This weekend was the Lotus Lantern Festival that one of the Seoul Buddhist temples puts on to celebrate Buddha's birthday. There were many events and lots of activities! My friend and I went out to see what this festival was all about. It was so much fun!! Starting a few days prior, there were lanterns set up for display around Seoul. We went and looked at the lanterns in the Cheonggyecheon stream. This is a small man made stream in the middle of Seoul. It is gorgeous! Because it was still daytime, the lanterns weren't lit but we did get to see many lanterns that were lit in the parade that night! This parade was about 2.5 hours long but it was definitely worth it! There were so many lantern floats and so many people in the parade! It was AMAZING! After the parade, there was a post parade celebration that the festival put on. It was so much fun! Initially, we all migrated towards the stage that they had set up in the middle of the street that was closed for the parade where there were performers getting ready to perform. Those of us who were closer to the stage were instructed to just sit down on the pavement and we did. It was really cramped for a bit but I'm so glad we were so close! After a bit of music, we all stood up and got to dance together. We did some traditional Korean dances where we are all in circles and dance around. My friend and I didn't really know what was happening but there were some really kind ajjumas or old ladies who quickly grabbed our hands and helped us into the circles! We danced for probably about an hour and a half doing different dances to more traditional music. Near the end, there were dancers up on the stage leading us in simple dances. It was AMAZING! Also, throughout the dancing, there were cameras showing people up on the big screen. My friend and I ended up on screen quite a few times, it was great! There was also pink confetti being released for almost the entire time. This experience was quite magical! Saturday night was magical but Sunday was still very fun! There were many cultural and traditional events and activities. My friend and I went to the street in front of the Buddhist temple that was blocked off and we walked the street and did a few activities. I wrote my name in Korean and made a gorgeous lacquered keychain! My friend and I also ended up entering a lantern making contest for foreigners at the temple. Neither of us won but we did make friends with the girl who did eventually win when we were making our lanterns. She flew from Japan specifically for this festival! Her lantern was GORGEOUS! Pictured is my lantern not hers! The temple itself was also decorated in lanterns. There were too many lanterns to count in this temple! It was amazing! There were also lanterns from the parade on display! This was an amazing festival and I would love to come back every year as it was a fantastic experience where I felt the generosity and love of the Korean people!
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AllisonThese are the chronicles of my time before, during, and after student teaching in South Korea! Archives
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