Traditional marking of St. Martin (Martinovanje) is the key event in the organisation of the Association TRIGLAV, and we are proud to say that it is the biggest and most famous traditional gathering of Slovenians in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In addition to members of our Association, this year’s Martinovanje was attended by numerous guests from Slovenia and BiH. Special place among them is held by Consul of the Republic of Slovenia in Banja Luka, Mr. Aladar Belec, who gave us the idea of marking the first Martinovanje 11 years ago and that is why he takes credit for marking Martinovanje in Banja Luka at all. We had the honour to host the Mayor of Banja Luka, M. Dragoljub Davidović, who appraised the Slovenians of Banja Luka and successful work of the Association “Triglav” in his welcome address. We also had representatives of all national minorities of the Republic of Srpska with us, as well as other Slovenian associations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We hosted our friends from the Society for the Development of Voluntary Work from Novo mesto, with whom we have lived through unforgettable moments during eight years of successful cooperation.
Given that Day of St. Martin is when must turns into wine, in line with Slovenian national customs we also organized baptism of young wine. A “priest” from Novo mesto performed baptism in a very interesting manner.
The most important for Martinovanje, of course, is to socialize and joy. Our friends from the folklore society “Rudi Čajavec” from Banja Luka performed a combination of Slovenian national dances, thus “opening” the dance floor, which in a matter of minutes became filled with happy and playful faces. Care for further mood was taken by a folk-pop group from Novo mesto. It was into the late night that we enjoyed pleasant time and good party, accompanied by good wine, music and dance.
