WDEC 2023 in Rijeka

The Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2023 in Rijeka, Croatia, was held from May 22nd to 31st and was dedicated to the Trsat and Kozala cemeteries.

As every year, KD Kozala d.o.o. celebrated the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries (WDEC). In Rijeka, the event was held for the first time in 2015, and over the years our fellow citizens have recognized it as another way to get to know the history of the city.

This year's theme: Trsat and Kozala cemeteries

The theme of this year's WDEC was "Cemeteries for health and wellbeing". In other words - pointing out how the attitude towards cemeteries can improve our life. The meaning of life should be seen through the prism of a place that many shy away from, not wanting to face the fact that the circle of life and death is constantly present in nature, and that man is only a part of it. Cemeteries are not only places of farewells and reminders of one's own transience, but also places where the culture, progress and maturity of a community are reflected. The attitude towards life is also reflected in the attitude and care we have towards cemeteries, and we can proudly say that Rijeka's cemeteries have long since become a part of our lives, a part of this city. They have become parks and promenades that passers-by do not bypass, but quite the opposite.

The Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2023 in Rijeka was held from May 22nd to 31st.

Program

The program began on Monday, May 22nd, at 11:00 a.m., with the opening of the exhibition on Korzo, with photographs of grave sites in the Trsat and Kozala cemeteries.

On the same day, at 6 p.m., a guided tour of the Trsat cemetery was held under the expert guidance of art historian Daina Glavočić and with musical accompaniment performed by students and professors of the Ivan Matetić Ronjgov Music School in Rijeka.

The guided tour of the Kozala cemetery was held on Wednesday, May 24th, starting at 6 p.m., also with musical accompaniment performed by students and professors of the Ivan Matetić Ronjgov Music School in Rijeka.

Other days were intended for individual visits to the Kozala and Trsat cemeteries with the help of a special brochure (in Croatian) prepared for this year's Week of Discovering European Cemeteries.

150 years of Kozala Cemetery

1872 is the year when the Kozala Cemetery in Rijeka (Croatia) has become a communal cemetery of public interest.

The history of Rijeka, a city that flows, lives, and always rises again, is made up of our lives, efforts and efforts of our predecessors.

They are gone, but they are still here, ours. Lives lining up, one after the other through generations: births and deaths. And they became part of our lives, part of our city.

Kozala and Trsat cemeteries, as well as other Rijeka cemeteries, are in the heart of the city of Rijeka, its living part, taking over the role of parks, promenades, and open-air museums.

150 years ago, on January 1, 1872, information about a burial at the Kozala Cemetery was entered in the Book of Burials. That first entry is the official beginning of the Kozala Cemetery as a communal cemetery of public interest.

From then until today, under the cypress trees of Kozala, an entire city rests. 115 thousand deceased souls of different nationalities and religions.

Rijeka's multiculturalism, national and religious tolerance is felt at every step through the soothing alleys and lawns of its cemeteries.

WDEC 2022 in Rijeka

Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2022 in Rijeka (Croatia) is dedicated to the unveiling of Artists’ resting places in the Cemetery Kozala and Trsat.

Week of Discovering European Cemeteries is the most important ASCE project that connects people and points out the heritage in our cemeteries. In Rijeka, the event was held for the first time in 2015, and during these years, citizens of Rijeka have recognized it as a new way to learn about the history of their city.

This year's theme: Artists’ resting places

The Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2022, which will take place from 23 to 31 May, will focus on artists who found their final resting place in Rijeka's cemeteries.

The program began on Monday, May 23 at 11.30 a.m. with the opening of an exhibition on the city’s Promenade (Rijeka Korzo). The exhibition consist of 16 photographs of graves in the Kozala and Trsat cemeteries where artists of various profiles are buried.

On the same day, at 6 pm, a tour of the Kozala Cemetery was held under the expert guidance of art historian Daina Glavočić. During the educational walk the graves of artists buried in this cemetery were visited.

A tour of the Trsat Cemetery, also under the guidance of Daina Glavočić, will be held on Wednesday, May 25, at 6 p.m.

Other days are intended for individual visits to the Kozala and Trsat cemeteries with the help of a special brochure prepared specifically for this year's Week of Discovering European Cemeteries.

• Brochure WDEC 2022 (eng)
• Program WDEC 2022 (hr)

You can see some highlights from the exhibition opening, press conference and cemetery tours in the photos below.

