not dark clouds, as Miha Pogacnik of IDRIART refers to us on his website.
We know that the people in Haloze -
the people who live in the land around Castle Borl
and are most affected by its situation -
see us as a ray of hope and sunshine.
They believe that our effort to restore the neglected castle
is the bright light needed to illuminate the possibilities of a better future for Castle Borl.
Anyone who looks at the sad reality of Grad Borl today -
not just through pink glasses of a romantic 3 day visit with music and talks-
sees that this once glorious building is in very bad shape,
having been vandalized and left to deteriorate
during the "12 proud years of IDRIART" use.
Graffitti are the only new elements brought to its rooms.
How anyone can seriously say that it doesn't matter that Borl has no windows,
that it is funny that the ceilings are falling during a concert,
its bits and pieces remaining where they fell,
and that it is OK to just put a flowerpot in front of a gaping hole in a wall,
rather than fixing things one by one - is beyond comprehension.
MUSIC NEEDS BEAUTIFUL SURROUNDINGS TOO
Dirt and debris are NOT romantic!
We can imagine that M. Pogacnik's violin playing sounds good in the courtyard,
by candle light... and that the lectures on art are deeply felt.
However, we have to question his actual sensibilites.
The building urgently needs more than big but mostly empty words.
Pseudo-esoteric mumbo-jumbo is just "air", but it hopefully won't hurt anybody,
while a forgotten candle left burning in some corner
could do more damage to the already fragile building.
And, a word about a note on the borl.org website:
Can a renowned chef ("Antonio" & Team) from Naples
afford to come cook in a kitchen that should be condemned
by the local health authority? Everybody knows it would never pass an inspection!!
The people of Haloze want a place they can be proud of again.
A place that will attract international visitors that add something of interest
to the region and to the local community.
New ideas and fresh viewpoints are always welcome. As are music and art.
Anton Krajnc resents being portrayed as a foreign "money man",
who will take the castle for himself.
The truth is: he is at home in Haloze, his roots are there.
His grandparents are buried in Cirkulane.
He spent much of his childhood holidays in the then Hotel Borl, in the late 1950s.
Krajnc says: "That's why I want to return there
and invest my hard earned money to bring Borl back to life.
Imagination, creativity, music and visual arts shall all thrive here.
Eventually. It is too soon to go into details.
FIRST: Proper water-supply, septic system and electrical wiring have to be reinstalled,
the new roof tiles that already fell down into the courtryard have to be replaced,
the walls, floors, ceilings repaired, windows and doors installed...
and much much more has to be taken care of. It will take years of hard work, and a lot of money, but we believe it can and it must be done."
Speeches alone won't make it happen.
The Saga Continues
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
We started to count our visitors on February 11, 1997
Page prepared by DAGMAR
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