A solemn celebration of Nauryz, the holiday of spring, renewal, and harmony, was held in Vienna with the support of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Austria, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan reports.
The festive event brought together compatriots, members of the Kazakh diaspora, representatives of the diplomatic corps, and officials from international organizations interested in the rich cultural heritage of Nauryz celebrations.
The Association of Kazakhstani Students in Austria played an active role in organizing the event. The festive atmosphere was enhanced by traditional folk music, national dishes, and games such as tug-of-war, and weightlifting, as well as colorful national costumes that conveyed the spirit of the Kazakh people.
The Nauryz celebration was also attended by 76-year-old aksakal Sarsenbai Kotyrashov from Ulytau, who arrived from Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, via Hungary. He is currently on the fourth leg of his walking trip around the world. His next route will take him through Germany to France. The Kazakh pensioner plans to cover 2,800 kilometers in 58 days.
A year earlier, Sarsenbai Ata walked through Russia and Mongolia to Beijing, the capital of China. He intends to continue his round-the-world hiking journey next year in the United States, from New York to San Francisco.
As Sarsenbai Ata noted, the main goals of his journey are to popularize Kazakhstan, its traditions and culture, to motivate people to lead a healthy lifestyle, and to demonstrate that age is not an obstacle to realizing even the most ambitious dreams.
Nauryz, celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox, is an important part of the cultural heritage of the Kazakh people and symbolizes the beginning of the new year according to the solar calendar. The holiday unites people around the values of peace, kindness, and mutual respect.
Nauryz was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009 and was officially recognized as an International Holiday by the UN General Assembly in 2010. The celebration once again highlighted the importance of respect, solidarity, and peaceful coexistence as the foundations of international cooperation and unity among peoples.
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