In a year’s time, the Land of Hayracks visited by as many as 20,000 people

From 21 to 28 December, the hayracks will be decked out with festive lights

Have you already visited the Land of Hayracks? Foto: Goran Rovan

The Land of Hayracks is the first open-air museum to be found in the world, and has in more than a year received over 20,000 visitors from Slovenia and other parts of the world.

"Soon after the museum’s opening we had about 3,500 visitors in just one day," said Ms Urša Repše, the director of the Land of Hayracks in Šentrupert in the Dolenjska region, where preparations are under way for a "great spectacle". Today, the Land of Hayracks will become the magical Land of Hayracks, which will be gleaming for eight days.
"Our project is aimed at offering the municipality and its people an opportunity for regional development. According to a poll conducted by the municipality, the inhabitants are becoming more aware of the fact that our places show the greatest potential for tourism," said Mr Rupert Gole, the mayor of the Municipality of Šentrupert, adding: "Thus, the Land of Hayracks has become a generator of the Mirna Valley."
Seven couples married under a hayrack
However, the Land of Hayracks is not merely an excellent open-air museum (which is, in fact, the first such museum to be found in the world), but also a great place where numerous education courses have already run, and various events, lectures and seminars have been held. Moreover, a broad range of activities aimed at reaching various target groups (from busy businesspeople to people employed in various companies) also includes wedding ceremonies. So far, seven couples married in the Land of Hayracks.
Besides, in the Land of Hayracks there are organised technical, cultural and natural science days for schoolchildren. "It’s important that our children adopt an attitude towards timber as well as natural and cultural heritage at an early age, thus we place a great emphasis on educational activities of this kind," added Mr Gole, who would like a hayrack to become a symbol of Slovenia. "A hayrack is the best evidence that our ancestors had great knowledge which is, unfortunately, being increasingly buried. With the projects like our Land of Hayracks we’ll preserve what is truly ours, of the Slovenes."
Nevertheless, it is not only during the warmest period of the year when the Land of Hayracks looks so special and the visitors take a walk amid the hayracks, admiring the beautiful exhibits. The Land of Hayracks lives and breathes during each period of the year. Thus, during the festive days, it will experience a light spectacle and become the magical Land of Hayracks.
A. P. J., translated by D. M.