S. Korea rings in the Year of the Blue Dragon at Bosingak Pavilion

2023년 마지막 날 10만명의 탄성 제야의 종과 함께 ’푸른 용의 해’를 열다 Meanwhile as the clock hit midnight South Korea rang in the new year with the traditional bell ringing ceremony at Bosingak Pavilion in central Seoul. Thousands of people gathered at the historical site bracing the cold to wish a Happy New Year. Our Lee Soo-jin tells us more. South Korea bid farewell to 2023 and rang in the new year, 2024, the Year of the Blue Dragon. Revelers followed a years-long tradition as they excitedly counted down to midnight on New Year’s Eve. “The large crowd here is in good spirits and enjoying the New Year’s traditional bell-ringing ceremony and concert here at Bosingak Pavilion in central Seoul.“ The midnight bell-ringing celebration is Korea’s version of the ball drop in New York’s Times Square. At midnight, a total of 22 people, including the Mayor of Seoul Oh Se-hoon , 12 locals, and 6 global influencers, rang the bell 33 times a symbolic number in Buddhism and a practice dating back to the Joseon Dynasty. This year is the first New Year’s ceremony to be held without the COVID-19 mask mandate, further adding to the excitement. “I’ve never saw New Year’s from another country only Portugal so I’m excited for the new experience.“ “I love the atmosphere of celebrating the end of the year with a bunch of people.“ People also made their wishes for the new year. “I really want love and happiness for my family and friends and just to enjoy my life and I just want to find a job.“ And the traditional bell-ringing ceremony had something new this year. A large sun-shaped orb was lifted 15 meters into the air to mark the new year dawning, with local government officials calling it the world’s first “sunrise“ of the new year. There were also various captivating performances leading up to the bell-ringing ceremony. Fusion music band Season of Soul played both traditional Korean instruments like the gayageum and the Western violin. And along a 400-meter stretch of road from the Pavilion, there were flag performances, the “Talchum“ traditional masked dance, and traditional “Nong-ak“ farmers’ music. And after midnight, the long-awaited K-pop concert kicked off with performances by Enhypen, The Boyz and Oh My Girl. But staying safe was of the utmost importance with around 100-thousand people in the area, which is twice the amount of attendees as last year. To ensure the safety of everyone attending, there were more than 1-thousand safety and traffic guards, which is also around twice that of last year as well as more than 2-thousand police officers dispatched to the area. Lee Soo-jin, Arirang News. #SouthKorea #Blue_Dragon #Bosingak_Pavilion #Seoul #New_Year #Watch_Night_bell #새해 #보신각 #제야의종 #Arirang_News #아리랑뉴스 📣 Facebook : 📣 Twitter : 📣 Homepage : 2024-01-01, 12:00 (KST)