Novruz Holiday was celebrated in the capital of Serbia

On 19 March 2016, an event dedicated to the International Novruz Day in was held in Tashmaydan Park of Belgrade. It was organized by Azerbaijan Cultural Center in Belgrade with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Republic of Serbia. Ms. Zarifa Alizada, the director of Azerbaijan Cultural Center, stated in her opening address that the Novruz Holiday is a symbol of spring’s coming and natural revival, abundance and favoring in the Orient. She also highlighted that Novruz was included to the list of intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO in 2009 upon the initiative of Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva, President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation. In 2010 UN General Assembly declared 21 March as the International Novruz Day. The celebration continued with the “yally” dance around the fire – one of the symbols of Novruz, in the performance of children dressed in national clothes. During the event, Ms. Natasha Jovic, a prominent Serbian opera singer performed “Bugün ayın üçüdür” (“Today is the third day of the month”) song, while Ms. Ivana Mundja sang “Sarı Gəlin” (“The Blonde Bride”) and “Lachin” (“Falcon”) ballads. Children of our compatriots in Belgrade danced “Naz eləmə”, “Uzundərə” and “Nəlbəki” and performed “Şən Azərbaycan” (“Merry Azerbaijan”) song of Polad Bulbuloghlu. Their performance raised great interest of Belgrade inhabitants and guests. Finally, the event visitors were invited to the table decorated by samani and colored eggs to taste Azerbaijani sweets like shakarbura, pakhlava and goghal.