Yes, that is me in an accidentally artsy picture. But the important thing here is not me (what?!), but rather the characters behind me. I'm going to go out on a limb and translate the Korean-Chinese character mix to mean something along the lines of "Lantern Festival," as the single character behind me in yellow is "燈" dēng which is the traditional Chinese character for "lantern." And from what I saw, these people take their lanterns very seriously.
The festival itself was actually set in a canal that stretches out from behind the sign above; the entire canal was lined with little lanterns on either side:
And as an added bonus, there were lit-up horse-drawn carriages!!
Now for the real show. Here, in the order that we saw them, are the many great lanterns of the lantern festival. Don't forget you can click if you want to look at the details close-up:
Apparently, the idea of a lantern festival can find its roots in an old legend of two lovers (stars) who are separated by a river (the Milky Way) and only allowed to reunite once a year. A bit sad, but maybe the brightness of the lanterns are supposed to chase the sadness away?
Anyway, here are the last few pictures of the lanterns stretching out, then quick nods to the world leaders being honored by the festival and to the mascot of Seoul. Note: I am NOT actually kissing the plastic figurine. There is a small cushion of air between him and me. Otherwise, well, that'd be a bit gross, wouldn't it? But isn't he the cutest mascot ever?
Can you find Obama?
Thanks for the lantern show, Seoul!
It can be exciting when unexpected events fall perfectly into your travel schedule. I wonder how many other people were checking out the lanterns that night, and how many were locals vs. tourists.
ReplyDeleteI noticed many of the lanterns had distinct Japanese or Chinese images or motifs; based on your photos here, there is a real sense of East Asian regional "community".