10 dirtiest and messy festivals of the world

Have you ever squeezed your eyebrows on looking at snaps online where people in thousands are covering others in mud and mire and the one getting dirty are laughing and celebrating? Maybe you just saw one of the 10 festivals I am going to review as being extensively sloppy and dirty, and yet, fun..Because don't forget, they are festivals! 

Boryeong Mud Festival, South Korea

 An annual festival started in 1998 in  Boryeong, a scenic town 200 km south of Seoul, South Korea. It's popularity can be estimated by the fact that by 2007 the festival attracted 2.2 million visitors.The festival celebrates the benefits of mud cosmetics,as the mud near it's shores is rich in minerals and used in cosmetics. The festival, originally conceived as a marketing vehicle for Boryeong mud cosmetics, has brought the town to the world center-stage. Although the festival takes place over a period of around two weeks, it is most famous for its final weekend, which is popular with Korea's western population, which sings and dances to bring real festive feel, making it one of the biggest festivals of South Korea.

 

Batalla de Ratas, Spain

I would personally rate this one is the "strangest" of all because throwing dead rats at someone cannot be considered as a festival for me, though the locals at El Puig, Spain, would definitely not stand by me on this. Every last Sunday of January, people throw cucañas (a kind of local piñada) filled with (frozen) dead rats. The festival has a history behind it where in the old times, cucañas filled with fruits and nuts were thrown at each other, but as these cookies attracted the rats, a year came when someone found a rat indie the cucaña and threw it, which accidentally fell at somebody and hence is weird practice of throwing cucañas filled with dead rats.

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

At the Wasserschlacht in Berlin, Germany, two battling districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg) meet on the Oberbaumbrucke Bridge and what starts as a massive water fight soon becomes a free for all where eggs, flour, water bombs, fruit etc being thrown, and foam-rubber clubs used to try and push the opposing side back to their side of the bridge.
The event can get very messy with rotten food and even dirty nappies being used as missiles. And it has been known to get out of hand, with vehicles and buildings set alight!
The festival is usually on the last Sunday of July but this isn’t set in stone and its difficult to find information on exact dates. It has been known to be cancelled by the organisers over fears that the vast number of participants may be too much for the bridge.
- See more at: http://www.somewhereintheworldtoday.com/festivals/wasserschlacht-festival/#sthash.NHfPJdvg.dpuf

Wasserschlacht Festival, Berlin 

 Stated  in 1998 in attempt to join two Berlin districts (Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg

) between which a river flows, this festival aimed at joining the two districts. The festival starts with friendly water fight, which soon transforms into people throwing rotten food (even garbage) on each other on the Oberbaumbruecke bridge. Though the districts are now officially unified, this strange mayhem has not stopped as the people of the two districts still have not come into terms as to which of them owns the new district. Even salted fish and used diapers are thrown!

Literally “water fight,” Berlin’s dirty blitzkrieg often turns into a Gemüseschlacht (food fight) and escalates even further into a Müllschacht (garbage fight). Residents of two proud neighborhoods Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg (now administratively unified) wage war to determine the king of the newborn district. The battle starts out as a nasty water fight until flour, eggs, and even rotten fruits and vegetables begin to rain down on either side. There are reports that even salted herring and dirty diapers are being used as projectile. Source

Oberbaumbruckebridge

La Tomatina, Spain

Can you imagine 40 metric tons of tomato thrown at each other in one hour? That is what happens at an annual festival in a village called Bunol in Valencia, Spain. Happening on the last Wednesday of August each year, the intensity of this festival can also be seen by the fact that it was banned in the early 50s, but the locals kept the spirit alive and the festival became official in 1957.  Excellency Town Hall of Buñol decided to keep a fee of €10 and limit the number of people to 20,000, as in 2012, the crowd reaching there was about 50,000, something too much for a village with a population of only 9,000. At around 10 a.m., festivities begin with the first event of the Tomatina where the goal is to climb a greased pole with a ham on top. When someone is able to drop the ham from the pole, a water shot in the air marks the entry of trucks loaded with tomatoes that are thrown at each other like crazy. The tomatoes are specially grown at Extremadura for this event, as these are less expensive. simlar events have come into existence due to the popularity of this festival, like the Colorado-texas Tomato War.

