A lotus lantern parade related events will take place in downtown Seoul over the weekend, ahead of Buddha's Birthday on May 12. / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government |
By Kim Jae-heun
A lotus lantern parade related events will take place in downtown Seoul over the weekend, ahead of Buddha's Birthday on May 12.
The Lotus Lantern Festival will be held from Friday to Sunday on the streets of Jongno and around Jogye Temple, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, Monday.
The festival, called Yeondeunghoe in Korean, is listed as national intangible cultural heritage No. 122 and has been practiced for over 1,200 years since the era of Unified Silla to celebrate Buddha's Birthday.
The lantern parade on Saturday evening is the main part of the event.
While large lanterns will lead the way from Heunginjimun to the streets of Jongno and toward Jogye Temple, citizens can join the parade from any point of the course to walk the streets of the capital city with small lanterns in their hands. The city government expects 100,000 citizens to participate in the parade, with many more watching from the sidelines.
The parade will start at 7 p.m. and continue through to 9:30 p.m. After that, people can participate in singing and circle dancing events at Jonggak Intersection.
On Sunday, which happens to be Children's Day, some 120 event booths will be set up in the street in front of the temple to offer various traditional culture experiences. Visitors can try temple food there as well as make their own lotus lanterns and create Buddhist art.
From Saturday to Sunday, traffic will be controlled in the downtown area.
Car access will be restricted in stages from 1 p.m. on Saturday to 3 a.m. the next day between Heunginjimun and the temple. The street in front of the temple will also be closed for vehicles from 9 a.m. to midnight on Sunday.
"We have prepared various programs for the Lotus Lantern Festival this year and we hope families come out to enjoy the event. We strongly encourage people to use public transportation due to traffic control in the Jongno area," a city government official said.