Located in the picturesque mountains of eastern Spain, the small town of Bunol might appear to be just another idyllic place in the Spanish countryside. However, it is home to one of the world’s most popular food fights. Each August, tens of thousands of people from all around the globe swarm into Bunol to take part in La Tomatina.
On the last Wednesday of August, you will find the streets of Bunol full of people eagerly waiting to hear the blast of a cannon. This signifies the start of La Tomatina, an event where participants hurl thousands of pounds of tomatoes at each other. The streets become a free-for-all after truckloads of tomatoes are dumped into the town square. For an hour after the cannon is fired, people indulge in the festivity by pelting juicy tomatoes at each other.
While there is no consensus on the origins of this festival, it is commonly believed to have begun during the mid-20th century. At the time, some young men wanted to join a parade to honor a religious figure in Bunol but were forbidden to do so. They possibly became angry and began throwing tomatoes taken from a nearby vegetable stall at each other and other attendees. Many people enjoyed the impromptu tomato fight and decided to bring more tomatoes to the event to throw at people the following year. Since then, the tomato fight and its reputation have continued to grow.
Photo: Ivy English 照片：常春藤
Local officials banned the tomato fight for a few years, going so far as to arrest people who tried to participate. In 1957, as a sign of protest against the ban, locals held a tomato burial event, where they carried a large coffin filled with tomatoes through the streets. The ban was soon lifted and in the 1980s, the authorities assumed responsibility for organizing La Tomatina, which is now an official festival.
布尼奧爾位於西班牙東部風景如畫的山區中，這座小鎮可能看似只是西班牙鄉下另一個風光明媚之處。然而，該鎮是世上其中一個最受歡迎的食物大戰發源地。每年八月，來自世界各地數以萬計的人湧入布尼奧爾參加番茄大戰。
在八月的最後一個星期三，你會發現布尼奧爾的街上擠滿了熱切等著聽到砲聲的人們。這代表著番茄大戰開始了，這是一項參與者會朝彼此投擲數千磅番茄的活動。街道在好幾卡車的番茄倒入市民廣場後演變成不受控制的場面。砲聲響起後的一個小時裡，人們沉溺於這場歡慶之中，連續對彼此投擲多汁的番茄。
Photo: Ivy English 照片：常春藤
雖然針對這個節慶的起源沒有共識，但一般認為是在二十世紀中開始的。當時，有一些年輕男子想加入布尼奧爾的一場紀念某位宗教人物的遊行，卻被禁止。他們很可能覺得生氣而開始對彼此和其他在場的人投擲從附近蔬菜攤拿到的番茄。許多人很享受這場即興的番茄大戰，並決定來年帶著更多番茄來到活動中扔人。自那時起，番茄大戰和其名聲持續成長。
當地官員曾禁止過番茄大戰幾年，甚至逮捕試圖參加的人。1957年，當地人舉辦一場番茄葬禮以作為抗議該禁令的象徵，他們抬著裝滿番茄的大棺材穿過街道。該禁令很快就解除了，而在1980年代時，當局負起責任來規劃番茄大戰—現在成為了正式的節慶。
Words in Use
1. picturesque a. 風景如畫的
Visitors to the valley are attracted by the picturesque view.
來到這座山谷的訪客都被其風景如畫的景色所吸引。
2. blast n. 巨大的聲響
The ship gave one large blast of its horn before it started its journey.
那艘船開始航行前發出了巨大的鳴笛聲。
3. signify vt. 代表，表示
Berry’s high blood pressure signifies that he is very stressed.
貝瑞的高血壓代表他壓力很大。
4. dump vt. 傾倒
It was found that the factory dumped its waste and chemicals into the river illegally.
該工廠被發現非法傾倒廢棄物和化學物品到那條河中。
5. consensus n.
共識（常與介詞on 搭配使用）
After hours of discussion, we failed to reach a consensus on the issue.
經過數小時的討論，我們無法對該議題達成共識。
Practical Phrases
1. be home to... 是……的發源地∕所在地
Vietnam is home to the unusual art of water puppetry.
越南是水上木偶戲這種獨特藝術的發源地。
2. swarm into... 湧入……
swarm vi. 蜂擁
Excited fans swarmed into the pop-up store to buy limited items.
興奮的粉絲湧入那間快閃店購買限量商品。
3. indulge in... 沉溺∕放縱於……
Indulge vi. 沉迷，縱容
My brother indulged in watching anime all weekend.
我弟整個週末都在看動畫。
4. go so far as to V 甚至（做到）……（的地步）
Sam went so far as to eat instant noodles every day to save money.
為了省錢，山姆甚至每天吃泡麵。
To be continued tomorrow（明日待續）
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本文出自常春藤解析英語雜誌: www.ivy.com.tw
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