INTERVIEWS WITH THE LOCALS AT THE ROSARIUM
In the morning of 2nd of July, the Deep Roots journalism group went to the Rosarium Park in Kazanlak to ask the people about three topics: the Eco Festival, Erasmus+ programmes and the Rose Valley Festival.
The first thing we noticed is that there was a gap between the elders and the youngsters in these topics. Both age groups knew about the Rose Valley Festival, and all of them had taken part of the event, indirectly or directly, since it’s something that concerns the whole region. Some of them go with their school, some with their family or friends and some with organizations.
This huge event has been organized since 1903 between May and June, celebrating the blossoming of the Damask Rose. There are a lot of ways to participate in this event: from picking roses, to helping with the organization or simply enjoying the activities. The big diversity of cultural, social and sport events happen across Kazanlak and the surrounding area.
In the other hand, when we asked them about the Eco Festival, only some of the youngsters knew about it. This year the festival is going to take part from 10th of July to the 5th of August, and there will be plenty of workshops: outdoor sports, activities for children, dance or yoga lessons. Cultural events are also a trademark of this festival, such as film and video projections, and intercultural events like Language Cafes (Spanish, German Portuguese, etc). There will be plenty of activities and all of them related to ecology, such as zero waste initiatives and upcycling materials.
Lastly, when talking about Erasmus+, few knew about the different programmes that you can participate in, and some already took part in projects. A couple of people knew about the role of the Deep Roots Volunteers who are doing the EVS in Kazanlak.
This morning, during the interviews, the volunteers could understand how important some events are for the local people. It was also a good opportunity to to spread the word of the Eco Festival, since it’s not that well known, despite the fact that it has been going on for 10 years.
AUTHOR: Ricardo