''St. George the Victorious Choir'' at the Municipal Youth House with conductor Mina Vlaykova participated in the 13th edition of the International Choir Festival "Light of Light" in Giurgiu, Romania.

The  choristers from Ruse performed in front of a full hall. The initiators and drivers of the festival are prof. Carmen and Virgil Petsanka, with the active support of the Municipality of Giurgiu, the Ministry of Culture and the Ion Vinea Cultural Centre, as well as the assistance of the Director of the Euroregion Danubius Association, Lili Gancheva.

The Academic Choir "Sexaginta Prista" at the University of Ruse "Angel Kanchev" with conductor Plamen Georgiev and pianist Ina Stoykova also performed on stage in Giurgiu.

The good acoustics and atmosphere supported the professional performances of the 12 groups of singers from Romania, Bulgaria and Italy. The performance lasted more than 4 hours.
 

Due to the active policy of improving the children's environment and respecting their rights and interests, the Municipality of Ruse was awarded the "Golden Apple" Award 2023 of the National Network for Children. The award ceremony took place in Sofia, and the award in the "Municipalities" category was presented to the Deputy Mayor Encho Enchev and the director of the "Humanitarian Activities" Directorate Katia Petrova.

Provision of financial assistance for parents, regular meetings of the Commission for the Child and accessible infrastructure are only some of the criteria that have been considered by the National Network for Children. Every two months, the Municipality of Ruse holds a meeting of the Committee for the Child. Various good practices and services are presented there to raise the awareness of society, parents and teams from institutions related to protecting the rights and interests of children.

The municipality has adopted an ordinance according to which, from 2021, one-time assistance of BGN 400 is provided to twins, and to a second born baby - BGN 150. One-time assistance of up to BGN 1,000 is also granted to all single parents who are raising a child with a disability, or of parents with a disability, for the education of the children. Financial resources in the amount of BGN 300 are also allocated for children placed in foster families, to provide recreation and rest.

The only crisis center in the country for unaccompanied children of foreign citizens and refugee children at risk, which offers 24-hour care, was launched in the Municipality of Ruse. Its opening was necessary as a result of the refugee wave through the Danube Bridge checkpoint and the increased attempts to illegally traffic unaccompanied children, citizens of Afghanistan, Syria, etc. The capacity of the center is 16 children with a staff of 12 employees. In November 2022, a training meeting was also held to upgrade the skills of working with young people of all participants in the child protection process, with a priority on unaccompanied foreign national children at risk of trafficking and abuse.

Every year, Ruse also celebrates November 20 - the World Day of the UN Convention on the Child, when their rights and interests are explained, and the opportunities for active inclusion and participation in society.

For the first time in the history of canoe-kayak marathon races the five best racers in the world will gather in Ruse.
 

This year, the Canoe-Kayak Marathon World Cup will be held at the dam in Lipnik Lesopark and is jointly organized by the Municipality of Ruse, the Bulgarian Canoe-Kayak Federation and the World Canoe-Kayak Federation.

The biggest current names in the discipline will meet - Manuel Garrido (Spain), Marton Kover (Hungary), Andy Birkitt (Republic of South Africa), Mads Pedersen (Denmark) and Matthew Finn (Republic of South Africa). In the women's category, the champions Wanda Kisli (Hungary) and Lyudmila Babak (Ukraine) are expected to perform.

The event will feature men's and women's canoe and kayak short and long distance events, as well as junior and senior events.

The short distance races will be held on June 3 over 3.4 kilometers, with two portages (a distance of 200 m in which the competitors run their boats in front of the crowd), and long distances for juniors (19 kilometers) and seniors (25 kilometers) will be held on June 4.

Bulgaria will participate in the competition with four juniors and girls and five men and women.

The characteristic of the canoe-kayak marathon is that, in addition to paddling, it also involves taking out the canoe or kayak and running a portage (minimum 80 m) after each lap. The shortest course is 3.4 km and the longest is 36 km.

The official opening of the event will be on June 2 at 7 p.m. in Ruse. For this purpose, a special stage will be built in front of the Courthouse, and residents and guests of the city will be able to get to know the participating parties.

On both race days, entrance to the spectator stands in Lesopark Lipnik will be completely free, and citizens are urged to follow the parking instructions.

On June 3 and 4, the Municipality of Ruse has also provided additional courses on the Ruse-Nikolovo route and back, with the aim of as many people as possible visiting the world race.

You can see more about the event here.

On June 4 /Sunday/ from 9:00 a.m. in the Youth Park, the 53rd edition of the Traditional Assembly "Zlatnata Gadulka", organized by the Municipality of Ruse, will begin.