 Clean Monday Flour War, Greece

Marking the first day of Orthodox Lent (Christian tradition of preparation of Easter) in Galaxidi, Greece, Clean Monday or Ash Monday started in 1801 when the locals covered their faces in ash and danced in opposition of Ottoman rulers. The carnival is now celebrated by throwing colored flour on others, with their faces painted in charcoal. The buildings are covered with plastic to save them from colored stains.

Entroida

Entroida

Entroida

 Entroida, Spain

Another festival occuring before Lent is Entroida, also called the 'ant throwing' festival. This event takes place on three Fridays before Lent and some days before Ash Wednesday in Laza, Spain. The event is as messy as some of the other festivals in Spain (perhaps more messy than them as its celebration carries on for some days.), but with religious roots. The locals run through the streets with torches and the ones who decide not to join them, instead throw mud from the terraces or windows as this symbolizes purification. Some people dress as
Peliqueros, wearing a peculiar mask and cowbells, ragging food and drink from homes and whipping people with a stick. he Peliqueros are considered spiritual beings and must be respected by the locals as they help in the purification process.

In a small municipality in Galicia, north-west Spain is an annual festival that is as crazy and weird as the Jarramplas Festival.  But instead of rock-solid turnips, revellers in Laza throw very angry fire ants at the faces of unsuspecting passers-by during the Entroida Festival.

Entroida is a Galician version of the global Catholic celebration Carnaval. However, many details make it unique from other Carnaval celebrations in Europe. Like Carnaval, Entroida happens every year before Lent and involves costumes, food and drinking. But the similarity ends there as Entroida also has a bizarre combination of vinegar, fire ants and mud.
- See more at: http://ffemagazine.com/spains-entroida-festival-vinegar-angry-ants/#sthash.UtGwYiME.dpuf

The festival takes place on the three Fridays before Lent and the four days before Ash Wednesday. There are five distinct parts of the Entroida. On the three Fridays, the people of Laza run around the streets wielding torches of hay. Those who do not want to join the running instead throw loads of dirt from their windows and terraces, hitting as many runners as they can.

Saturday is unusual because the revellers become extra gluttonous: locals dance, sing and eat their fill of grilled goat, pig head and local desserts. On Sunday, the ‘official’ Entroida day, a couple of men will dress up in festive, masked costumes and wear noisy cowbells as they play the role of Peliqueros. The Peliqueros are uncontrollable and  very boisterous and not all that nice as they wield whips and playfully lash at anyone and everyone. In addition, the Peliqueros can barge inside homes and gorge at the family’s food and drinks while the family, as expected, looks on.
- See more at: http://ffemagazine.com/spains-entroida-festival-vinegar-angry-ants/#sthash.UtGwYiME.dpuf

In a small municipality in Galicia, north-west Spain is an annual festival that is as crazy and weird as the Jarramplas Festival.  But instead of rock-solid turnips, revellers in Laza throw very angry fire ants at the faces of unsuspecting passers-by during the Entroida Festival.