Photo exhibition opening and press conference:

Guided tour at Kozala Cemetery:

Guided tour at Trsat Cemetery:

European Cemeteries Tour 2020

From 13 to 15 May 2020 the first European Cemeteries Tour will take place featuring stories from Croatia.

Stories from Croatia

Cemeteries are increasingly opening up as new spaces for tourist visits and cultural manifestations. In this context, it is very important to emphasize them as part of cultural tourism. In order to promote it, European Cemeteries Route began with the project European Cemeteries Tour in 2018.

KD Kozala Rijeka, together with its partners Gradska groblja Zagreb and Nasadi Zadar, in collaboration with ASCE and European Cemeteries Route, is the first to organize an European Cemeteries Tour in 2020. During the tour, stories from cemeteries and cities in Croatia will be presented.

Project description 

The project is a combination of foreign hosting and foreign traveling. Each next tour has to be connected to the one before. So the next hosts of European Cemeteries Tour will have to include a part of Croatian culture and cemeteries in its program.

Tourists, locals and other visitors of Croatia will also be able to take the tour independently. The content will be entirely included in the mobile application and platform ARtour. This will ensure that the project is interesting to young people and available later to all interested (families, schools,...) for individual or organized excursions.

Planned program

13.5.2020

• Gathering in Zagreb
• Guided tour at Mirogoj Cemetery
• Lunch in Zagreb
• Departure to Zadar
• Accommodation in a hotel in Zadar and free time
• Cultural evening program

14.5.2020

• Guided tour at City Cemetery of Zadar
• Lunch in Zadar
• Departure to Rijeka
• Accommodation in a hotel in Rijeka and free time
• Cultural evening program

15.5.2020

• Guided tour at one of the Rijeka Cemeteries
• Workshop on cultural tourism in cemeteries
• Conclusion of the tour and lunch in Rijeka
  

Location

WDEC 2019 in Rijeka

This year's WDEC in Rijeka (Croatia) will take place from May 24 to June 2, 2019, and will be dedicated to military graves and memorials at the Kozala Cemetery.

In accordance with the main event theme, KD Kozala prepared a brochure entitled "Military Graves at the Kozala Cemetery" which can be obtained at the entrance of the cemetery. Furthermore, a separate brochure was prepared for the smaller Rijeka cemeteries: Zamet, Gornja and Donja Drenova, Draga and Sveti Kuzam.

In addition to the brochures, visitors can get special postcards to send “Greetings from European Cemeteries Route".

Programme

Monday, May 27, 2019

18:00

• opening ceremony and presentation of the cemeteries Zamet, Gornja and Donja Drenova, Draga, Sveti Kuzam and military graves at the Kozala Cemetery
• music accompaniment
• photos exhibition of military graves at Kozala Cemetery

18:30

• educational walk and learning about military graves and memorials at Kozala Cemetery 

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

18:00

• presentation of the cemeteries Zamet, Gornja and Donja Drenova, Draga, Sveti Kuzam and military graves at the Kozala Cemetery
• music accompaniment
• photos exhibition of military graves at Kozala Cemetery

18:30

• educational walk and learning about military graves and memorials at Kozala Cemetery

Other days

• individual visits to the cemetery
• photos exhibition of military graves at Kozala Cemetery 

Details about the event can be read HERE.

Cultural Day for Schools at Kozala Cemetery

On 10 May, 2019, KD Kozala organized a cultural day at Kozala Cemetery in Rijeka for students of the Gymnasium of Andrija Mohorovičić.

Programme

The event started in the chapel at the main entrance, where students listened to a short presentation of Mr. Dušan Vrban, Manager of European Cemeteries Route (CEMR). Through videos and photos, students learned about the historical, artistic, cultural and architectural significance of cemeteries, including the Kozala Cemetery.

The second part of the day was carried out in form of independent exploring of the cemetery. With the help of mobile application ARtour, students walked through the cemetery and discovered some of the most important monuments and people buried there.

At the end, they returned at the starting point and briefly presented their findings. Their newly gained knowledge was then supplemented by Mrs. Daina Glavočić (M. Sc.), who provided them with additional information on the important persons and monuments at Kozala Cemetery. Students also filled up some printed postcards of European Cemeteries Route that they have received.

Student responses

All in all, it was a very successful event. Students actively participated in all activities and showed great interest in the topics presented to them. They were enthusiastic about this special and different form of cultural day and their responses afterwards were extremely positive.