Experience 1,200 Year Old Lantern Festival to Celebrate Buddha's Birthday in Seoul, the Capital of South Korea

SEOUL, South Korea, March 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- In celebration of Buddha's birthday, the annual Lantern Festival, or Yeondeunghoe, is scheduled to be held this coming May in downtown Seoul, South Korea. The Festival is not only the biggest one of its kind in the world, but also one of the "world's best 10 fantastic festivals for 2018" according to The Travel Magazine.

For the full multimedia release, click here: https://www.prnasia.com/mnr/yeondeunghoe_20180320.shtml

One of the highlights of this 1,200 year old festival is the Lantern Parade. It will begin at 7p.m. on May 12, 2018, leaving the Dongdaemun neighborhood and passing along Jongno downtown street, all the way to Jogyesa Temple.

During the parade, more than 100,000 parade lanterns and floating lanterns will move through the crowd.

As the lantern parade finishes at the Jonggak intersection, people will gather for the post-parade  closing ceremony called Hoehyang Hanmadang, and there they will all enjoy the traditional Korean circle dance, or ganggangsulae.

On the following day, another cultural event will take place at Jogyesa Temple. More than 100 booths will provide visitors a chance to experience Korea's traditional culture, such as making lotus flowers, traditional lanterns and ceramics, and drawing Buddhist patterns and folk paintings. Also, meditation programs and traditional performances will be provided, and temple foods will be served to the participants.

Any visitor interested may participate in the lantern-making contest. To join the contest, please make a reservation by email ([e-mail]).

2018 FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

Events	Time	Venue
Exhibition of Traditional Lanterns	May 11 (Fri) - May 22 (Tue)	Jogyesa, Bongeunsa Temples / Cheonggyecheon Stream
Eoulim Madang (Buddhist Cheer Rally)	May 12 (Sat) 4:30pm - 6pm	Dongguk University Stadium
Lantern Parade	May 12 (Sat) 7pm - 9:30 pm	Jongno Street (Dongdaemun - Jogyesa Temple)
Hoehyang Hanmadang (Post-Parade Celebration)	May 12 (Sat) 9:30pm - 11pm	Jonggak Intersection
Traditional Cultural Events	May 13 (Sun) 12pm - 7pm	Street in front of Jogyesa Temple
Cultural Performances	May 13 (Sun) 12pm - 6pm	Performance Stage on the street in front of Jogyesa Temple
Yeondeungnori (Final Celebration)	May 13 (Sun) 7pm - 9pm	Insa-dong - Street in front of Jogyesa Temple
Buddha's Birthday Dharma Ceremony & Lantern Lighting	May 22 (Tue) 10 am - 7pm	Jogyesa Temple and all temples across the nation

 CONTACT: Minsuk Hong, [phone], [e-mail]