Galway in Ireland and Rijeka in Croatia they are Cultural Capitals which we can enjoy in Europe, and as a novelty, the first was born this 2020 African Cultural Capital, and holds the title Rabat. Tireless travelers how we are in De Salas, we aim to tell our clients and friends what to expect from these cities if they visit them this year.
Celebrating its most ancient traditions and valuing them is what is proposed Galway, the first of the Cultural Capitals of Europe. Its program brings together music, crafts, sustainable tourism, and of course exhibitions and art. Galway 2020 It will be the largest and most complex cultural festival ever held on the island of Ireland. The event will run from February 1, 2020 to January 31, 2021 to coincide with the ancient Celtic calendar.
The city of Galway will form a hub for the festival, but events will take place in the villages, towns and islands off the coast of Galway and will be based on the four seasons of Ireland's ancient Celtic calendar: Imbloc, May, Lughnasa y Halloween. The first of the seasons, Imbloc, takes place under the motto “The planting begins”, and one of the star activities will be the Druid Theater Galway Tour, exploring Irish writing, as the city is capital of the gaeltacht, an ancient Gaelic language that will be the center of some of the celebrations.
May from May to July, which is summarized in bonfires, flowers and parties with family and friends, where the May Day bonfires will be rekindled and good intentions will be established for the coming months. Lughnasa, from August to October, is named after the Celtic god Lugh, a warrior, craftsman and game inventor. And finally Halloween, the darkest season, a time of mystery, mischief and mourning that begins in November but ends in January, in this case 2021.
Located less than two hours by car from destination, the Croatian city of Rijeka is the second of the Cultural Capitals of Europe, and has prepared a varied and spectacular SCHEDULE which includes modern and contemporary art, technology, cooking and gastronomy, design and above all creativity, under the name “Port of Diversity”, not in vain was it one of the most disputed ports in the First World War.
More than 250 programs will be carried out with around 600 individual events, in which 250 organizations have been involved and are participating, with partners and artists from 40 European countries and the rest of the world. Rijeka invites the visitor to immerse themselves in its culture, through seven intertwined thematic segments: 27 neighborhoods, Times of power, Dopolavoro, Children's house, Cuisine of diversity, Lungomare Art y Sweet and salty.
The black continent will finally have its cultural representation in the world and it does so hand in hand with Rabat, which thus becomes the first of the Cultural Capitals of Africa. While it is true that the city initially chosen was Marrakech, for logistical reasons, it has been decided that Rabat will finally carry out this initiative, although in principle the program is maintained, which aims to structure, empower and create a network of developing cultural actors, of culturally independent, economically autonomous public and private ecosystems, and all of this in a sustainable manner.
Some of the events that will be announced during this first year as one of the Cultural Capitals, have been developing before, but it will be now that they will have international repercussions. As Afrifata, which establishes a creative laboratory based in Casablanca, to give young talents access to different cultural professions.
The project Creation of a Crafts Institute consists of creating a crafts institute in Senegal, directed by Aissa Dione, an internationally renowned French-Senegalese artist, designer and manufacturer. This institute aims to develop “Made in Senegal” production based on the valorization of the knowledge and raw materials present in the region.
Urban Spaces for Culture, Rwanda Arts Initiative (RAI) is a non-profit organization that aims to develop and professionalize the cultural and arts industry in Rwanda and will organize a symposium during the events of the Cultural Capital of Africa in Rabat.
Ireland, Croatia, Rabat, two continents, three cities and multiple ways of understanding culture through their traditions and their way of understanding life. Three wonderful places, three cultural capitals, which undoubtedly deserve to be visited. Don't let the coronavirus take away our desire to travel!
Gala Mora
DESALAS Lifestyle
