Festival WebQuests La Tomatina

Some holidays are more exotic than others. La Tomatina is one of the most unusual celebrations you can find in the world. In this WebQuest you will investigate more about this strange festivity. Activity 1 Go to the link below, read the text and complete this paragraph that will summarize La Tomatina: The festival of La Tomatina takes place in (1) ________________, Spain, on the last (2) ________________ of (3) ________________ every year. This industrial town is (4) ________________ km from the city of (5) ________________. During the celebration, over (6) ________________ people throw large (7) ________________ at each other. The festival began in (8) ________________. www.lonelyplanet.com/spain/travel-tips-and-articles/74480 Activity 2 In this activity, you will find out more about this unusual festival. There are four topics below. Investigate them using the links provided. You can work alone or in groups and present your findings in a written or oral report. You might want to illustrate your reports with images. The sites have lots of interesting pictures. www.pilot.co.uk/destination_guide/europe/spain/tomato-fighting.php www.spanish-fiestas.com/spanish-festivals/la-tomatina-tomato-battle-bunyol.htm www.cyberspain.com/life/tomatina.htm Topic 1: History How did the festival start? There are five theories presented in the websites:

a local food fight among friends

an anti-Franco protest a juvenile class war by bystanders at a carnival parade as a practical joke Read about the five theories and summarize them in your report. Which theory do you think is the most logical? Topic 2: The Festival

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

When and how does it begin? How many tomatoes are available? Who throws the tomatoes? How long does it last? How does it end? How do they clean up all the tomatoes? Topic 3: Advice Most things in life are controlled by rules and La Tomatina is no different.

1. What rules exist in La Tomatina? 2. What advice would you give to anyone who wants to take part in the festival? Prepare an original list of rules and tips for possible visitors. Topic 4: Other events There are many other events and activities at La Tomatina. 1. What can you do before the tomato throwing begins? 2. Where can you visit in the surrounding area if you don't want to throw tomatoes?

At the end of August in the town of Buol near Valencia in Spain, the locals celebrate their patron saint, San Luis Bertrn and the Virgin Mary. During the week of the festival, there are paella-cooking contests, parades, music, dancing and fireworks. La Tomatina is the highlight of the festival on the last Wednesday of the month. Locals and tourists gather in the town during the morning whilst shopkeepers cover the fronts of their shops with sheets of plastic. Meanwhile, lorries carrying 125,000 kilograms of ripe tomatoes drive into the town. At 11am, a siren can be heard, then for nearly two hours everyone throws squashed tomatoes at each other. Another siren can be heard and that calls for the fight to stop. There are different stories as to how this unusual festival started but most sources agree that the first tomato fight took place in 1945. Some think it started as a practical joke, others at an anti-Franco rally. There are some who believe that brawling audiences at a carnival parade started throwing the contents of a nearby vegetable stall at one another. In the following years, the fights took place again but were stopped by the local police and authorities. The locals continued to celebrate the 'day of the tomatina' and in 1959 the Town Hall allowed the celebration to take place with strict rules. It has taken place every year since.