Oktober-fest in my side of the world~

 

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!