This is the new ICHI  ( Innovation in Cultural Heritage Interpretation) programme for Bulgaria 15th - 22nd May 2011. Please circulate this information to all interested parties and complete an application form as soon as possible as places are limited.

Arch provides fully funded study visits for trainers from Scotland's cultural heritage industry to visit organisations in other European countries to exchange best practice and establish new contacts and partnerships for future cooperation. Our European Partners work in a variety of contexts including cultural tourism, ‘living heritage’, traditional construction techniques and reconstruction, tourist network development and museums. These study visits are funded by the Leonardo da Vinci programme; the costs of travel, accommodation and subsistence are covered by the grant.

ICHI ( Innovation in Cultural Heritage Interpretation) aims to develop the skills of Scottish professionals who train or coach others in the field of heritage interpretation and tourism. This will be done through a programme of exchanges with partners in 7 European countries: Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iceland, Latvia, Estonia and Slovakia. 5/6 people will be sent to each country, spending 7 - 8 days participating in workshops, site visits, hands-on activities and seminars. This is intended to be an intellectual exchange –European partners will come to Scotland, but you are not obliged to host them. Although we do hope to initiate new projects from all of our partners.

ICHI offers wonderful opportunities to network with people doing similar work in Scotland. It’s a great way to fulfill you CPD requirements and personal training plans for 2011. All of our partners welcome input from participants, they are very happy to adjust their itinerary to cover topics that are of specific interest to Scottish practitioners

Details of the programmes are available at http://www.archnetwork.co.uk/blog/ICHI2011 or email [log in to unmask].

       You can download an application form at: http://www.archnetwork.co.uk/blog/ApplicationForms

ICHI ( Innovation in Cultural Heritage Interpretation) Bulgaria

CENTRAL STARA PLANINA REGION - BULGARIA

15 – 22 May 2011

This project will be hosted by the Stara Planina Regional Tourist Association (RTA) who were established in 1996. The RTA co-ordinate the activities of 12 local tourist organisations in order to create, develop and promote an ‘attractive tourist product’. They bring together all of the diverse groups involved in heritage management and tourism from hotel owners to museum curators to develop a holistic plan for their area.

The Bulgarian programme will focus upon the linking of communities through their cultural heritage and the positive effects of helping communities analyse and interpret their own cultural heritage. The group will visit a series of events that the Regional Tourist Board have helped establish and publicise, such as the carnival in Gabrovo, which they have linked in with the local Museum of Humour and Satire. This way, the group will be able to compare the cultural heritage of this remote, mountainous region with that of their own regions of Scotland as well as witnessing the steps that the Stara Planina has taken to link them up.

Day 1 (15 May 2011 – Sunday)

Flight to Sofia; Sofia Accommodation and overnight in Hemus Hotel (3 stars) http://www.hemushotels.com/rooms.html

Day 2 (16 May 2011 – Monday)

Breakfast in the hotel

Meeting in the National Politechnological Museum

http://www.polytechnicmuseum.org/index.php?lang=en

Meetings with the curators and a discussion on their work with different target groups;

Demonstrations of some attractions in the Museum

A short walk for sightseeing in the centre of Sofia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sofia free time for lunch

Drive to the town of Hissar

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hisarya,_Bulgaria

and a stop by the Thracian Tomb near the village of Starosel

The key temple within the Thracian cult complex of Starosel was excavated in the so-called Chetinyova Mound in 2000. The excavations were carried out by the team of the prominent Bulgarian archaeologist Dr Georgi Kitov (1943 – 2008) who made some of Bulgaria’s most remarkable discoveries – the king Teres’ golden mask is the most sensational of them. The enormous temple, called by the archaeologists the Temple of the Immortal Thracian Kings, is the largest underground temple found in the Balkans. The wall of the temple is built of over 6,000 huge stone blocks weighing up to 500 kilograms each.

Drive to Kazanlak town in the Valley of Roses and Thracian Kings

http://www.tourism.kazanlak.bg/en/index.html

Accommodation for 2 nights in a hotel in Kazanlak; Dinner and overnight

Day 3 (17.05. 2011 - Tuesday)

Breakfast in the hotel

Visit to Thracian Tomb listed in UNESCO World Heritage list; Discovered in 1944 in a burial mound at the northeast end of the town, the ancient tomb owes its world recognition to the unique mural paintings, adorning the passage way. and the dome chamber. These are some of the best-preserved masterpieces of the early Hellenic era.

There are 1500 mounds in the Kazanlak Valley and over twenty revealed Thracian temples and tombs. All of them represent the great Thracian culture but the following are the most remarkable of all – the famous Kazanlak Tomb and the tombs situated on the north of the town, on the way to the Shipka Pass

Visit to the Ethnographic Complex Kulata to feel the traditional atmosphere of the old Kazanlak houses. The beautiful white house in the northern part of the little square and the neatly arranged houses and craftsmen’ workshops around it, add a touch of old-time cosiness to this part of the town, representative of the Bulgarian national revival period. The hosts would welcome you with hospitality and a glass of rose liquor and rose jam and would tell you about the past and present of Kazanlak. Free time for lunch

In the afternoon - A meeting with museum curators in Iskra History Museum – discussions on the topics of curators’ tasks and their interpretation work with different target groups

Founded on June 29th, 1901, Iskra Historical Museum is one of the oldest, richest and best-known regional museums in Bulgaria. More than 50 000 original exhibits are kept in it and only the numismatic collection contains over 10 000 different pieces. Since 1981 it has been located in a new, modern and specially accommodated building, together with the Art Gallery.

