Also to the 133rd floor Lotte World Observation Tower

By Kim Su-A
Staff reporter, The Korea Post

Ambassadors and their spouses are invited to attend the spectaclar final-day ceremony of the 2017 Hanseong Baekje Culture Festival in Seoul on Sunday Sept. 24 this year by Mayor Madam Park Choon-hee of the Songpa-gu Ward of Seoul.
Thrown into the tour is an even more interesting event, a tour of the Sky Observation Room on the 118th floor of the 123-story Lotte World Tower, a 555-meter high skyscraper which was opened to the public on April 3, 2017. Currently, the Lotte World Tower is the tallest building among all the OECD countries as well as in Korea and the fifth tallest in the entire world.

The ambassadors and spouses are personally invited by Mayor Madam Park Choon-hee of the Songpa Ward of the Seoul City, who takes strong interest in the promotion of international relations, in particular with the ambassadors and their spouses in Seoul.

As a festival that reproduces the history and culture of the Hanseong period (18B.C.-A.D. 475) of Baekje Kingdom, which was founded 2,000 years ago, the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival has been held annually since 1994 in Songpa-gu, the capital city of early Baekje Kingdom. The global festival has been named the representative ‘culture and tourism festival’ for the fourth consecutive year by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

“With active participation by students and citizens from across the country, the Hanseong Baekje Culture Festival has been evolving into an incrementally significant event as a global festival,” said Mayor Madam Park. “We are proud that excellence of the Festival, which marks its 17th event this year, is recognized in and out of the country by receiving the gold award in Pinnacle Awards from the International Festivals and Events Association (IFEA), called the ‘Oscars in festival’, for the fourth consecutive year.” The visitors will enjoy a variety of programs of the Festival, including the flame fountain of Baekje, parade of the royal carriage of King Geunchogo, performance of a huge dragon, and lighting of lamps of Baekje along the road, starting with the ceremony of lighting the flame of soul of Hanseong Baekje.

In the ancient village of early Hanseong Baekje Period, visitors can experience the daily living of the people in the Baekje Period of the Korean history at elevated houses and thatch-roofed dugouts. They also can travel into the past while looking around the village, wearing traditional clothes in ancient time.

As the only history and culture festival in Korea, the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival will provide diverse special programs for foreign tourists. They include a unique bamboo horse race, a tool-threshing play, Songpa Mask Dance Drama and marketplace of Baekje traditional foods. Foreign tourists and visitors take a great measure of satisfaction at these traditional activities and foods.

Mayor Park Choon-hee of Songpa-gu

And the reproduced ‘Saruhasigoyo’, a pedestrian bridge built by an engineer named Jiraho in around 600 A.D., was highly favored by foreign visitors when it was first introduced during the last year’s festival. It demonstrated the world-level bridge construction technology of Baekje Kingdom.

In addition to these, the Festival will offer many other exciting programs, including the popular opera arias festival, musical gala show, concerts, sociability folk play, children’s song contest, photo contest, fireworks display, and more.

Mayor Madam Choon-hee Park’s vision of administration:
We will make Songpa-gu a ‘Rrepresentative Happy City of Korea’ with you.

Songpa-gu is a city of history and culture of the Hanseong (Seoul) Baekje Period which flourished 2,000 years ago. The city is also blessed with beautiful and an attractive natural environment, which includes the Seokchon Lake, Olympic Park and the Seongnaecheon Stream.

In addition, Songpa-gu aims to become the new hub of culture, tourism and economy based on the largest Jamsil Special Tourist Zone in Seoul, the Southeast Distribution Complex, the future-oriented business district in Munjeong-dong, gradual development of the law district, development of the Jamsil Sports Complex and modernization of the Garak Market.

A large number of ambassadors and their spouses and other family members pose for the cameria during an industrial tour organized by The Korea Post media in 2006. Many ambassadors and sposues attend the tours orgaized by The Korea Post as the tours are closely examined in advance by the members of The Korea Post who have been organizing the ambassadors’ tours for the apst 32 years since inception in 1962.

Now, we are going to take a step forward to making Songpa-gu ‘the representative happy city of Korea’ where everyone enjoys a safe, relaxed and happy life together, where you want to live in for generations, and a community you want to hand down to your descendants.


About Mayor Park:

Education:
Master of Public Administration, Graduate School of Public Administration, Pusan National University.
Graduated from Pusan National University
Graduated from Gyeongnam Women’s High School

A King of the Baekje Dynasty wearing a crown walks leading a parade at the 2016 Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival.

Career:
President of the Student Council of the Judicial Research & Training Institute.
Adjunct Professor at Chodang University.
Member of Professor Evaluation Committee, Seoul Bar Association.
Member of Committee on Legal Support for the Elderly, Korean Bar Association.
Vice-chairman of the Legal Council Organization for the Presidential Election.
5th-term mayor of the Songpa-gu District elected by popular vote.

Traditional parade of the 2016 Hanseong Baekje Culture Festival _

Current status:
A lawyer.
A member of the Local Tax Evaluation Committee, the Seoul Metropolitan City Government.
A member of the Committee of Legal Support on Redevelopment and Reconstruction, Korean Bar Association.
A member of the Family Coordination Committee, Seoul Family Court.
A legal advisory member at the Citizen’s Alliance for Fair Election.
A member of the Legal Council Committee, the National Citizens’ Alliance for Fair Election.

A poster introduces the 2016 Hanseong Baekje Culture Festival

For more information or any inquiry, please contact Su-a Kim at 010-7584-5873.

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