With less than 100 days remaining
until the official start of the European Capital of Culture 2025
Nova Gorica—Gorizia, the program for this cross-border project
was unveiled this morning in Ljubljana. The Minister of Culture
of the Republic of Slovenia, Asta Vrečko, Samo Turel, Mayor of
Nova Gorica, and Patrizia Artico, Councilor of the Municipality
of Gorizia, attended the event.
All the project partners shared vital details about the
opening ceremony, which will take place on February 8, 2025, in
Nova Gorica and Gorizia. This date coincides with Slovenia's
National Day of Culture and commemorates the anniversaries of
the death of Slovenian poet France Prešeren and the birth of
Italian poet Giuseppe Ungaretti. The full-day, dynamic, and
itinerant ceremony will begin at 9:30 AM with a cross-border
procession at the Gorizia train station. Stops are planned at
Piazza Vittoria and the Nova Gorica train station, culminating
at 4 PM with the official ceremony in Piazza Transalpina/Trg
Evrope. At 6 PM, the event will continue with a program
presentation on the lawn in front of Nova Gorica's municipal
building. The closing ceremony is set for early December 2025,
featuring a spectacular light installation project spanning both
cities.
Among the highlighted events for 2025 are the "March for
Europe," which will take place simultaneously in several
European cities divided by borders on May 1, and the 2025
edition of the "Gusti di Frontiera" festival, rebranded as
"Gusti senza Frontiere" (Flavors Without Borders). Scheduled for
September 26-28, this festival will offer gourmet delights and
art events on both the Italian and Slovenian sides of the
border.
On Friday, November 22, a handover ceremony will be held in
Bad Ischl, Austria, marking the transition from the current
European Capitals of Culture (Bad Ischl, Bod›, and Tartu) to the
future Capitals Nova Gorica-Gorizia and Chemnitz. An additional
event for the new Capital is scheduled for Tuesday, November 26,
in Brussels, coinciding with the EU Council of Ministers of
Culture.
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