- Title: U.S. couple wage "disgusting yet exhilarating" tomato war
- Date: 28th August 2019
- Summary: BUNOL, SPAIN (AUGUST 28, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF COUPLE FROM LOS ANGELES JULES JONES AND TRACY BERNABE JONES GETTING READY FOR 'LA TOMATINA' FOOD FIGHT FESTIVAL TRACY BERNABE JONES HOLDING PHONE COVERED WITH PROTECTIVE PLASTIC CASE (SOUNDBITE) (English) COUPLE FROM LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA UNITED STATES, JULES JONES AND AND TRACY BERNABE JONES SAYING: JULES: "Tomato juice everywhere. In our ears, in our eyes, in our nose." TRACY BERNABE: "In our pockets. All over. I expect tomatoes to be up to my ankles. I've heard ankles high tomatoes." JULES AND TRACY WALKING AMONGST CROWD BEFORE TOMATO THROWING BEGINS REVELLERS IN TRUCK THROWING TOMATOES AT CROWDS AT STREET LEVEL TRACY WEARING GOGGLE AND THROWING TOMATOES AT OTHER REVELLERS REVELLERS IN TRUCK THROWING TOMATOES VARIOUS OF TRACY AND JULES COVERED IN TOMATO THROWING AND BEING HIT BY TOMATOES GOPRO FOOTAGE OF TRACY AND JULES THROWING TOMATOES TRACY SPLATTERING TOMATOES ON A REVELLER'S HEAD (SOUNDBITE) (English) COUPLE FROM LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, JULES JONES AND AND TRACY BERNABE JONES SAYING: TRACY: "Disgusting yet exhilarating. This is a great feeling, this is a long-time coming, so it was a really good experience for us. This is way nastier than I thought it would be, way stickier, way nastier and very sloppy, so it's what I wanted but not what I expected." JULES: "Yeah, tomatoes up to our shins, knees and I couldn't see anybody, just go (makes gesture as if she is hurling a tomato) at it." REVELLERS THROWING TOMATOES AT EACH OTHER TOMATO PULP LANDING ON TRACY 'S HEAD (SOUNDBITE) (English) COUPLE FROM LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, JULES JONES AND AND TRACY BERNABE JONES SAYING: TRACY: "This is more than I expected." JULES: "Yeah, people from everywhere, it was just incredible to meet people from all walks of life, all languages. It was so fun, so, so fun." TRACY: "The only regret is that our camera died with the pictures. So we didn't take any pictures of us being disgusting. But maybe we'll catch one on the way out." GOPRO FOOTAGE OF JULES AND TRACY THROWING TOMATOES VARIOUS OF TRACY AND JULES COVERED WITH TOMATO PULP TRACY AND JULES STANDING NEXT TO WALL COVERED WITH SPLATTERED TOMATO (SOUNDBITE) (English) COUPLE FROM LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, JULES JONES AND AND TRACY BERNABE JONES SAYING: TRACY: "We'd do it again, maybe years later." JULES: "We will just bring a lot of people with us. But yeah, would do it again." TRACY: "Yeah, do it again, once like it a few years under my belt to miss it again. I'm not going to miss this for a couple of years." JULES: "Yeah I'm not going to need tomatoes for a little while." TRACY: Yeah. Oh my goodness, I will stay away from tomatoes and Italian food for a while, but we will get there. Nice, very nice. I enjoyed it." REVELLERS COVERED WITH TOMATO PULP TRACY APPLAUDING AFTER FESTIVAL TRACY AND JULES CHEERING COVERED WITH TOMATO PULP AND JULES PATTING TRACY'S CHEST AS HE SMILES TRACY AND JULES RUNNING AND CHEERING THROUGH STREET COVERED WITH TOMATO PULP
- Embargoed: 11th September 2019 14:41
- Keywords: Tomatina food fight festival Bunol Spain revellers tomatoes Tomatina tomato fight
- Location: BUNOL, SPAIN
- City: BUNOL, SPAIN
- Country: Spain
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA001AU4V613
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: For Tracy Bernabe Jones and Jules Jones, a couple from the United States on vacation in Spain, the 'Tomatina' food fight festival on Wednesday (August 28) turned out to be a "disgusting yet exhilarating" experience.
Wearing goggles and armed with excitement and a sense of humour, the couple from Los Angeles joined thousands of other revellers in Bunol, the site of the world's largest food fight.
"This is way nastier than I thought it would be, way stickier, way nastier and very sloppy, so it's what I wanted, but not what I expected," said Tracy, who is a teacher.
Tracy and Jules did not discard repeating the experience but, said they would definitely "stay away from tomatoes and Italian food for a while."
The annual Tomatina festival kicks-off when six trucks carrying a total of 145 tonnes of the fruit roll through the streets of Bunol as the organisers toss the tomatoes into the crowd, quickly turning the road into a sea of pink and red.
The town hall of Bunol distributed over 20,000 tickets this year, and many who those who attended were foreign tourists like Tracy and Jules.
The only regret the couple had was that their phone stopped working and they were unable to immortalize the moment when they were splattered in tomato pulp in one of Spain's most internationally renowned festivals.
(Production: Michael Gore, Guillermo Martinez, Jeevan Ravindran, Miguel Gutierrez) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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