Photo Essay: Experience a Korean Festival Any Time of the Year

Korean people are incredibly busy and don’t have much leisure time. Adults work 6 days a week, and their children are just as busy. Many children are in school from sunrise to sunset. When Koreans do have some free time, they love to spend it outdoors. Koreans love hiking, biking, playing badminton, relaxing in a park with the entire family, and they love festivals. There seems to be a festival happening every week. While I was working in Korea, I attended many of them. A few ice-fishing festivals in the winter, an animation festival, a bullfighting contest where two bulls lock horns and push each other until one gives up, a rice-harvesting festival in the fall, the beautiful Lantern Lotus festival which honors Buddha’s birthday. Koreans are very patriotic. These festivals are a way to remember their past and to celebrate their history. Plus, it’s another reason to get outside and play as a family.