THE streets of the Spanish town of Ibi have erupted in chaos.
Residents dressed as soldiers have stormed the streets in a mock coup d’etat, battling with flour, eggs, fire extinguishers and firecrackers to seize the city.
The 200-year-old tradition is known as Els Enfarinats and it’s celebrated on December 28 each year to mark the biblical Massacre of the Innocents by King Herod.
At 8am, the revellers take to the streets under a slogan calling for “New Justice”. At 9am, they begin a “Race for Mayor” in which they decide who will be the next leader
The mock election takes place in the Church Square. By 5pm, they relinquish their authority, finishing the celebration with a traditional dance.
Els Enfarinats gets very, very messy.
Many participants wear protective goggles to shield their eyes from thick flour dust and egg shells, as they inevitably get caked in a crusty batter.
Some launch whole cartons of eggs at a time, while others run around assaulting their peers with blasts from fire extinguishers. No-one is safe.
It’s not the only wild food fight that happens in Spain.
Tourists and locals alike literally paint the town of Bunol red every August, for the crazy tomato-throwing festival known as La Tomatina.
Around 22,000 participants throw about 160 tonnes of the fruit at each other during the hour-long frenzy, which causes a river of tomato pulp to flow through the streets.
It’s not for the faint of heart.
Australian tomato-hater Robert Kidd participated in this year’s event, and said the scene looked like something from a Tarantino movie.
However, he said although it was most certainly disgusting, he couldn’t deny it was also a whole lot of fun.
Source: news.com.au