Entroida is a Galician version of the global Catholic celebration Carnaval. However, many details make it unique from other Carnaval celebrations in Europe. Like Carnaval, Entroida happens every year before Lent and involves costumes, food and drinking. But the similarity ends there as Entroida also has a bizarre combination of vinegar, fire ants and mud.
- See more at: http://ffemagazine.com/spains-entroida-festival-vinegar-angry-ants/#sthash.UtGwYiME.dpuf

Tar Barrel Burning Festival, Ottery St. Mary, England

Happens every November 5th, this annual event of burning seventeen tar barrels and carrying them above local's heads from afternoon till midnight started in the 17th century. Originally, the tar barrels were rolled by hand and carried through the town center, but later the locals realized that it was too boring and since carrying them on the heads has been the tradition. The reason that this festival is added in our strange and messy festival list is that earlier it used to happen in almost all western towns of England and now only Ottery is the one left, and that is because of the number of casualties this event has seen, and therefore the increasing necessity of  public liability insurance coverage. Only the people who were born in the town or the ones that have lived for a long time in the town are eligible for the barrel-lifting event. The  event may have originated as a means of warding off evil spirits.

 

 Holi, India

Having origins in the celebration of victory of good over evil and the origin of spring, Holi is celebrated all over India but he tradition of throwing colors at each other is said to have been started by Lord Krishna, who used to  apply colors on his beloved Radha and other gopis. But that all is not the reason why this festival is included in our list, as in previous times Holi was celebrated in a very traditional and simple manner, even colors were only from natural sources like green color was extracted from leaves, yellow and red from flowers and so on. Why we are talking about holi in this list is because of the change in both the mindset and the manner in which it is celebrated now, and also because of some peculiar traditions evolved over 200 years or so.Almost all colors used now are derived from chemicals, which have negative effects on the skin.The event also gives chance to street casanovas to assault young girls and what not. Whats more, water wastage and pollution add more of the reason not to celebrate holi. And this trend has actualy started in india, where the corporate and upper-middle class have limited holi celebration to escape to some nearby hillside and spend time there. In Barsana, birth place of Radha there is a tradition stated some decades ago where the women greet men with sticks in an attempt to not let them apply colors to them. The tradition is called Lathmar (beating-with-stick) Holi  But the festival has some fun side too. The holi of Braj (place in which Krishna spent his childhood) is celebratedin much reigious and traditional way,playing with colors and remembering Krishna who started the color tradition of holi.The color stains of many people don't go away even after 2 months.

Battaglia delle Arance

 Recognized as the largest food fight in Italy, the Battaglia delle Arance, or the Battle of the Oranges is an annual festival in the northern city of Ivrea. The carnival takes place for three days: Sunday Monday and Tuesday in February and ends on the night of Shrove Tuesday (preceding first day of Lent or Ash Wednesday ).History of this festival dates back to the 12th or 13th century when a tyrant tried to rape a girl named Violetta on the day of her wedding. But the girl instead decapitated the tyrant and the locals burnt the palace.  Each year, a young girl is chosen to play the part of Violetta. Earlier the beans were thrown at each other instead of oranges. Typically there is the tyrants army and others consisting of nine teams that throw oranges on the tyrnats army. then there are the spectators watching the tyrants army getting smacked with oranges.However,expect to see the spectators getting their share of the orange juice. The severity of the battle is understood by the fact that every spectator is encouraged to wear the Berretto Frigio/Phrygian Cap/red hat for protection.

 

Feria de Cascamorras

 Presumably the best way to end the list by mentioning a festival from our old school boy Spain, probably the ringleader in the niche of  messy festivals and carnivals. So here's presenting you Feria de Cascamorras, an annual event taking place on 6th september in the towns of Baza and Guadix, Spain. Thousands of locals cover themseves in back oil abnd throw paint at the Cascamorras as he attempts to steal the Virgin statue from Baza. This event is actualy the beginning of  Feria de Baza, the town's traditional festival. After covering themselves in back oil and paint, the locals of Baza wait for the Cascamorras from neighbouring town of Guadix to try to steal their Virgin Mary statue from the church. The Cascamorras is then chased, thrown in the air and daubed in sticky black oil and paintand thus prevented in every possibe manner from robbing the Virgin Mary statue. The apparent war is due to the fact that the virgin mary statue was found buried by a man from Guadix, and hence the tradition of someone from Guadix trying to steal the Virgin Mry statue.