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People stand and lie on a huge pile of tomatoes.
Revellers throw tomatoes at each other during the annual La Tomatina tomato fight fiesta, in the village of Bunol near Valencia, Spain [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Thousands of revellers descended on Bunol on Wednesday for the annual La Tomatina food fight, where they painted the small Spanish town red with up to 165 tonnes of overripe tomatoes. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
The messy melee takes place for more than an hour in the town, where buildings are covered with tarps before the festivities. Held on the last Wednesday of August, the festival traces its origins to a food fight in 1945. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Loaded trucks proceeded through the crowd, with people standing in their cargo beds hurling tomatoes at the revellers. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Their white shirts soon turned pink and red while US pop songs blasted from speakers. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
More than 20,000 people were expected to take part this year, with Spanish news agency EFE reporting this week that roughly 40% of participants over the past three years are tourists from outside Spain. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
There has been a notable jump in visitors from India in recent years, following the 2011 Bollywood movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (You Only Live Once), in which three friends take a road trip through Spain during an extended bachelor party. The film recreated La Tomatina, introducing the festival to many Indians. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Similar tomato-flinging events have taken place in Florida, London, Amsterdam, the Colombian town of Sutamarchan and Hyderabad, India. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Non-local attendees pay 15 euros ($17.50) for a ticket. The first and only rule: Squash your tomatoes before hurling them to avoid injuries. Still, many participants don swimming goggles and earplugs for protection. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
Thousands join Spain's La Tomatina festival for epic tomato battle
Once the hour is up, the sound of a cannon blast marks the end of festivities and crowds wash off at communal showers nearby. The town's streets are later hosed down. Though stains on clothes can be permanent, the tomatoes' citric acid acts as a cleaning agent, often leaving Bunol’s streets cleaner than before. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
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