The finds of the Thracian town of Seuthopolis are shown in three exhibition halls. The museum studies, manages and promotes the historical heritage of the Kazanlak region.

Optional – a visit to the Tourist Information Centre of Kazanlak

. Free time in Kazanlak; Dinner and overnight.

Day 4 (18.05. 2011 - Wednesday)

Breakfast in the hotel; Drive to Tryavna via Shipka Pass and Gabrovo

On the way – stop for a visit to Golyama Kosmatka Thracian Tomb (12 km to the north of Kazanlak)

The temple inside the “Golyama Kosmatka” Mound was built during the second half of the 5th century BC. The preserved color ornaments on the wings of the marble gate of the chamber symbolize the cardinal directions of the world and the rotation of time according to the Thracian beliefs. The magnificent golden wreath of the ruler, an exquisite wine goblet, knee-pieces and a helmet with plastic ornamentation, appliques for riding and other valuable artifacts have been found in the tomb.

In 2004 in the “Golyama Kosmatka” a mound with monumental temple was discovered, with an entrance from the south, built during the second half of the 5th century BC.

Visit to Rozhdestvo Hristovo (Birth of Christ) Memorial Church in Shipka Town The church, known as the Church at the Shipka Monastery, was built between 1886 and 1902 to commemorate the Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Moldovan and Finnish soldiers and officers, and Bulgarian volunteers fallen in the Battles of the Shipka Pass during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. The domed church was designed and built in the style and tradition of the Russian Orthodox Churches of the period. The domes are gold-plated. There are three altars, dedicated to The Birth of Christ, St. Alexander Nevski, St. Nicholas the Wondermaker. The iconostasis was made in Saint Petersburg and the icons were painted by Russian monks from the “St. Pantheleimon” Monastery. Along with the religious scenes, the paintings depict historical figures and scenes related to the history of Bulgaria and Russia. There are 17 bells in the belfry, the biggest of which weighs nearly 12 tons.

Crossing the Shipka Pass; On the peak of St. Nikola (Sveti Nikola) – visit to the Monument of Liberty - part of Shipka – Buzludzha National Park Museum

Opened to the public on 26 August 1934, the monument resembles a medieval Bulgarian tower. It is 31.5 m in height and 890 steps lead to it. A huge bronze lion, symbol of the Bulgarian state, stands proudly above the central entrance from the northern side. The names of Shipka, Sheynovo and Stara Zagora are inscribed on the other three sides – these were the battle fields where the Bulgarian volunteer soldiers fought against the Turkish army. The remains of the warriors who had died in the defence of Shipka, are treasured on the g round floor, in a marble sarcophagus placed on the figures of four lying lions. The stone figures of a Russian soldier and a Bulgarian volunteer stand as an eternal guard of honour in front of the sarcophagus. The statue of Nike, the ancient Greek goddess of victory, is set on the first floor. The top of the monument offers a marvelous panoramic view of the surrounding area with the restored batteries, trenches, positions, monuments and common graves which keep the memory of the feats of arms and self-sacrifice of the heroes of Shipka.

Meeting with the stuff and the Director of Shipka – Buzludzha Park Museum; discussion on the topics of museum exhibitions’ interpretation and the work with children

Arrival in Tryavna town in the evening. Accommodation for 2 nights in a hotel

Dinner and overnight in Tryavna

Day 5 (19.05. 2011 – Thursday)

Breakfast in the hotel

Visits to two of the museums in Tryavna

http://www.tryavna.bg/en/index.php?culture/museum - the Icon painting

museum and the Museum of woodcarving; craftsman’ workshops demonstration of icon painting and woodcarving; a meeting with Museum’s curators in the Schkoloto Museum (The Old School) Free time for lunch

In the afternoon - travel to Gorna Oryahovitsa and a visit of town’s History Museum http://www.museumsbg.com/search/GornaOryahovitsaHM-e.html - a meeting with the museum curators

Travel to Dryanovo town and Dryanovo Monastery – a visit to the Monastery.

In the evening – travel back to Tryavna; dinner and overnight

Day 6 (20.05. 2011 - Friday)

Breakfast in the hotel; Travel to Gabrovo

Visit to the House of Humor and Satire in Gabrovo http://www.humorhouse.bg/engl/englindex.html

Meeting with Museum curators and a discussion on the role of the House of Humour in the annual Gabrovo Carnival; collaboration with other tourism actors in the area

Free time in the centre of Gabrovo, lunch Travel to Etara Architectural and Ethnographic

Complex http://www.etar.org/index-en.htm;accommodation for 2 nights in the hotel Visit to the Museum complex and participation in some of the activities organized in the museum.

Meeting with museum curators in Etara

Dinner in Etara; Overnight

Day 7 (21.05. 2011 – Saturday)

Breakfast in the hotel

A visit to the nearby Sokolski Monastery ( 4 km. from Etara Museum

Travel to Gabrovo - visit of National Museum of Education

http://nmo.hit.bg/galery.html and free time for lunch, free time in the town’s centre

In the late afternoon attendance at the Gabrovo annual festiaval

http://www.trivago.co.uk/gabrowo-600/events--festivals/---1219306/review-o366796

Participants are kindly asked to take their national costumes in order to wear them whilst taking part in the Carnival proccession!!

After the Carnival - dinner in Gabrovo; back to Etara Museum Complex and overnight.

Day 8 (22.05. 2011 - Sunday)

Breakfast in the hotel

Travel to Sofia Airport.

Archnetwork

Tel: 01764 670653

Fax: 01764 679002

Address: 1st Floor Davidson House, Drummond Street, Comrie, Perthshire, Scotland PH6 2DW