Wangin Festival in Yeongam
By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
Yeongam Wangin Culture Festival will kick off in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, Saturday, for a four-day run to commemorate Wangin, a Confucian scholar born there during the Baekje Kingdom (18 B.C.-A.D. 660), who was dispatched to Japan and became the teacher of the Japanese crown prince, helping the country's culture flourish during the Asuka period.
The festival will reenact Wangin's achievements, giving visitors a chance to experience life in the three kingdom era (Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla), offering a parade reenacting his other emissaries' going to Japan and a raft ride at Sangdaepo, a trading port during the Baekje period.
Visitors can also try making folk food, play traditional games, make earthenware, and have their photo taken in a Baekje costume.
Mt. Wolchul ― ``a mountain where the moon rises,'' a stone-made Buddhist statue in the mountain, Dogap Temple, and a sculpture park are also attractions near the festival venue.
rahnita@koreatimes.co.kr
Apr 2, 2009