The Ukrainian Family Festival began with a three-hour hiking trip, the route for which was planned by mountain guide Vitaliy Todorenko together with his wife, Maria. For the first time, the organizers chose an introductory, easy route that took into account both the participants’ physical abilities and safety—in particular, they avoided areas with increased viper activity this year by taking separate trails.
According to the participants, the route proved to be interesting and informative, and the feedback from those who completed it was enthusiastic. The organizers agreed with the guide to hold regular hikes for adults and children as part of the AKZ and Plast Slovenia programs.
The creative part of the celebration began with a moment of silence to honor the memory of the Heroes who gave their lives for Ukraine’s freedom and independence. Petro Beshta, Ukraine’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Slovenia, addressed the audience with a welcoming speech.
Valentyna Lavrynchuk opened the concert program by reciting her own poem, written to mark the 35th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence. The performances continued with Olya Kholod performing a Ukrainian medley on the piano, followed by young singer Viktoria Lopulyak and Khrystyna Kravchenko, who performed her own flute arrangements of Mykola Mozgovyi’s “Kray” and Yaroslav Kushnir’s “Bukovyna.” by Yaroslav Kushnir on the flute.
During the poetry segment of the program, poems were recited by Valentina Lavrinchuk and Ms. Natalia. Boris Kalashnikov, a guest from Ankaran, read Serhiy Zhadan’s poem “Fish,” which the audience listened to with particular excitement.
Slovenian guests also joined the event — composer and singer Janez Dolar (guitar) and Marjan Štubler, who played the tamburica, a traditional instrument of the Dolenjska region. The audience responded so warmly to the performance that the artists returned to the stage in the second half of the festival with a program of contemporary Slovenian and international hits, during which the audience danced and sang along.
A disco — "Ukrainian Zumba" set to favourite Ukrainian songs, led by certified Zumba instructor Maria Yakovenchuk — added a special atmosphere to the festival.
The celebration concluded with everyone singing and dancing together.
