10 days in Spain, beautiful sunshine, wonderful people and a
massive stinky tomato food fight...what could be better!
I was incredibly lucky to work as crew for a tour company at
a campsite with 500 people. Totally in my element!
The trip started horrendously though, day 1 getting to
Valencia goes like this....
1.
4:30 am bus late2.
Missed connecting bus3.
20 minute run to tube station with big bag4.
Train to Gatwick breaks down5.
Easy Jet lose my bag
But eventually I got there and everyone was incredibly
welcoming. Just a really good bunch of genuinely nice people (majority
Aussies!) and the next few days were great. Staying up late playing drinking
games at night and spending the days pitching tents and swimming in the great
Spanish sun. I’m browner now then I have ever been, finally looking like a
Maori....well a little.
All of the clients arrived on the Wednesday after we’d spent
a few days prepping everything and check in day was a big big day. I spent the
day greeting people as they arrived and putting on their wrist bands, after
doing 500 bands my thumbs were screwed and I’m still recovering. That night I had
to get one of the girls to do up my shorts that's how bad it was! But I loved
it, totally in my element chatting away to people so time just flew.
La Tomatina itself is just absolute madness. You have to get
there at like 8am to be able to get a good spot before the other 45,000 people
turn up and cram into this tiny little area. In the lead up to the actual
tomato fight all the ‘Men’ try climb this 10 metre pole covered in pig fat with
a ham at the top. It smells so bad and everyone’s sweaty, covered in pig fat
and so stinky...then they walk past you and it gets all over you because
everyone’s so crammed in! After waiting around for a couple of hours drinking
bourbon and coke with 4 crazy Italians the tomato fight finally starts! And it
is crazy. These trucks slowly roll in jammed pack with tomato’s and its all
on!!! They biff these tomatoes out at everyone, then as the truck moves forward
everyone rushes into the middle scoops up tomato goop off the ground and biffs
it at everyone. You can’t think to much about what you’re doing, as in the fact
your picking up street dirt, tomatoes and probably a bit of urine and throwing
it at each other getting it all in your hair, you just have to embrace it and
get amongst it. So for an hour there is this massive food fight in the heat.
Then afterwards you wander the streets trying to find water to not only wash
off with but cool down. A friend and I found this little kid on a 3rd
storey balcony throwing buckets of water so used that.
I was absolutely exhausted after this event....but partied
for a bit that night before sleeping outside under the stars, it was too hot in
the tent, and listening to live music. Enjoying the good things in life.
Overall, Tomatina was one heck of an experience. I
definitely think its a once in a lifetime event for me but would highly recommend
it to anyone who likes a bit of madness.
Next festival is Oktoberfest....oh dear.
Till then...KB xxx
