Dubrova was full of play from the early morning hours of this Easter Monday, when groups of parents and children headed to the sculpture park. There they found a real paradise for children – and for the grown-ups too. In the relaxed atmosphere of fresh nature, today it was above all the children who led the game, with their parents close behind. And as never before, the park was taken over by small groups scattered around, searching for something important in order to win a reward for their efforts at the end.

“We designed the ‘Quest’ game for outdoor spaces. The children solve fun and creative puzzle tasks: they have to put a picture together or guess letters, and the solution gives them the location of the next clue,” said Iva Šverko, owner of “Žuti kišobran” from Pula. “And so on through nine tasks across this beautiful park at Dubrova. We tried to include in the tasks the sculptures themselves, which are distinctive and which children recognise visually – such as the snail, the cloud, the car, the turtle, the wheel, the cubes that form a composition. And finally, when they find the ‘bunny’s basket’ that the sculptures have playfully hidden, the quest is over. The children, together with their parents, return to the start and receive Easter eggs and a certificate for taking part in the Easter Quest,” said Šverko.

“This is the third year in a row that we have organised Easter Monday at Dubrova, and this year the weather was really on our side. I also think we have the largest number of visitors today of all the editions so far,” said Bianca Dagostin, director of the Tourist Board of the Municipality of Sveta Nedelja.

“Today’s programme even started a little early, before the planned 10 a.m., because parents and children began to gather for the first item on the programme, the Bunny’s Secret Mission through the ‘Quest’. It is a gamification of Dubrova Sculpture Park in which we have linked the sculptures into a single quest. The children look for clues and learn along the way; we make them aware of the wonderful works of art here at Dubrova, and at the end they receive chocolate eggs from our bunnies and a certificate of participation.

We also have decorations and photo spots, and a painting workshop led by our academic painter Silvija Golja. And the amphitheatre is already slowly filling up, with everyone waiting for the children’s show ‘Maca papučarica’ (Puss in Slippers) by the ‘Birikina’ association from Pula.

The show ‘Ivan u zemlji kolača’ (Ivan in the Land of Cakes) was supposed to be performed, but unfortunately the actor fell ill yesterday, so we had to change the programme at the last minute. And we managed to keep everyone happy, because ‘Maca papučarica’ is a real classic, and I believe that not only the children but also the adults with them will be delighted.

It is important to mention that the ‘Mendula’ association is also here with its stand.

As today’s programme is co-financed by the Municipality of Sveta Nedelja, we decided to treat all our visitors to a free slice of pinca from the ‘Cerovac’ agritourism,” said Dagostin.

In the freshness of the natural surroundings, on a beautiful sunny day, amid bright colours and big smiles, thanks to the freedom of movement this was not only a day for the planned programme but a day for body and soul – in the freedom of nature enriched with rare works of art, close to city life and to everyday life that is otherwise far too busy.

Text taken from 5portal: https://5portal.hr/vijesti_detalj.php?id=52933

Photo: Katarina Franković