Zenica discusses how to preserve and enhance Čimburijada, a spring gathering with a century-old tradition

(Patria) - How to preserve Čimburijada, as Zenica's most important and recognizable tradition, but also to enhance it in the modern era, is one of the issues that has been worked on for years.

This was also the focus of the panel discussion "Spring Gathering – Zenica's Čimburijada: Between Culture and Tourism" held at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Zenica, where representatives of the academic community, institutions, and the local community discussed this and numerous other issues ahead of this year's first day of spring.

Although records of Čimburijada in Zenica speak of its century-old tradition, in 2024, this traditional welcoming of spring on the banks of the Bosna River has entered a new phase. Its inclusion on the Intangible Cultural Heritage List of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina also requires answers to new questions, which was the backbone of the panel discussion held at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Zenica (UNZE).

"How to protect it institutionally, then how to enrich its additional content, I am primarily talking about the manifestation part, how to make it more attractive in the field of tourism," asks Alen Šabanović, senior assistant at the Faculty of Philosophy of UNZE.

In addition to the already traditional activities such as the Zenica regatta, there are also accompanying activities such as the Little Čimburijada for children in Zenica kindergartens, which is spearheaded by the Forum of Citizens of Zenica.

"We don't want to interfere too much with that traditional act, or rather that gathering which is truly unique and perhaps one of the most recognizable customs," points out Mirsad Mujkić, president of the Forum of Citizens of Zenica.

This unique event attracts an increasing number of tourists every year, which in itself contributes to the valorization of tourism of this intangible heritage, at the center of which is the scrambled eggs dish itself.

"Indeed, this should have been done earlier, to be included on menus, in hotels, restaurants, and I think it is most natural for us to accept it as something special, something uniquely ours, and to offer it on the market," says Šaban Ibrišimović, director of the Tourist Board of ZDK.

The importance of celebrating the first day of spring is evidenced by the fact that Čimburijada was not interrupted even during the war and pandemic years, and numerous people from Zenica celebrate it today even outside their hometown.