Paint the town red: La Tomatina returns with a bang in Spain
The streets of Bunol, a town in the east of Spain, were covered in red from an hour-long frenzy of people throwing tomatoes at each other. After a two-year break, thousands of revellers participated in the famous La Tomatina Festival
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Participants throw tomatoes at each other during the annual Tomatina, a tomato fight fiesta in the town of Bunol near Valencia, Spain. The festival returned after a two-year ban due to the COVID-19 pandemic. AP
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People lather each other up with tomato pulp at the La Tomatina Festival in Spain. The festival is celebrated every year by thousands of revellers, who throw ripe and low-quality tomatoes at each other. This year was the 75th edition of the festival. AP
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A woman covered in tomato pulp lies on a tomato-flooded street in Bunol. The origins of the festival go back to 1944 when a few locals engaged in a dispute during a parade and threw tomatoes at each other. Following this, people decided to repeat the food fight. It is celebrated in the last week of August every year. AFP
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People covered in tomato pulp hug each other during the festival. La Tomatina was officially declared a Festival of International Tourist Interest in 2002. AFP
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The La Tomatina festival has been dubbed as the world’s biggest food fight. According to a report by Afar, the tomatoes used in the festival are especially produced for the event. This year, a convoy of six trucks carried around 130 tonnes of tomatoes were transported through the narrow lanes of Bunol. AFP
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A woman wears goggles to protect her eyes from the pulp. Image courtesy: La Tomatina Festival
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People wash the tomato pulps off their bodies as the one-hour-long food fight comes to an end. AFP