellion, or a carnival that got out of hand. According to the most popular version of the story, during the 1945 festival of Los Gigantes (a giant paper mâché puppet parade), locals were looking to stage a brawl to get some attention. They happened upon a vegetable cart nearby and started hurling ripe tomatoes. Innocent onlookers got involved until the scene escalated into a massive melee of flying fruit. The instigators had to repay the tomato vendors, but that didn't stop the recurrence of more tomato fights—and the birth of a new tradition.
Fearful of an unruly escalation, authorities enacted, relaxed, and then reinstated a series of bans in the 1950s. In 1951, locals who defied the law were imprisoned until public outcry called for their release. The most famous effrontery to the tomato bans happened in 1957 when proponents held a mock tomato funeral complete with a coffin and procession. After 1957, the local government decided to roll with the punches, set a few rules in place, and embraced the wacky tradition.
Though the tomatoes take center stage, a week of festivities lead up to the final showdown. It's a celebration of Buñol's patron saints, the Virgin Mary and St. Louis Bertrand, with street parades, music, and fireworks in joyous Spanish fashion. To build up your strength for the impending brawl, an epic paella is served on the eve of the battle, showcasing an iconic Valencian dish of rice, seafood, saffron, and olive oil.
Today, this unfettered festival has some measure of order. Organizers have gone so far as to cultivate a special variety of unpalatable tomatoes just for the annual event. Festivities kick off around 10 a.m. when participants race to grab a ham fixed atop a greasy pole. Onlookers hose the scramblers with water while singing and dancing in the streets. When the church bell strikes noon, trucks packed with tomatoes roll into town, while chants of "To-ma-te, to-ma-te!" reach a crescendo.
Then, with the firing of a water cannon, the main event begins. That's the green light for crushing and launching tomatoes in all-out attacks against fellow participants. Long distance tomato lobbers, point-blank assassins, and medium range hook shots. Whatever your technique, by the time it's over, you will look (and feel) quite different. Nearly an hour later, tomato-soaked bombers are left to play in a sea of squishy street salsa with little left resembling a tomato to be found. A second cannon shot signals the end of the battle. | Min jitfa 'l-ewwel tadam fateful li beda l-rivoluzzjoni Tomatina La? Ir-realtà hija ħadd ma jaf. Forsi din kienet ribelljoni kontra l-Franco, jew karnival li ltqajna minn idejn. Skond il-verżjoni l-aktar popolari ta 'l-istorja, matul il-festival 1945 tal Los Gigantes (a parata ġgant puppet Mâche karta), lokal kienu qed ifittxu għall-istadju brawl biex nikseb xi attenzjoni. Huma ġara fuq karrettun veġetali fil-qrib u bdiet hurling tadam misjur. Onlookers innoċenti ltqajna involuti sakemm il-xena kibru fi melee massiv ta 'frott li jtajru. L-instigaturi kellhom iħallsu lura l-bejjiegħa tat-tadam, iżda li ma twaqqaf ir-rikorrenza ta 'aktar ġlied-u tadam-twelid ta' tradizzjoni ġdida. Beżgħana ta 'eskalazzjoni indixxiplinati, awtoritajiet promulgati, llaxkati, u mbagħad mill-ġdid sensiela ta' projbizzjonijiet fl-1950. Fl-1951, lokal li defied l-liġi kienu ħabs sakemm qajmet pubbliku sejjaħ għar-rilaxx tagħhom. L effrontery aktar famużi għall-projbizzjonijiet tat-tadam li ġara fl-1957 meta proponenti kellu funeral tadam mock kompluta bil tebut u purċissjoni. Wara 1957, il-gvern lokali ddeċieda li roll mal-puntelli, stabbiliti ftit regoli fis-seħħ, u ħaddnu l-tradizzjoni wacky. Għalkemm l-tadam jieħdu l-istadju taċ-ċentru, ġimgħa ta 'festi jwassal sa l-Showdown finali. Huwa ċelebrazzjoni ta 'qaddisin patrun Buñol, il-Verġni Marija u San Louis Bertrand, bil parati triq, mużika, u logħob tan-nar fil-moda Spanjol joyous. Biex jibnu qawwa tiegħek għall-Brawl imminenti, l-paella epika tiġi notifikata lill lejliet il-battalja, vetrina dixx emblematika Valenzja ta 'ross, frott tal-baħar, żagħfran, u żejt taż-żebbuġa. Illum, dan il-festival bla rbit għandha xi miżura ta 'ordni. Organizzaturi marru safejn li tkun ikkultivata varjetà speċjali ta 'tadam li m'għandhomx togħma tajba biss għall-avveniment annwali. Festi kick off madwar 10:00 meta parteċipanti razza li grab perżut fiss atop arblu żejtni. Onlookers manka tal scramblers bl-ilma filwaqt kant u żfin fit-toroq. Meta l-qanpiena knisja strajkijiet nofsinhar, trakkijiet ippakkjat bil-tadam roll fil-belt, filwaqt li chants ta '"To-ma-te,-to-ma te!" jilħaq Crescendo. Imbagħad, bl-isparar ta 'kanun ilma, l-avveniment prinċipali jibda. Dik hija l-dawl aħdar għall-tgħaffiġ u t-tnedija tadam fil kollha-barra attakki kontra parteċipanti sħabi. Lobbers tadam distanza twila, assassins-point blank, u shots ganċ firxa qasira u medja. Tkun xi tkun it-teknika tiegħek, mill-ħin huwa fuq, inti se tfittex (u jħossu) pjuttost differenti. Kważi siegħa tard, bombi mxarrba tadam jitħallew jilagħbu fil-baħar ta squishy Salsa triq bi ftit xellug jixbaħ tadam li jinstabu. A tieni shot kanun sinjali l-aħħar tal-battalja. |