Blood-red streams of tomato juice oozed through the streets of the tiny Spanish town of Bunol as tens of thousands of people hurled tonnes of squashy fruit in the world's biggest food fight.
With a thundering firework at midday signalling the start of the "Tomatina", five trucks dumped 120 tonnes of plum tomatoes into Bunol's narrow central street where 35,000 people were expectantly awaiting the ammunition. Locals and visitors from around the globe lobbed the tomatoes at each other and, when the fruit turned to puree, reached down to whisk red froth into the air. The "People's Square" filled with the acidic sweet smell of tomatoes and slimy stained bodies. "We never do anything like this in Brisbane, we're all so controlled...It's insane," said an Australian visit. "It's bonkers!" said Clare Fuchs from London. "I don't think I'll be having a Bloody Mary this afternoon." Locals had draped plastic sheeting over their houses and some even boarded up windows but the town's white facades were still left spattered red. Locals of Bunol -- with a population of 9,600 -- say the tradition started in the mid-1940s, under the authoritarian rule of General Francisco Franco. Goltran Zanon, 70, locally recognised as one of the founding fathers of the now world-famous event, says it all began with kids pitching tomatoes at balloons during a balloon-flying show. Others say a group of youngsters started a food fight with their salad at lunchtime and it became a tradition. The event -- the highlight of a week-long festival -- was banned for a short time when revellers pelted a government official and the town held a funeral for its favourite fruit. "More than half the village showed up in mourning to bury an enormous tomato," Zanon said. But Pilar Masmano, 80, says the festival -- which costs the town hall 36,000 euros -- is not what it was. "It's just degenerate now," she said, adding that foreigners do not know how to throw a tomato as the locals do, squashing it first to ensure a satisfying splat rather than a painful thump. Alisa from Japan agreed: "He hit me in the eyes...It was very painful." As the fruity orgy wound down and the hoses came out to wash down the streets, die-hards made for the deepest pools of tomato and wallowed like pigs in mud. (Agencies) | 鲜红的西红柿汁流遍了西班牙小镇布诺的大街小巷。数以万计的人加入这场世界上规模最大的食品大战,投掷了上百吨熟透的西红柿。 中午时分,雷鸣般的烟火拉开了“番茄大战”的帷幕。五辆大卡车将120吨西红柿卸到布诺狭窄的中心街道,三万五千人正在那里翘首以待西红柿炮弹的到来。 当地居民和来自世界各国的游人相互扔着西红柿。等水果成了酱,他们就伸手去搅和红色的泡沫,弄得泡沫满天飞。“人民广场”上弥漫着西红柿酸甜的味道,到处都是浑身粘糊糊的人。 “在布里斯班我们从来不做这样的事。我们都很有节制,这样做太疯狂了。”一位澳大利亚游客说。 来自伦敦的克拉雷·富克斯说:“太疯狂了!我想今天下午我都不想喝血玛莉酒(番茄汁掺伏特加)了。” 当地的居民用塑料布盖在房子上,有些人甚至用木板将窗户堵起来,但是镇上白色的外墙仍然被溅上了红色斑点。 布诺镇当地有9600人口。当地人说这个传统始于20世纪四十年代中期,弗朗西斯科·佛朗哥将军独裁统治的时期。70高龄的戈尔特龙·萨农被当地人公认为这个闻名世界的节日的创始人之一。他说这个节日完全是因为在一次气球展览会上孩子们用西红柿砸气球而开始的。 也有人说是因为一群年轻人在吃午饭的时候用色拉来打架,从此就有了这个传统节日。 这个活动是一周节日的高潮,一度被禁止过。当时狂欢者用西红柿投掷政府官员。为此,小镇居民为他们钟爱的西红柿举行了葬礼。 “超过半数的村民参加了葬礼,埋葬了一只巨大的西红柿。”萨农说。 然而80岁的皮拉尔·马斯马诺说这个花费了市政厅3万6千欧元的节日已经不是以前的样子了。 她说:“它已经变质了,”还说外国人不知道当地人如何扔西红柿,应该先将西红柿压碎,这样扔出去的西红柿才会发出另人满意的啪啪声,而不是重重的地把别人打痛。 日本游客亚莉莎同意这样的说法:“他击中了我的眼睛,很疼。” 当狂欢降下帷幕的时候,当地人开始拿水管洗刷街道,而那些最顽固的人却奔向最深的西红柿坑,像猪在泥浆里一样打滚。 (中国日报网站译) |