February 3, 2019 - The 50. Mimosa Festival officially opened at the Feast of Mimosa Fish and Wine in Baosici, which brought together about 15,000 visitors to the Herceg Novi Riviera. The Igalo Institute hosted the first of the four planned costume balls, and visitors of Herceg Novi's jubilee edition of the Mimosa Festival in Baosici have the opportunity to enjoy the "Fragrances and Taste of February" Bazaar.
"I hope that the guests in Herceg Novi will feel at home during the next 50 days, as Herceg Novi always knew to welcome you and to give you many cultural and entertainment events, respecting this tradition for five decades. On this occasion, I would like to thank all the people who participated in the organization of the Mimosa Festival, especially the Baosici Local Community. I want all of you to be healthy and to enjoy Herceg Novi for the next 50 days as much as possible," said President of the Herceg Novi Municipality Stevan Katić, opening the jubilee Mimosa Festival on the plateau in front of the Cultural Center in Baosici, where the main program and solemn opening ceremony took place.
The opening ceremony and the concert of Zdravko Colic were scheduled for February 1 at the plateau in Igalo, but due to bad weather, the audience in Herceg Novi will see a rescheduled concert for February 8.
Mimosa Festival Opening Ceremony, photo by Milan Dobrilovic Saturday's vibrant and exciting program featured the majorettes, Herceg Novi Music, Đenovići Local Music, Boka Band, Old Captain, Trombones and Clowns who performed along the Riviera of Herceg Novi in Kumbor, Djenovici, and Baosici.
In addition to the locals, there were also many guests from other Montenegrin cities, but also Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Slovenia. The opening of the festival was also attended by members of the diplomatic corps from Podgorica. In Baosici were also representatives of cities within the project "New castle of the world." Head of the Office for International Cooperation of the Municipality of Herceg Novi, Simonida Kordić, said that there were representatives of Great Britain, Slovakia, Germany, Australia, Japan, and China.
Mimosa Festival Opening Ceremony, Majorettes, photo by Milan Dobrilovic By tradition, the hosts also prepared snacks. At seven locations, at 12 booths, homemakers from the NGO Fešte Baosici feast brought out about 1,200 kg of fish, and the guests dined with 1,000 liters of wine and beer. The trio jury chose the most beautiful booths - the first place was won by the "Mimozice" booth, the second by the "Old Fisherman" booth and the third by "Lanterna."
The first costume ball of the Mimosa Festival was held last night at the Institute Simo Milosevic, where the guests were the OK band, Exodus group, City music, majorettes, and Chinese performers and of course masks.
On Sunday, in front of the House of Culture in Baosici, the bazaar program "Fragrances and Taste of February" will be held. At the event, exhibitors from Boka Bay will show old crafts, homemade products, and handicrafts. A particular segment of this part of the program is the competition in the preparation of the cuttlefish risotto with a rich cultural entertainment program. There are women's associations from Baosici, Bijela, Djenovici, Herceg Novi, Risan, and Tivat, as well as representatives of the Ivan Goran Kovacic Secondary School. The program begins at 11 am in front of the House of Culture, and in case of rain, the bazaar will take place at the Serbian Red Cross resort salon.
An exciting sports program is underway: the 37th International Judo Cup Mimosa 2019 organized by the Igalo Judo Club in the Igalo Sports Center. At the pool of the Igalo Institute, the IV International Mimosa Water Polo Veteran Tournament is underway, the 20th mimosa cup in sports fishing was completed on Saturday night by proclaiming the best and awarding prizes.
On Sunday, there is another event - the first "New Castle of the World Day" on the terrace of the City Café. As part of the program, visitors will have the opportunity to enjoy performers from China, Japan, Australia, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to be presented directly or through video projections. Apart from foreign guests, Herceg Novi will also show some of its talents, such as the musicians from the Music School, the Lira women's singing, the AS dance school, and others.
New Castle of the World The idea of gathering around the world, sharing the name "Newcastle," is inspired in 1996 and represents the idea of an artistic manager, John Nicholas. He started the "Newcastle of the World United" project, which resulted in an internet site and a book under that name. The project aimed to strengthen links in the domain of friendship, culture, education, and tourism between the cities that share this name. Since 2018 Herceg Novi joined the Newcastle family and is among the more than 40 members of this association that brings together cities from all continents.
Within the jubilee, Herceg Novi is keen to present the Mimosa Festival throughout Europe, but also to show the guests of Herceg Novi the most different offer from around Europe and the world. In the coming days, visitors will be able to attend the Polish, Hungarian and Italian Days, which will, besides cultural content, including the gastro-presentation of these countries. The days of Poland are already on the 6th and 7th of February.
Detailed festival program is available at Herceg Novi Cool.
