REGION

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

56 ǀ POSITIV 2/2019

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.