The 9th Sinj Village Fair, organized by the Sinj Tourist Board with the support of the City of Sinj, Split-Dalmatia County and the Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Craft, was successfully held.
More than 35 exhibitors participated in the three days of the fair, ranging from renowned producers of prosciutto, cheese, honey, soparnik, and indigenous old crafts such as folk costumes, opanaks, peka, copper, garden tools and other traditional wooden handicrafts.
The 9th Sinj Village Fair was opened by the mayor of Sinj Kristina Križanac, and the welcoming words were spoken by the director of the Tourist Board of Sinj, Monika Vrgoč.
The entertainment part of the program included the Sinj majorettes whose performances, choreography and appearances amplify every event they attend. The event also included the Association for the Preservation of the Cetina Heritage, KUD Vrilo – Obrovac Sinjski, the Association of Rera and Gusla from Otok with the traditional Rera and HKUD Peruća from Hrvace whose members performed the traditional folk dancing of Inland Dalmatia. The members of these associations are faithful to the guardians of these traditions and customs that nurture the song and dance of Inland Dalmatia, which is on the list of the non-material cultural heritage of the Republic of Croatia. This year’s fair was also visited by the well-known ethnomusicologist, musician and collector of the Croatian traditional folkloric treasures Joško Ćaleet, who pointed to the value of presenting and performing these traditional songs and dances.
This year’s novelties were workshops of traditional crafts. In order to preserve these traditions and keep them from oblivion, the first evening of the fair introduced a workshop for making clay pots under the guidance of master Ivan Knezovic. Namely, the traditional pottery of Potravlje has had the status of the immaterial cultural property since 2013, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia has nominated it for UNESCO protection, and the Tourist Board of Sinj, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, annually organizes a well-attended educational workshop each year. There were workshops of almost forgotten craftsmanship, whose presentation was led by Ljiljana Vojković, while Jozo Bešlić presented wooden tools.
Visitors were also able to find out about the sports activities of AirSoft Club Ghost Division in Sinj, but also enjoy the sweet honey by OPG Mravak and Sinj fry bread from the Old Crafts Association. In the music part of the program, local attraction Ljuta Kuća performed.
In the final evening of the fair, all the visitors could taste the most famous dishes and wines of the Cetina region, such as arambaša, uštipak, and peka bread prepared by members of the newly established KUD Cetina, while the hrvaština and maraština was provided by OPG Mažurin.
Despite the bad weather conditions, the fair was visited by over 800 visitors. Members of KUD Cetina and the SRMA Association distributed the food.
See you next year at the 10th anniversary of the Sinj Village Fair!
