西班牙小鎮上演“西紅柿大戰”

Tens of thousands of people from around the world hurled tons of ripe tomatoes at each other Wednesday in an annual food fight that leaves the eastern Spanish town of Bunol covered in red juice.

A rocket fired from the town hall was the cue for start of the event for which local authorities provided 120 tonnes of tomatoes.

Many revellers, including many from Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Asia, wore hard hats, goggles or protective plastic sheets.

Shopkeepers put up huge plastic covers on their storefronts to protect their properties from the sea of red mush.

An estimated 40,000 people took part in the event this year, more than four times the population of the town located in a fertile region some 40 kilometres north of the coastal city of Valencia, Spain's third-largest city.

Spain's Olympic men's water polo team, which finished in fifth place at the Games in China, were among the participants, according to the town council.

After a battle lasting about one hour, municipal workers and local residents used giant hoses to clear the streets of tomato pulp.

The participants meanwhile headed to a nearby river where hundreds of temporary showers were set up.

The "Tomatina" is held each year on the last Wednesday in August. The origins of the event are unclear although it is thought to have its roots in a food fight between childhood friends in the mid-1940s in Bunol.

一年一度的“西紅柿大戰”於本週三在西班牙東部小鎮布尼奧上演，來自世界各地的好幾萬人互相投擲熟透的西紅柿嬉戲狂歡，整個小鎮也被塗上了一層紅紅的番茄汁。

當天，市政廳廣場放出一記禮炮，標誌着西紅柿狂歡節的開幕，當地政府則提供了120噸西紅柿“炮彈”。

前來參加狂歡節的人之中有不少來自英國、法國、德國、俄羅斯和亞洲等地，很多人戴着頭盔，護眼鏡或塑料擋板以保護自己免受傷害。

店鋪的老闆們則在店面前掛上了大幅塑料布，以防這場“紅色戰爭”殃及店裏的貨物。

今年約有四萬人蔘加了“西紅柿大戰”，參與人數爲當地人口的四倍多。布尼奧小鎮所處之地肥沃富庶，這一地區位於西班牙第三大城市、重要港口巴倫西亞市以北約40公里處。

據鎮議會介紹，在北京奧運會上獲得第五名的西班牙男子水球隊也參加了狂歡。

持續了約一小時的“西紅柿大戰”結束後，環衛工人和當地居民用大水管清洗塗滿厚厚番茄泥的街道。

而剛剛結束“紅色大戰”的人們則開往附近的一條河，那裏臨時安裝了幾百個淋浴噴頭。

“西紅柿大戰”通常在每年8月份的最後一個週三舉行。這項活動的起源尚不清楚，但傳說是起源於上世紀40年代中期當地孩童之間用食物互相扔擲打鬧的習俗。