Busan is good

Busan to hold 'Global Gathering 2007' festival

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"Global Gathering 2007," a fall outdoor festival, is to take place in Busan on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in front of the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center.
The festival, co-hosted by the Busan Foundation for International Activities and the Busan city government, was launched in 2006 to provide both Koreans and foreigners with a chance to experience and exchange various countries' cultures, food, and traditions for free.

"We had about 20,000 visitors at last year's two-day festival, which we thought was quite successful, and are expecting about 10,000 to 15,000 people to come this year," said a spokesperson for the BFIA.

Various groups and embassies representing more than 30 nations, including Korea, China, Japan, Turkey, Norway and Russia, will be involved in the festival which will feature four different zones: the Cultural, Experience, Main and Refreshment Zone.

At the Cultural Zone, traditional and modern arts and crafts will be presented in 40 different exhibition booths, each decorated by the participating nations. Spectators can also taste all kinds of food, and take photos with people wearing their nation's traditional clothes.

Korean traditional games like jegichagi, yunnori and tuho, as well as foreign traditional games can be enjoyed in the Experience Zone. Displays of folk crafts and rice cake-making procedures, plus items representing Korean traditional life, such as straw bags and millstones, will be on display.

An amateur contest for foreigners where people will show off their singing, dancing skills and martial arts, is to be held on the Main Stage starting at 3 p.m. The contest will be followed by musicals, dance, and other performances by participants from Indonesia, Brazil, Vietnam, Ecuador, and other countries.

The Refreshment Zone provides visitors with 13 kinds of herb tea from many countries around the world, along with experts' counseling regarding legal, visa and medical matters. Free simple medical checkups will be offered. The money raised from selling herb tea is to be used to support foreign laborers in Korea.

"We hope the festival will become an opportunity for Koreans and foreigners to understand each other's culture, and to mingle in Busan, a city which aims to become an international city," said the BFIA's spokesperson.

For more information, visit www.globalgathering.or.kr or call 051-888-6656.

 
The source of news : The Korea Herald, October 11, 2007