December 15, 2018 - The New Year mood slowly catches everything around us, as well as the well-known sculptor and sailor of Boka Bay, Goran Moškov Gonzo. Preparations for the Children's New Year in Kotor are underway, and without Gonzo, it just cannot pass. As an associate of one of the organizers of the program, the NGO Karampana, Gonzo participates in the design and creation of the story to be given to the youngest citizens and visitors of Kotor within the Children's New Year, this city is being organized for a few years.
Winter for Gonzo is certainly a period of intense creativity, because he has adapted his life to a brilliant way of sailing and absorbing the energy of the sun and the sea during the summer months, in order to dedicate the winter to art in various ways. Participation in the creation of the Children's New Year is among his regular anual activities.
"December is a time of joy and creativity. And I got involved in the children's joy. Preparations for the Children's New Year are underway. Kotor as a city of children is increasing and more and more dedicated to the youngest. That's how I'm going through the whole month. Because, when it comes to doing, we are investing not only work but also leisure time to be ready in time and for the joy of the children," says TMN Gonzo, who is also Kotor's Santa Claus.
"For several years, I have the honor of being Kotor's Santa Claus. This does not only involve participation in the central ceremony and accompanying programs for the children we organize, but also the humanitarian program designed by the Kotor Tourism Organization and NGO Karampana under the auspices of Luštica Bay Company. This is a visit to the Children's and Neonatal Department of the General Hospital in Kotor and the distribution of new-year packages and gifts for newly born babies.
Children already know that in Kotor we prepare gifts for all children. But here we are especially careful and devoted, and thanks to the sponsorship of Luštica Bay, we can provide special gifts for children who will, unfortunately, spend New Year Eve out of their homes, without their families. The most beautiful times of the year they are alone, and they deserve to be treated specially. We have an entertaining program, and we go from one hospital room to another, carrying an electric sleigh, which we did a few years ago for this purpose. We have a guitar, we sing with children, we joke. To them, that means a lot," says Gonzo, Kotor's Santa Claus.
And in the streets of Kotor, visitors to the Children's New Year expect surprises. "The Municipality of Herceg Novi is going to lend us a city train, so children will have the opportunity to be in the company of Santa Claus driving the city streets. As always, it will be a lot of fun, with enough surprises. And for the central manifestation of the Children's New Year's we have created some new, fun and educational concepts," Gonzo announced with the laugh of Santa Claus.
"We will make a nice story that will be both educational and entertaining. In addition to what the kids are most interested in, and that is the arrival of Santa Claus and sharing gifts. So, this is a call for all children and their parents- come and join us on 30 December at 6pm on the Square of Arms to meet the Children's New Year in Kotor," said Gonzo.
Knowing what surprises Gonzo and his friends made in previous years, there is no reason to suspect that for this Children's New Year they are also organizing a spectacle. The greatest of all was the giant Santa Claus, who was waiting for the children in front of the main city gates, almost surmounting the walls of the Old Town.
"This was a brilliant project of the Kotor's Festival of Children's Theater and its director Petar Pejakovic. The theater production made that giant doll within the framework of a completely different story, the children's play Guliver, and we realized that we also could use it to provide the children in Kotor to receive the greatest Santa Claus they saw. It lasted for days until we modified the doll, and then children enjoyed it for days. It was worth it. For the last two years we have been inside the city walls, Kotor is organizing a New Year's program at the Square of Arms, so we have the Children's New Year on the same stage."
The New Year's program in Kotor- Rock New Year, as well as the program of the Children's New Year, primarily meet the mood and taste of Kotor's citizens. This is a good recommendation for all its guests. The town's waterfront is dressed in festive clothes and the decorations of the Old Town began a few days ago.
In just a few days, the event "From Christmas to Christmas" begins, within which the Kotor Municipality, Cultural Center Nikola Đurković, Kotor Tourism Organization and local NGOs prepare a diverse artistic, entertaining, gastronomic and tourist program. "From Christmas to Christmas" begins on 23 December and lasts until 9 January.
