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Trust Your Own Power and Skill, Optimism and Humbleness Ing. Jindřich Ondruš was born a Wallachian, with Wallachian traditions and nature always very close to his heart. He has been involved in tourism and museums on local, regional and national levels as well as within the UNESCO framework for all his professional life. Since 2019 he has been the General Director of the National Open Air Museum, which also includes the Wallachian Open Air Museum.

Text: redakce Foto: archiv Národní muzeum v přírodě www.nmvp.cz

Mr Ondruš, showing respect towards traditions and humbleness towards ancestors is the prerequisite to the new development of the Beskid and Wallachian Region. What is the role that Wallachian Open Air Museum plays in it? The Wallachian Open Air Museum was established in 1925; it is one of the oldest open air museums. It is the greatest open air museum in the Czech Republic and one of the largest in Central Europe. Since it was founded, the museum has been making the Jaroněk brothers’ motto come true: making the museum a living organism. It is host to over fifty programmes annually, plus folk art festivals and fairs. In 2018 a record number of 354,000 visitors came to the museum. In December 2018 the Wallachian Open Air Museum took responsibility for the management of other open air museums previously managed by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. These include the Haná Open Air Museum (Hanácké muzeum v přírodě), the Vysočina Open Air Museum (Muzeum v přírodě Vysočina) and the Zubrnice Open Air Museum (Muzeum v přírodě Zubrnice). This union brought a new institution with great potential to life: the National Open Air Museum. Your museum administers sites in two regions. What is your cooperation with governments of the regions in developing the resort of Pustevny? What are the updates on the reopening of Libušín? The Libušín chalet burned down the night of the 2nd of March, 2016. The destructive fire was followed

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by a huge surge of solidarity. The collection announced shortly after the fire gathered almost eleven million Czech crowns from donors from around the Czech Republic and abroad. The wood necessary for renewal was a gift from the company Forests of Czech Republic (Lesy České republiky); its logging was provided by Military Forests and Farms (Vojenské lesy a statky). Both the Moravian-Silesian Region and the Region of Zlín paid their contributions. A science-based renewal of the national cultural heritage began in the summer of 2016; the re-opening of Libušín is expected in early 2020. How do you see new mountain architecture in the Beskid Mountains, how is tourism changing the unique look of this extraordinary area? Which destination would you recommend to visitors? I am glad that developments in tourism have helped improve the infrastructure and services in our region. Annually I take dozens of hikes in the Beskids, and it is a great joy to look around. I also enjoy cycling along ridge trails. My most beloved view is from the peak Lysá hora; when the visibility is good, it is a pure beauty. The same applies to the new lookout towers at Velký Javorník and Velká Čantoryje. The best bikeway is a ridge trail from Kasárna to Kohůtka and Benešky to Soláň. Thank you very much for the interview. Editorial of Magazine.