Today, a ceremony of lighting the country’s Main Christmas tree took place in the Turkmen capital, traditionally preceding the events in honor of the arrival of the New Year holiday.

According to the established tradition, the center of the celebrations was the square in front of the “Älem” Cultural and Entertainment Center, located in one of the picturesque corners of the capital – at the foot of the Kopetdag Mountains, where the tallest green beauty is installed and a fabulous town is spread out.

Thousands of young and adult participants gathered around the brilliant evergreen queen of the enchanting carnival show. After all, it is here that the magic of amazing adventures and discoveries begins for children, when cherished desires and dreams are miraculously fulfilled by the wave of a magic wand of Ayaz Baba and his companion Garpamyk.

The height of the Main Christmas tree, crowned with an eight-pointed star and the numbers 2023, is 43 meters.

Dressed up with colorful balloons, beads, firecrackers, sparkling tinsel and garlands, the green beauty – a bright symbol of the coming year – will become the most visited place of residents and guests of the Turkmen capital on New Year’s days.

The lighting of the Main Christmas tree of the country is a ceremony fanned by the ideas of fairy-tale miracles and therefore requires a special creative approach from the organizers of the holiday, in connection with which the route and cultural program are updated every year for Ayaz Baba and Garpamyk.

This year, the screenwriters have prepared an entertaining performance for young viewers, which begins at the Turkmen State Puppet Theater.

...Abdullah, who promised his friends to bring Ayaz Baba, comes to the puppet theater, where Ashir dade and the artists rehearse the play “Japbaks”. All together they are looking for Ayaz Baba. The search leads them to the “Ashgabat” shopping and entertainment center.

The new “Ashgabat” shopping center was opened on September 26, 2021 and is one of the visible evidences of the socially oriented policy successfully implemented by Turkmenistan, the main principle of which is “The state is for man!”. It embodies the most advanced solutions for organizing the activities of large shopping centers and modern design ideas.

...At this time, bright performances of young artists, children’s dance groups unfolded in the center in honor of Ayaz Baba and Garpamyk.

The heroes of the story, having met Ayaz Baba and Garpamyk, find out that they have lost a rabbit. In search of him, the New Year’s motorcade goes to the State Circus, where everyone becomes a spectator of a festive concert and finds a rabbit.

From here caravan goes to the Turkmen State Puppet Theater, where it is joyfully welcomed by children. They have prepared a scene for their favorite characters. Ayaz Baba and Garpamyk, who watched the performance with delight, thanked the guys and congratulated them on the upcoming New Year.

A festively decorated motorcade of white convertibles, accompanied by a caravan of two-tier buses with children from different parts of the country, follows the main highways of Ashgabat to the place of celebration.

Every year the transforming Turkmen capital delights with a harmonious combination of elegant architectural style and picturesque landscape design. The city of fountains and flowers, surrounded by a necklace of parks and gardens, majestic white marble buildings, is extremely beautiful in festive decoration. Thousands of fluffy green beauties and curly compositions, especially impressive in the evening light with the iridescent multicolored LED garlands, give charm to wide avenues and squares.

The merry procession along the way is greeted by numerous residents of the capital, song and dance folklore groups. Artists of children’s amateur groups present their creative gifts.

Having reached Archabil Avenue and exchanged the convertible for a snow-white phaeton drawn by graceful Akhal-Teke, Ayaz Baba and his companions, admiring the magnificent architectural ensembles along the way, arrived at the “Älem” Cultural and Entertainment Center.

Accompanied by the ringing and fervent songs of happy children, the guests passed through the arch sparkling with lights, and a bright carnival filled the square with the country’s Main Christmas tree installed here. Ayaz Baba and Garpamyk were greeted with joyful greetings by kids in animal costumes symbolizing the signs of the Eastern calendar. The symbolic characters of the outgoing 2022 and the coming 2023 were the first to dedicate their funny poems to the lord of winter.

In the era of the Revival of a new epoch of a powerful state, the care of young citizens of the country, their health, education, harmonious development, patriotic and aesthetic education have been elevated to the rank of priority state tasks, the solution of which President Serdar Berdimuhamedov pays special attention.

By joining the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and a number of other important UN documents aimed at protecting motherhood and childhood, Turkmenistan has consistently demonstrated the world community its commitment to all its obligations. This is also confirmed by the program documents on further cooperation recently signed with the Representative Office of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in our country.

On behalf of young Turkmen citizens, Ayaz Baba and his companion Garpamyk address heartfelt congratulations to the President of Turkmenistan and the native people on the upcoming New Year, wishing happiness, health, great success in implementing progressive transformations for the sake of the well-being and prosperity of the Homeland.

They express their gratitude to the head of state for the tireless care of children, the creation of appropriate conditions for the comprehensive harmonious development of the younger generation.

The culmination of the merry New Year’s performance was the beautiful Christmas tree that sparkled at the request of the children and the wave of the magic wand of Ayaz Baba. Happy, ringing children’s voices are the best evidence of the well-being of the country, our confidence in today and tomorrow of an independent Homeland.

On behalf of President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, the children received wonderful gifts in memory of an unforgettable event.

Following the capital’s green beauty, all the Christmas trees installed in the velayats on the main squares of cities and villages sparkled with lights.

Adults and children will remember this wonderful fairy-tale holiday for a long time. Numerous TV viewers across the country witnessed the bright New Year’s celebration.