Around 15,000 participants, including many tourists, engaged in Spain’s annual “Tomatina” street battle in the town of Buñol. Trucks filled with 120 tons of overripe tomatoes emptied their loads onto the town’s main street, where participants proceeded to throw tomatoes at each other.
The result was a street, houses, and participants covered in red pulp. Tickets for the festival started at €12 (approximately NZ$22). After the hour-long tomato fight, the town quickly hosed down the area, and participants showered off the tomato residue.
The Tomatina Festival, which takes place on the last Wednesday of August, originated in 1945 when local children engaged in a food fight. It gained national and international attention in the 1980s, attracting participants from around the world. To protect themselves from tomato splatters, participants often wear swimming goggles, T-shirts, and shorts.
