Enchanting Indonesia Night in Vratsa, Montana & Sofia

Monday-Wednesday, 10-12 November 2008

The beauty of Indonesian dances performed by dancers sent by the Indonesian Department of Culture and Tourism enchanted audiences in three cities in Bulgaria, Vratsa, Montana & Sofia, three days in a row. The event called "Enchanting Indonesia Night" took place in Vratsa on 10 November, Montana 11 November, and in the National Palace of Culture in Sofia on 12 November 2008.

The show in Vratsa was held in the Municipality Hall, in cooperation with the Municipality of Vratsa, and attended by Ambassador Inkiriwang and Mrs. Fely Rose Inkiriwang; Mayor  Mr. Totyu Mladenov; Deputy Mayor Mrs. Silvia Draycheva, and businesspeople and citizens of the Municipality. In Montana, Enchanting Indonesia Night was held in the Municipal Youth Home, in cooperation with the Municipallity. Ambassador Inkiriwang, Mrs. Fely Rose Inkiriwang, Mayor Mr. Zlatko Zhivkov and his daughter were seen among the audience comprising businesspeople and the citizens of Montana. The peak of the Enchanting Indonesia Night in Sofia was attended by 300 audiences, including Deputy Minister of Culture, Mr. Yavor Milushev, ambassadors and members of diplomatic community in Sofia , government officials, and representatives from Sofia University, National Academy of Arts, business people,mass media, and friends of Indonesia. EBF Ikonomiya TV that covered the event also did an interview with Ambassador Inkiriwang.

The Indonesian dancers entertained the audience with 8 Indonesian dances, Jejer, Merak, Glipang, Bajidor Kahot, Nandak Ganjen, Piring, Lenggang Nyai and the dance of 1,000 hands, the Saman. The Pesona Mawar Nusantara (Enchanting Rose of the Archipelago) that comprises mostly of Bulgarian students and Ms. Gabrielle Inkiriwang, the Ambassador's daughter, also performed in the show in Sofia and danced 2 Indonesian dances, Puspita and Tak Tong Tong.

 Mayors of Vratsa and Montana expressed their appreciation for the event held in their respective municipalities. Both mayors stated that Enchanting Indonesia Night has enabled their citizens to know more about Indonesia through culture. Mayor Zhivkov of Montana told the audience in Montana his visit to the city of Solo in Indonesia to attend the Conference of World Heritage Cities recently and the good impression that he had after visiting Indonesia. In Sofia, Deputy Minister Milushev also expressed his appreciation. He stated that Enchanting Indonesia Night has helped to contribute in the intercultural dialogue in Bulgaria. Furthermore, he added that 2008 is the Year of Intercultural Dialogue in the European Union. Ambassador Inkiriwang in the three occasions stated that the visit of the Indonesian dance ensemble was the follow-up to the meeting between the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Bulgaria, H.E. Prof. Stefan Danailov and the Minister for Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia, H.E. Mr. Jero Wacik on 21 March 2008. The visit of the Indonesian dance ensemble was a start of even bigger future cultural visits from Indonesia in 2009, he added.