On Wednesday, March 26, an event took place in the center of Kalamata as part of the Erasmus+ Next Routes Project. This project, which has been ongoing for over a year, brings together six Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe in collaboration with Breda University and Mobile Idea, working towards the digital enhancement of cultural heritage.
The chosen approach is gamification, an effective method for transmitting culture and transforming tourist routes into memorable and interactive experiences. As a result, the project has developed a game, with content created by the participating cultural routes. The game is in its DEMO version and this event was the pilot testing of the work done so far.
The Routes of the Olive Tree has designed a cultural itinerary in the city of Kalamata, focusing on the theme of post-earthquake industrial Kalamata. This route not only allows participants to explore the city but also to discover the cultural heritage shaped by its commercial life and the people who contributed to building the city as we see it today.
The itinerary is woven with stories of people, changes, and challenges, especially tales of resilience and transformation, which define the identity of culture and heritage that we must preserve and cherish. Playing with heritage is an innovative and dynamic way to share this knowledge, as it allows participants to become active agents in the experience.
Around fifteen people of different ages, mainly from the education sector, took part in the event, all of whom currently reside in Kalamata. Together with the Olive Tree Route Cultural Foundation, we explored key sites of the city’s industrial memory, starting from the Dance Hall, the former Lindakaris liquor and wine factory, then moving on to the old Ellenic Electric Company, now a theater, and the former central train station, which was once the heart of the city’s commercial life. This station holds a vivid and emotional memory for many citizens who experienced it in full operation and still feel its absence today.
The journey continued to the old commercial port, passing through the Train Park Museum. The experience was highly engaging and interactive—using the Next Route app, we played by answering quizzes about the history of these places, searching for and scanning QR codes like in a treasure hunt, and testing ourselves by looking for clues and uploading photos.
The ultimate goal of the Next Routes project is to make this gaming app accessible to everyone, demonstrating how culture and heritage can be experienced in a playful way and how culture is truly inclusive. Moreover, it gives our cities the opportunity to be rediscovered in an original way, thanks to the unique and invaluable work of the Cultural Routes.
