Hey, to the fire, to the water... Wreaths in Turnicki are behind us [PHOTOS]

This year, the organizers chose a new location because of its advantages: a vast area, parking space for over a hundred cars and easy access to a small beach at Wiara. The rest depended on the organizers and participants of the festival, of whom almost a thousand signed up. Someone who arrived at “Wianki” before noon might have thought that nothing was happening here. Somewhere, far away, one group was milling around, another even further away, and at the edge of the meadow, a dozen or so people surrounded a herbalist dressed in white, Aleksandra Ryzner from Leszczawka, who was conducting herbal workshops. Only a glance at the event plan attached to the symbolic gate allowed one to orient themselves to the festival’s topography. Not far away, a little to the side, was the zone for the youngest. A group of children aged two and up were impatient to enter the mysterious, winding path of a great natural adventure. There, hidden among the bushes, educational tasks awaited them, for completing which they received a ribbon. During this time, participants of the trips – on foot, by bike and by coach – were visiting the nearby and distant areas, and the owners of small catering points and stands with regional souvenirs and publications were waiting for the festival goers. By the Wiar River, wicker prepared for wickerwork workshops, which were led by Jacek Wydrzyński for those willing, was soaking in a bathtub. Those interested in meetings with scientists and writers occupied deckchairs under the “Scena na wozie” (Scene on the cart). The star was Stanisław Kryciński, an expert on the Bieszczady Mountains and the Przemyskie Foothills, a popular writer, author of many guides and publications, who came to the festival with his latest book “Przemyskie Foothills. The Maimed Borderland”. On Saturday, everyone could find something for themselves here. There was plenty to choose from: ceramics workshops, watercolour painting, yoga, learning conscious communication that allows you to avoid aggression, woodcarving and the obligatory learning of wreath weaving. There was also a wonderfully arranged gallery where the works and portfolios of students from the Jarosław Fine Arts High School were exhibited.

An ambitious undertaking

– says Kamil Zarański, the spiritus movens of this undertaking, on behalf of the organizers.

– he adds.

– sums up K. Zarański.

The culminating wreath ceremony

I guess no festival can take place without music. This year, the following performed at Wiar: a folk band from Kupiatycze, the band Widymo, which has been cultivating traditional borderland songs for over twenty years, and the folk-punk band "Radykalna Wieś". However, everyone was waiting for the most important part of the program - the throwing of wreaths. When the sun hid behind the hills, a crowd gathered in front of the stage and the iconic ritual of "Wianki" began. First, Katarzyna Jackowska-Enemuo with the band "Afterparty" consisting of Józef Enemuo, Jonasz Hałas and Kuba Hałas taught an old ritual song, the refrain of which was "Hej na ognia, na wody, na brzydną pogoda". Then, Katarzyna with her inseparable accordion led a singing, colorful procession through a magic gate at Wiar. When she entered the water, the crowd followed her and at a given signal, the wreaths thrown into the river flowed into the distance. It is worth noting that during the rituals, it was not only women and girls who got rid of wreaths. Men also threw them, which is probably a sign of the times. The evening was concluded by "Tołhaje", a band that can summon the spirits of the Carpathians and the borderland with their sound. However, that was not the end, because on Sunday, those interested went with Tomasz Król on a trip to nearby Rybotycze to find out what the place, which was once a town, looked like in the past. At the end, the organizers announced that you can now download the Trawell - Wianki 2025 field game application and take part in it, which they strongly encouraged. The meadows became empty and the festival ended. It should also be added that it was co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, as part of the National Center for Culture program: EtnoPolska. Edition 2025.

JS