ALTculture 11/2020 - Owl Round Mystery of World’s Biggest Regular Winter Settlement of this Nocturnal Birds with Binocular Vision in a town of Serbia
By Nikolin Svetlana
For the reasons known only to them the town of Kikinda in the Province of Voivodina in north Serbia (southeast Europe) becomes a regular winter settlement of hundreds of owls.
It is the biggest urban winter quarters of long-eared Owls (Asio otus) in the world so far.
ALTculture 10/2020 - The Charms of Samarina in Greece – The Legendary Village of the Ethnic Aromanians By Nikolin Svetlana Years back my friends and I voluntarily translated an interesting book, a study by A.J.B. Wace and M.S. Thompson entitled ‘Nomads of the Balkans: an account of life and customs among the Vlachs of Northern Pindus’ which was published in London in 1914. This book gave some really great information about Aromanians (Vlachs) of the Balkans, at that time almost totally unknown ethnic group.
ALTculture 09/2020 - Down Memory lane with my Chestnuts Growing Ancestors By Nikolin Svetlana >Coronavirus has made inroads in many tribal areas around the globe taking them almost totally unprepared. At this time of the year chestnut lovers impatiently wait for their favourite nut which has exquisite taste and would fulfil even the most fussy. Thinking about chestnuts revived many of my memories about my ancestors who had a forest of chestnut trees and made their life trading in them. My great grand parents and grand parents lived in a mountainous area now on the border with Albania and North Macedonia (southeast Europe) in the beautiful region north of the famous Ohrid Lake.
ALTculture 04/2020 - With very Little or no help Forthcoming from Governments, how remote areas, Tribal Hamlets and hill Districts Around the World are Coping with COVID-19 Pandemic By Nikolin Svetlana While the whole world is battling against coronavirus pandemic, the tribes around the world are having hard times without any proper and continuous help. Coronavirus has made inroads in many tribal areas around the globe taking them almost totally unprepared.
ALTculture 03/2020 - In These Troubled Times, Soothing and Healing Words this Easter from Ecumenical Patriarch of Orthodox Christian World By Nikolin Svetlana Almost 260 million Orthodox Christians all around the world are facing an extraordinary Easter this Sunday 19th April under widespread lockdown due to the coronavirus crisis. In spite of that they are preparing to spend this Easter at homes following beautiful traditions and customs so characteristic of Orthodox world.
ALTculture 02/2020 - Amid Worldwide Pandemic, Easter Brings to us all a Message of hope and Faith By Nikolin Svetlana One of the main holidays in Christianity - Easter, which is usually a joyous time of the season this year will be marked completely differently with the tragic shadows of pandemic hovering over worldwide. Even in such situation Easter will bring to many a hope for healing, for overpowering this dangerous deadly pandemia and slowly restart of normal life.
ALTculture 01/2020 - People of the Balkans Scaring away the Winter bad Spirits to Herald a Joyful Spring By Nikolin Svetlana In many parts of the world this period of the year is always connected with carnivals with which people wish to mark joyfully, colourfully and loudly that spring is coming. In many places especially rural areas of the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe all these parades, masquerade parties, dances, street theatre performances receive different shape connected with ancient pagan customs.
