The first ever CIG course in North Macedonia finished on 1 November, after five busy days and 40 hours of practice! The course was hosted and organised by the Museum of the Republic of North Macedonia and it was financially supported by the Ministry of Culture within the European Heritage Days 2019. The project was Run by Nada Andonovska, IE’s Country Coordinator North Macedonia.
During the five-day course, the 13 participants worked with Valya Stergioti, IE’s Training Coordinator, on a very extended and thorough heritage presentation with comprehensive exercises at the Museum of North Macedonia and its surrounding, Museum of the Old Bazaar, and the Archaeological museum of North Macedonia. The group of interpreters mostly came from museums, both national and local institutions around the country, national parks and а civic organisation.
There was an excellent, almost perfect, balance between the presentation by the trainer, discussions, exchanging opinions, and the parallel working exercises carried out indoor and outdoor. We were happy that the weather served us very well. The outside space in front of the national museum was chosen as a place where we could complete some exercises outdoors. We had a great time bonding and enjoying the challenging games, rediscovering the multi-meaning of the selected phenomenon. We found out that somewhere between the unique ‘Molika’ tree, the original Ottoman caravansarai and marble ancient Roman artefacts, lie hidden stories that could, and should, be interpreted in a dozen different ways.
We discovered that by using a variety of props throughout different stepping stones, almost every theme can be connected with universal values. The way we choose our words can enable more inclusiveness into the interpretation, and to encourage visitors to use their own imagination about the heritage. The practical work, discussions, (self)evaluation and especially the critique of the selected and presented themes at the end of the course were highly appreciated by everybody.
If you want to be the best in heritage interpretation, then you have to learn from the best. On behalf of the whole group I would like to thank Interpret Europe for giving us the opportunity to be trained in a way we can turn our creativity into unforgettable heritage experiences.
Vasilka Dimitrovska is a professional archaeologist, heritage consultant and a director of HAEMUS – Centre for scientific research and promotion of culture, based in Skopje. She can be contacted at: dimitrovska@haemus.org.mk.
To cite this article:
Dimitrovska, Vasilka (2019) ‘The first CIG course in North Macedonia’. In Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2019, 11.
Available online: www.interpret-europe.net/fileadmin/Documents/publications/Newsletters/ie-newsletter_2019-4_winter.pdf
