Once a year, Neptune leaves his domain to attend celebrations in his honor. So on Saturday, the king of the deep waters, who emerged from the depths of the August Canal with his mermaid daughters, was greeted on land by their numerous subjects. As a gift, Neptune was presented with a steering wheel from the ship of Captain Augustus – the mascot of the Sea Holiday. Together with his retinue, the lord of the water element proceeded to the main stage to start the festivities.
The guests did not dare to disobey Neptune's order to sing, have fun, dance and participate in competitions. And there were countless entertainments on the shores of the Dombrovka sluice. Everyone found something to their liking. In the library harbor "Treasures of the Book Sea", young Argonauts played sea battle, solved riddles, quizzes and crosswords on maritime topics. At the "Bubble party" playground, the kids frolicked in the foam. In the art laboratory "The Sea is worried ..." it was possible to purchase pleasant trifles from the masters of the Department of Ethnography, folklore and Crafts of the Grodno regional Cultural and Information Center. Here, needleworkers wove goldfish from straw, which fulfilled the most cherished desires. But 10-year-old Eulalia from Grodno liked most of all to paint and install locks and houses on the site "Let's build the August Canal together".
Serious passions reigned at the regional championship in swamp football. Women's and men's teams from eight districts of Prinemanya gathered here. Both students and working youth gathered in the squad of the Volkovysk district. According to Captain Pavel Zaretsky, they had never kicked a ball in the mud before. Nevertheless, the newcomers took first place in their group: in the match against the Zelven athletes they drew and got the upper hand over our countrymen. It was clear that the guys were determined to return home with the cup. The girls did not lag behind them either. For example, this is the fourth tournament for Natalia Gundar from the distant Smorgon region. According to the veteran of swamp football, you will not get such a surge of emotions from the usual.
Sasha and Vlada from Minsk chose catamarans on their first visit to the Augustovsky Canal. But this time, instead of a leisurely walk on its water surface, the girls were waiting for the real races. It seemed that the tourists from the capital had a victory in their pocket: the Minsk Girls team, taking off from the start, overtook rivals Sergei and Anna. However, the guests of the Grodno region hesitated at the buoy, and while the ship was being turned around, the "Grodno guys" pulled ahead. However, none of the very first participants of the unusual competitions – both winners and losers - were left without souvenirs.
Artists and amateur art groups from the Grodno region invited all vacationers at the Dombrovka lock to a musical cruise, which smoothly flowed into an open-air disco.
Photo by Konstantin Martinovich
