The second field trip within the Monumental9project focused on discovering monumental landscapes of Brezovica (Kosovo*), Krushevo (North Macedonia) and Nish (Serbia). The excursion was organised from 28th July to 1st August 2020. Young bloggers, greeters and touristic workers who had the opportunity to visit different parts of the cultural heritage sites such as Sharr Mountains Partisan Unit in Brezovica, the Makedonium (Ilinden) in Krushevo and Bubanj memorial park in Nish.
The journey began with the visit of the Monument to the Sharri Mountains Partisan Unit in Brezovica, Kosovo*. This memorial commemorates the soldiers and veterans of Sharr Mountain Partisan Detachments, who fought and struggled in this region during People’s Liberation Struggle (1941-1945) against fascist occupation and oppression. The region of Brezovica is inhabited by different ethnic groups, such as Albanians, Bosniaks, Gorani, Serbs, Torbeshi, Macedonians and Turkish, speaking different languages, practicing different religions and having specific customs. Apart from this monument, the participants had the opportunity to visit the Brezovica ski center and the hiking routes. With ski slopes catering for all different skill levels, Brezovica offers skiing at an altitude of 2500 meters above sea level. They aslo had the possibility to taste the local food.
The second part of the excursion continued in Nord Macedonia exploring the city of Krushevo and its monuments. The participants here visited the monument called Makedonium (Ilinden) dedicated to all the fighters and revolutionaries who participated in the Ilinden uprising of 1903, as well as soldiers-partisans of the Macedonia National Liberation Struggle 1941-1944. Furthermore, they visited the foundry which has the original tools used for casting bullets during the Ilinden uprising. In the center of the city there is the stunning church “Saint Nikola” which during the uprising as well as a large part of the central part of the city was burned and destroyed. Some few hundred meters down the street there is the gallery “Martinoski”, founded in 1968. It has several dozen works (drawings, oils, graphics) from several periods in the work of art of Martinoski. Back in the days, Martinoski was fascinated by the figure of his mother, so that was why he had painted so many portraits of her. The last visit for that day was the old school of Krushevo. The local and authentic dishes in the area were also part of this discovering experience.
The visit to this small yet important city in North Macedonia offered the possibility to visit the “Tose Proeski Memorial House”. The Macedonian best singer who died in a car crash was from Krushevo. This building with all his personal belongings is telling his life from early age, how he grew up, how he started his music career, how he conquered the Balkan, his humanitarian participation and all the awards that he had. The part of the tour in Krushevo ended with stunning sunset at the Krushevo lake.
The field trip continued to Nish, Serbia with the visit to Bubanj memorial complex. During the Second World War, from February 1942 to September 1944, the German Nazis shot at Bubanj, a hill in Niš, more than 10,000 inhabitants of Niš and Southeastern Serbia. This killing field was originally marked with a memorial pyramid in 1950 and a new monumental monument in memory of the victims, "Three Fists", the work of the Croatian sculptor Ivan Sabolić, was inaugurated on October 14, 1963.
After Bubanj Memorial Park, the tour continued to the Red Cross concentration camp - memorial complex "12th February". The Red Cross concentration camp was one of the German concentration camps in the territory of Serbia. It was founded in 1941, first as a temporary camp for prisoners of war of the Yugoslav Royal Army, and later for the rest of the Serbian, Roma and Jewish population many of whom were women and children. It is estimated that more than 30,000 people were detained in this concentration camp, while more than 10,000 of them were shot at Bubanj.
This adventure continued to the symbol of the city - the Fortress of Nish. This Fortress has 4 main and 4 side gates. However, the most famous and most visited place in the Fortress is the Summer Stage, where national film festival, international Nishville Jazz Festival and other cultural events are organized every summer.
Only 10 kilometers away from downtown Nish, Nishka Banja, is a place for relaxation with 5 springs of healing hot water and natural mineral mud. This is considered as one of the most visited spas in Serbia. Numerous tours of young nature lovers, who decide to walk, hike or sport free climbing on the slopes of the gorges of Jelašnica and Sićevo, testify that Nishka Banja is also a meeting place for different generations.
The project is implemented by the Local Democracy Agency Montenegro along with partners: LDA Mostar, LDA Kosovo, LDA Zavidovici, LDA Prijedor, LDA Knjazevac, LDA Subotica & ALDA Skopje and draws on the cultural heritage monuments dedicated to WWII in the Western Balkans. The main objective is to create preconditions for new regional tourism products development while increasing youth employ ability and income generating activities through engaging micro-localities across the region. The project is supported by Regional Cooperation Council through the Tourism Development and Promotion Project's Grant Programme and funded by European Union.