Without question the biggest tomato fight in the world, La Tomatina started with a good laugh. During the forties, in Buñol's main town square, a number of friends started a tomato fight for unknown reasons. It's unclear whether the initial volley was aimed at city officials or simply pedestrians unlucky enough to be in the line of fire. Soon enough, however, with their rowdy hooliganism drawing passers-by into the fray, everyone was having a great time. They had so much fun, in fact, that from that day forward, the fiesta has been celebrated annually and has grown ever bigger each year.

In an effort to draw more tourism (and therefore more targets) into the small town of Buñol, La Tomatina has blossomed into a full-blown fiesta that coincides with the festival for the town's patron saint. For a week leading up to the epic battle, the 20,000-strong town of Buñol, is filled with parades, fireworks, food and street parties. The night before La Tomatina, the narrow streets beneath the town's imposing Medieval bell tower are filled with tomatoes, in a much more palatable form than they will be the next day! Cauldrons of delectable paella cooking, simmered traditionally over wood-burning fires line the Concurso des Paellas, near the Plaza del Pueblo, site of the imminent skirmishes. Wine and food flow around the small town until the wee hours, in a fabulous Dickens-like foreshadowing. After all, who can do battle thirsty and on an empty stomach?