October
is a great month in Korea. You can find lots and lots of fun festivals all over
the country. Many big cities get busy for preparing something special waving ‘hi’
to tourists. I always have hard time to choose one or two from numerous
interesting events. Wouldn’t it be nice if I could visit all the festivals and
have fun every day? (Obviously I will need to knit and sew at night time being cozy
in my bed though.)
This
year, I and my boy friend finally decided to ‘do’ one thing we’ve planned forever.
For some reason (I guess most of all, because the place is little too far from
where we live), we kept delaying but this time we feel totally inspired and finally
packed and hopped on the train.
I
am not sure since when, but Korea got so much into lanterns recently. When
winter comes a little lantern festival is running downtown Seoul. Did I say ‘little’?
Yes, it is pretty small, but it is absolutely delightful and enjoyable walking
around the area with loved ones. This time we went down far south to explore
the original lantern festival we’ve talked about. Jinju city: not so much
known, but it seems like it’s been holding the lantern festival pretty long. I
wasn’t aware of it, but my sweet boyfriend found information a while ago and finally was
able to sell it to me.
The trip to get there took long and we got a bit tired losing our energy and excitement on the way, but it was totally worth it I must say! As we expected the festival turned out to be purely fabulous! Many people got together and the weather was darn lovely!! So, here are some photos I saved for you. No words can describe the scenes. A photo speaks a thousand words you say? Well, I don’t know. I don’t think even my pretty good camera could capture what I’ve enjoyed over there. Either words or photos can't possibly explain the marvelous view.
Only
one thing I can say though: It was awesome. It was real awesome and you must go
and enjoy yourself. The idea of
putting colorful and festive lanterns on the river was simply brilliant! The
reflections on the water make the festival double fun. The tickets for boat
riding were sold out so we will have to wait till the next year, but I think
that’s totally worth trying. I wish some of you get inspired by my photos and
make a plan to visit next year. I absolutely assure you that you will be
grateful that you take my suggestion.
There’s
an old Korean saying ‘Sightseeing Keumkang Mountain should go after something
to eat’. Keumkang is one of the beautiful mountains in Korea. The saying means
you need to eat first even if you’re so tempted to leave for something extra fun
and enjoyable. So, here we are. Before we went further we had something not so fancy
but pretty fun: a big bowl of hot mussel soup. It was good enough to comfort our cold stomachs
and entertain our eyes. It is always fun to snack when you go out you know. J
Actually
I hesitate to come down here, but I am glad I made it. We enjoyed this so much we
will definitely come back next year. What a great way to celebrate a beautiful
autumn night! This was one of the most beautiful nights I’ve had during my past
travels.
If
you’re interested here’s an official website you many want to check out. http://www.yudeung.com/10E_index.php You
will get a good review of things you need to know before you leave. If you
visit or stay Korea please swing by next time and have some fun!
So
what’s going on your side of the world? What’s your Oktober-fest? Anything you’re
enjoying? Or something you’d like to share? I am so excited to hear from you. Have
a beautiful October!
