Lotus Lantern Festival

In celebration of Buddha's bazillionth birthday, Seoul hosted its annual Lotus Lantern Festival. In Buddhism, the lotus flower often represents purity of body, speech, and mind as it floats atop the muddy and defiled waters of life. Paying tribute to many Buddhist traditions, the festival offered people the chance to make their own lotus flowers and lanterns; as well as, beaded bracelets, boxes, and plates. 

Traditional drumming

Prayers were written on little slips of paper and then...

tied to a giant balloon.

Yoga/tai chi/dancing with a plate.

Making my very own lotus flower

Ta-da

At a nearby Buddhist temple, hundreds of colorful lanterns with dangling prayers swayed in the breeze and dotted the sky. The effect was hypnotic and, like staring into fire, it was impossible to look away. 

As rain began to fall and the sky grew darker, the lantern parade began. With a little luck, we found seats directly on the parade route, however, as swarms of people arrived and filled in the inches of open space, our view was eventually obstructed and our personal space invaded. The two and a half hour parade displayed thousands of lanterns in various shapes and sizes accompanied by dancers, musicians, and performers. The costumes and music from neighboring eastern countries were, at times, just as mesmerizing as the lanterns themselves.

Sitting with an open umbrella is too complicated so we invested in unattractive, but warm, ponchos.

The guard obstructing our view. His pitiful job was to hold up the tape that barred people from joining in on the parade. I can only imagine the thoughts running through his head.

Watch the video to see some dancers and floats from the parade. The best float is at the end...

When the parade finally ended, the real party began. On a brightly lit stage, dancers continued to entertain the crowd as confetti replaced rain and fell from the sky. Infected by the music, everyone began dancing, jumping, and singing as if on the eve of a new year. Mimicking the dance moves of the people on stage, I caught the eye of not only the old man dancing next to me, but also the cameramen who were snaking through the crowd. My enthusiasm paid off and I made my first-ever appearance on a jumbotron! Before I could enjoy the moment for too long, we were swept up in a conga line and pushed through the masses. A street party, driven by the sheer happiness of hundreds of people, has never been so fun.