An archive photo

GRODNO, 26 August (BelTA) - All of Grodno's festivals and celebrations, which attract hundreds of thousands of visitors and participants throughout the year, will be showcased during the city’s 898th anniversary celebrations on 4 and 5 September. The Grodno City Hall told BelTA about the planned events.

Visitors can learn more about Grodno’s most vibrant events at interactive themed venues in the historic center. The festive atmosphere will settle in a few days before the main celebration. As is tradition, the city and its residents will receive a gift on the eve of the anniversary. On 2 September, tennis courts will be inaugurated on Maxim Gorky Street, with an open tournament for boys and girls under 12 timed to coincide with City Day.

Honorary citizens of Grodno will be recognized on 3 September. On the same day, the city exhibition hall will open a photography exhibition titled Moments of Grodno’s Beauty, featuring works by members of the Grodno folk photo studio captured over the years at various festive events.

In recent years, the city on the Neman has seen a growing number of tourists. That is why, on 4 September, the Tourist Dialogue forum at the New Castle will kick off the celebrations.

A flower-laying ceremony will take place at the monument to Soviet soldiers and partisans who died in the Great Patriotic War in Gilibert Park, starting at 11:28, a nod to the year Grodno was founded, 1128.

A new commemorative plaque dedicated to the feature film GDR, filmed in Grodno, will be unveiled on Cinema Alley. A festive concert will be held at the Grodno Oblast Philharmonic.

The first day will conclude with an evening Lantern Festival in Gilibert Park.

On Saturday, 5 September, the main stage will be Lenin Square. The City Day celebrations and the Cheese Festival, under the joint title The Power of Traditions, will open at noon, followed by concert programs throughout the day.

This day will embody the City of Festivals concept. Sovetskaya Square will host the School Stories creative space, with nostalgic references to the city’s Graduation on the Neman and Knowledge Day. Nearby, the Harmony of Speed exhibition of Geely and BELGEE cars will be on display.

Gilibert Park will host the vegetable festival #SochnoYarkoPolezno! featuring unique vegetable exhibits from the Grodno Agrarian University, one of the National Academy of Sciences research centers, the Grodno Zonal Institute of Plant Growing, and leading greenhouse complexes from across the country.

The park will also feature an interactive play area for children and families, City of Happy Childhood, a themed zone Theatrical Grodno, and a sports and games area Energy of Your City.

Along the Shveitsarskaya Dolina [Swiss Valley], a themed area Victory. Independence. Courage will showcase how Grodno celebrates iconic holidays - Victory Day, Independence Day, and the Day of the Liberation of Grodno.

Ozheshko Street will be decorated with floral compositions for the Kvetka-FEST event. The Ethnocruise: Living Thread of Traditions venue will recall Christmas, Maslenitsa, and Easter celebrations.

Venues dedicated to the Year of the Belarusian Woman, Women’s Day, Family Day, and Mother’s Day will be set up on Sovetskaya pedestrian street, along with a crafts courtyard. Near the Trade Unions House, the themed area Grodno Is Famous for Labor will feature an intellectual local history walking quest, Code of the Future: Grodno’s Heritage. In the evening, the Youth Center will host the Palette of Streets color festival. The Festival of National Cultures will be reflected in the multicultural venue Ethnomix: Space of Cultures.

A highlight of the City Day celebrations will be a large-scale quest, an interactive game for visitors called Participant’s Passport. From 11:00 to 17:00, at two locations on Ozheshko Street and Sovetskaya Square, visitors can obtain a special Participant’s Passport. By visiting ten key festive venues and collecting unique stamps for completing tasks, players will receive souvenirs from the organizers.

The main stage on Lenin Square promises an unforgettable evening - the concert program #BestCityOnEarth. A musical gift to the residents will be a performance by popular Russian singer MOT. At 22:00, the sky will be lit up by a festive fireworks display, followed by a youth dance program.