If you
still have not decided where to go during the summer, Slovenian Istria is the
place to visit. Cultural, music and art events will intertwine in different
locations. A vast array of events and activities will convince everybody –
music lovers, children and last but not least, your taste buds.
Musical evenings and traditional summer events
The festival Summer in Ankaran will take us into July with full
speed. It will attract those who love to party, but also enthusiasts and
nostalgists. This year, for the first time, some events will be hosted in Adria
Ankaran, where on the 5th July the group Kranjci with the excellent
singer Steffy will perform. On Saturday, 6th July, the beach Študent will
heat up, as the groups Repetitor (Srbija), Nikki Louder in SecondChanceBlownwill perform there. Jazz Festival Val D'Oltra will take place on different
locations in Ankaran from 12th to 14th July. The music selection will satisfy
various musical tests and attract a number of old and new spectators. On 19th
July, famous musicians Tulio Furlanič and Marino Legovič with the
ensemble Prizma will perform in Adria Ankaran. The next day, on
20th July, music will fill Valdoltra as the coastal music group Robert
Vatovec Big Band with jazz, rock and pop repertoire will perform.
In the beginning of July, the festival Poletje z
biseri (Summer with pearls) will once again unfold in Koper. The rich
program will include concerts of Rudi Bučar, on 10th July, and Neca
Falk, on 17th July. During 11th and 14th July, do not miss the musical,
entertaining and culinary event – Fešta kalamarov in Mediterana (Calamari and Mediterranean Feast) in Koper. One of the biggest events of the
month will undoubtedly be the Yellow-blue nights that will colour the
last weekend of July (and the first weekend of August) with musical, culinary
and entertainment shades. It is also worth mentioning the opera night,
dedicated to the legendary tenor – Enrico Caruso that will take place on
22nd July on the main square in Koper (Titov trg). The Prešeren Square
(Prešernov trg) will host the event Homo na plac (Let’s go to the
market) every Sunday in July, the location Taverna on the other hand will host
again the 12th Summer concerts in Taverna. Among other interesting
events in Koper there will also be Folkest, Musical impressions (Glasbeni utrinki) and Children's summer theatre carousel (Otroški
poletni gledališki vrtiljak).
Music lovers will have the opportunity to enjoy the
music evenings in Ljubljanska ulica in Izola: Thursday evenings “Pri špini”will entertain you until the 12th September. The 11th July is the Municipality
Day in Izola: the official celebration will take place on the Manzioli
Square (Manzijolijev trg) on 12th July. The spectators will enjoy the music
performed by 3BigBand, MEF, Lea Sirk and Rudi Bučar. On the 22nd and
28th July the 8th Isola Music Festival will also take place on Manzioli
Square. The audience will be entertained by Dennis Jannah, Renato Chicco, I
musici di Guccini, 40 fingers.
The Tourist board Portorož will organize a series of
events, entitled Summer in Portorož that will offer a variety of
activities to enjoy every day in July and August. Admittance to all the events
that will take place in the Rose garden (Rožni vrt) and on the Portorož
platform (portoroška ploščad) will be free. On Mondays, do not miss the cinema
on the beach, Tuesdays will be dedicated to jazz and blues,
Wednesdays will present young musicians. On Thursdays and Saturdays there will
be bigger concerts performed by Slovene and foreign musicians. The week will
conclude with folk-musical evenings. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, children
will enjoy activities organized as part of a rich program. On 5th July, a tango
evening will take place. On the platform, where concerts will take place,
artists such as Neisha, Banda Berimbau, Goran Bojčevski Trio, Soulfingers,
Avtomobili and Belen Lopez & Fiesta Latina will entertain the public.
In the Rose garden on the other hand jazz and blues artists Marko Churnchetz
Trio feat. Jonathan Hoard, Milizza – Tribute to Sting and Police, Blaž Vrbič
Trio and Mali Oglasi will perform.
Several other events will happen in July, starting
with the Jazz festival Piran at Caffe Teatre (3rd and 7th July), 41st Music
nights Piran (Piranski glasbeni večeri; 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th July) and
39th Festival Melodies of the Sea and Sun (Melodije morja in sonca) on
6th July. This year’s new addition is the Festival Kanela bar that will
take place from 12th to 13th July. During these days, artists such as Big
foot mama, music group Danilo Kocijančič with friends, Jakob Kobal, Jure
Lesar, Pero Lovšin, Španski borci, Heavenix, Kanela bar All stars band and
music group OK junior will perform on the beach of Portorož.
On stage
In Koper on Martinčev Square, the Summer Theatre
nights will take place from the 2nd July on. These Tuesday evenings will
satisfy all kinds of theatre enthusiasts. On 4th July, the acrobatic school
from Ghana will enthral with their street performance in Valdoltra. The
next day, on 7th July also in Valdoltra, theatre lovers will once again enjoy
themselves: actors from the theatre Slovensko ljudsko gledališče Celje will
perform the multiple award-winning comedy Little Gem, written by the
contemporary Irish playwright Elaine Murphy. An international group of circus
performers will entertain the visitors in Valdoltra on 18th July with their street
circus performance Who is my body? (Kdo je moje telo?)
Beetles, fairy-tales and sunflowers for children
July will be an eventful month for the youngest, also:
the 17th Alpe Adra PUF Festival will begin again on 4th July in Koper.
Different street, puppet and other performances will take place in numerous
locations in the city. In the afternoon of the 9th July, children will be
entertained by fairy-tales at the Library on the beach; they will
have fun and will play different games together. In the evening, also in
Ankaran, the festival Svetlobna gverila (Light Guerrilla) with workshop
will take place for the first time. At the workshop, you will create
fantastical, shiny night beetles that will find their home in the greenery of
Valdoltra until the end of August. On the 18th July Nika Solce will
invite the children to wonder and be playful with the musical performance
Nesem sončnico na rami (I carry a sunflower on my shoulder).
Piran’s first three weekends in July will be dedicated
to children and the 8th festival of children’s creativity and workshops Zrno
soli (8. festival otroške ustvarjalnosti in živahnic Zrno soli). From 1st
July to 1st September the Great lizards’ exhibition – Dragons will take
place in the palace Trevidini in Piran.
Sport events and activities
Between the 2nd and 7th July Koper will once again
host the European handball festival Eurofest. From 21st to 28th July
summer sports enthusiasts will be able to follow the European Universities
Championships 2019 in Beach Volleyball and Water Polo. Every Monday you can
join the NIA Technique group, exercising on the beach Študent in
Ankaran. And at the Žusterna beach you can visit the park of sea sports and
other water activities Active Koper every day of the week.
Events in the countryside
One of the most important events in the countryside is
the cycle of events Summer in Bertoki that will include a series of
musical thematic Thursday’s evenings in front of the palace Panatoiopolo. The 15th
Festival of big bands MareziJazz will take place from 5th to 6th
July in Marezige, and on 6th July in Šmarje there will be an event dedicated to
the Malvasia wine Bela Ištrijana. At Bivje in Dekani Gibonni will
perform a concert in the evening on the same day. From 6th to 7th July on the
other hand, events Solinarska šagra (Saltworks Feast) and painting
Ex-tempore will unfold in Sečovlje. Just a few days later, on 13th and 14th
July, the Wine and Garlic Feast will take place in the village Nova vas.
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Fotos: Aleš Rosa, Municipality of Izola, Ivan Pisar Vanč, Municipality of Koper
Edited by: Nataša Frančič, Tourist board Izola
In collaboration with: Tourist organization Koper,
Tourist board Portorož and the Municipality of Ankaran