Lantern Festival in Seoul

 

     

    There is so much excitement in the air as the Seoul Lantern Festival and the G20 are taking place in downtown Seoul for the next two weeks. Even more exciting is that the Seoul Lantern Festival marks the 50 day count down to the 2010-2012 Visit Korea Celebrations. The Seoul Lantern Festival is one event that is a must in the month of November. If you can’t make this event, you have to make the Lotus Festival in May which is even more popular. The festival takes place from Nov. 11 to Nov 22; and all of my students have told me that this years lanterns are better than ever.

    I have never experienced such organized chaos in my life. Yes there are thousands of people trying to get an up-close glimpse of the traditional and modern lanterns which are standing on platforms in the Cheonggyecheon Stream. But there is so much security and organization that by the time you get down to the stream you actually have room to breathe as you walk up close to the lanterns. There is a line which begins at the middle of City Hall. Luckily it moves the entire time, and only took me about thirty minutes on Sunday night. Just deal with the adjumas (grandmas) poking you in the back and before you know it you will be free again.

   My favorite lanterns were the ones towards the beginning of City Hall, and the end of the event. There is everything from traditional lotus flowers, to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and The Statue of Liberty.

    This is definitely one event that you need to dress warm for. Expect to be outside for anywhere from 2 to 4 hours. Bring a cup of coffee and your I-pod and you will be even happier while strolling down the stream’s sidewalk or standing in line. And don’t forget your camera to capture all of the beauty!

    To see events and times happening at the Seoul Lantern Festival visit The Official Site of Korea Tourism Organization. To get there simply take the subway to exit #5 of Gwanghwamun Station (line 5) or take exit #2 at Euljiro 1(il)-ga Sation from line 2.

If you have any questions or comments about The Lantern Festival in Seoul please leave them in the comment box below or email them to goneseoulsearching@gmail.com.


  Gone Seoul Searching by Marie Webb is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at goneseoulsearching@gmail.com.