During the period from May 5 to May 8, the 1st International Culinary Festival was held in Shusha - the cultural capital of Azerbaijan - enjoying the organizational support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the State Tourism Agency.
At the Shusha First International Culinary Festival was demonstrated the antiquity of the city, its beauty, and the hospitality of the people of Azerbaijan.
Expert cooks from Germany, Austria, China, France, Georgia, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Turkey and Japan have introduced dishes of their countries to the guests at the International Culinary Festival. By participating in the master classes of professional cooks, guests will have a chance to learn fine points of preparing dishes.
Various economic regions of Azerbaijan – Absheron-Khyzy, Mountainous Shirvan, Ganja-Dashkesen, Lenkaran-Astara, Central Aran (lowland), Nakhchivan, Garabagh, Guba-Khachmaz, Sheki-Zagatala etc. – joined the Culinary Festival.
40 food experts and bloggers on food from Belgium, United Arab Emirates, France, Italy, Israel, Canada, Korea, Russia, Turkey and other countries participated in the Festival.
Not only dishes of world nations, but also material and spiritual values of various countries were presented in Shusha during the Festival. Based on this concept, pavilions were set up at the festival in different formats. Each pavilion saluted guests by an architectural structure and national music intrinsic to individual countries, staging pieces from well-known works. During the event, the pavilions of each country had special characters related to the same country’s culture, who entertained guests with interesting pieces. Artistic programmes were presented with participation of masters of art during the Festival days, and spectacles, concerts and exhibitions were arranged at pavilions in the entertainment zone.
Examples of Azerbaijani national art were also displayed within the framework of the Festival. The creative team of Azerkhalcha OJSC made various interactive presentations on carpet-making traditions. A plenary action called “Shusha. A Spring Legend” was held in Shusha within the framework of the Festival. Artworks created in nature revived the current condition of a city once under occupation, and its magnificent nature.