Ethnographers from Slovakia and Poland arrive in Daghestan

Makhachkala, October 22, 2014. Slovakia’s ethnographer Frantisek "Fero" Hrabal and Poland’s ethnographer Blazej are set to make a cultural tour of Daghestan. The Daghestan Tourism Committee arranged an informal meeting with the 2 scientists.

Committee’s deputy chairman Muslimat Halimbekova said at the meeting that Daghestan is stereotypeed as a troubled region, and people are really afraid to come here. But the reality is different from what the federal media shows. It is essential to break the stereotypes, which implies a sound approach and a long-term careful work. To this end, the committee are working out tourist routes and developing ethnic and cultural potential of the republic. The monitoring carried out by the committee says the flow of individual tourists from Europe to Daghestan has increased.

In an interview with RIA "Dagestan", František Hrabal spoke about his trip and shared his impressions: "I have been studying the history of the cultural life of the peoples and ethnic groups of the region, capturing my observations in a book about Daghestan. You have lots of sights to show: mosques, museums, monuments of nature, art and architecture, and the world-famous Naryn-Kala fortress which is a UNESCO heritage site. You have a huge tourist potential. Plus, you have the wonderful Caspian Sea with sandy beaches. I really loved the traditional Daghestani cuisine, everything tastes so natural and delicious."

The major reason for the ethnographer’s trip is collecting materials on the spiritual history of Daghestani peoples and writing a book about the journey. "What I need is no academic publications which are available on the Internet, but a personal experience. I am confident there is still much to see and many people to meet," the traveler said.