Bell-ringing to open 2019 in central Seoul

Gathered citizens wait for bell-ringing in front of Bosingak on the eve of New Year's day in 2018. / Yonhap

By Jung Hae-myoung

Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather in central Seoul on Dec. 31 to welcome the New Year with a bell-ringing ceremony at Bosingak, a large bell pavilion south of Jongno, the main thoroughfare of downtown.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Friday, 11 people who have contributed to society will be the bell strikers.

They include Lee Cook-jong, a renowned surgeon who contributed to treating severely hurt patients by helping introduce an air ambulance system; skater Lee Sang-hwa; the widow of Kim Sung-do, who lived on Dokdo Islets for over 50 years and died earlier this year; and Kim Ye-won, a visually impaired woman who has worked to improve the rights of the disabled.

Bus and train services will be extended to 2 a.m. to allow people to get home from the midnight ceremony. Seven “night owl bus” lines will also run as usual, but public transport for Gyeonggi Province and Incheon will end before midnight.

Traffic will be banned in areas near Bosingak and buses passing these streets will be rerouted.

For safety, police have asked people not to use fireworks.