Every year, hundreds of performers - dance and singing ensembles, instrumentalists, singers, storytellers and folk customs groups - attract numerous admirers and connoisseurs of folklore and folk art to the Ruse stage.

This year,  "Zlatnata Gadulka" folklore gathering will present nearly 600 participants - individual performers, singing, dancing and instrumental ensembles from the city of Ruse and the regions of Ruse, Sofia, Razgrad, Targovishte, Silistra, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo and Gabrovo.

Special guests at the assembly will be performers and ensembles from the Bulgarian communities in the town of Taraklia - Moldova and from Izvoarele, Romania, and the guest performer of the traditional lunch concert within the assembly is the master of folk song loved by all - the folk singer Ilia Lukov.

A professional jury will have the difficult task of announcing both the winner of the prestigious "Zlatnata Gadulka" prize for 2023, as well as the award winners in the remaining 7 categories - 4 collective and 3 individual. The performances will be judged by the director of the Regional History Museum Prof. Dr. Nikolay Nenov, the ethnomusicologist from the BAS Prof. Dr. Gorica Naidenova, the ethnomusicologist Lyudmila Grigorova and the choreographer Bogdan Donev.

An attractive and colorful highlight in the program of the assembly will be the traditional "Street of Crafts", organized annually by the Danube Association of Craftsmen in Ruse.

The host of the program will be the musical artist Daniel Spasov.

The 9th edition of the "Retro Car Parade Ruse 2023" will be opened on June 3 in the Youth Park. The event is organized by the Municipal Foundation "Ruse - City of Free Spirit" and the Auto-Moto Club "RUSCHUK", and will bring together car owners from Bulgaria and Romania.

The assembly point will be at 9:30 am at the roundabout at the Alyosha Monument, where cars and motorcycles will be directed to the parking area. From 10am on ''Peristeri'' Alley will be the official opening, where classic car enthusiasts will have the opportunity to view and take photos with the unique vehicles.
The organizers have prepared a rich accompanying program with performances by Bobby Golemanov - vocals, Dian Maksimov - guitar and Evgeni Markov - guitar. Cheerleading group "Extreme" at the Municipal Youth Home with directors Veronika Milanova and Petya Boneva and Children's vocal group "Sun" at the Municipal Children's Center for Culture and Art with director Dr. Natalia Konstantinova will take care of the emotions in the renovated Danube Park. Thanks to the partnership with "BDZ - Passenger Carriages" Ltd, all participants in the "Vintage Car Parade Ruse 2023" will have the opportunity to visit the Museum of Transport.

Art and vintage cars will be brought together again through workshops for children. ''The Children's Palace'' Educational Center will entertain the little ones. With special constructors and a rich imagination they will have the opportunity to invent different vehicles.

Cars and motorcycles participating in the parade will be entered into a race for various prizes. In addition to the traditional gifts for everyone, they will also compete for four unique prizes made especially for them by a sculptor from Ruse:

- Award of the Mayor of Ruse Municipality

- Award of the Municipal Foundation "Ruse - City of Free Spirit"

- Award of the Auto-Moto Club "RUSSCHUK"

- Audience Award

The organizers have also provided other prizes and the winners will be determined by a jury of experts in the field of vintage cars.

 "Vintage Cars and Motorcycles Parade" in Ruse is realized with the support of Bader Bulgaria KD, Toplofikacija Ruse , Dominex PRO Ltd, EN ER GI SOFT Ltd, Construction Equipment Ltd, BDZ - Passenger Transport Ltd, Danube Dredging Fleet - JSC, Auto Hit Ltd, Veco Oil Ltd, Elina 97 Ltd, Eurodom Furniture Factory, Balkanzinc JSC, VITTE Automotive Bulgaria Ltd, Vepa 1 Ltd, Freight Transport JSC, Is Commerce Ltd, Profimarket JSC, Triano Ruse Ltd, Ecogalvanic Ruse Ltd, Oiroshped JSC, Nira Mark Ltd, Krasi Autoservice Ltd, Omonia Ltd. The Academic Club "Four Wheels" at RU "Angel Kanchev", ME "Ruse Art",Specialized unit "Control, security, public order and security", ME "Communal Activities", ME "Parkstroy", "Traffic Police" at the Regional Police Department - Ruse participate in the realization of the event.

The organizers appeal to the citizens of Ruse and the guests of the city to be patient and careful, as well as to follow all safety instructions that will be given by the stewards and the organizers of the event.