Come to Songpa-gu's 'Hanmaeum Eoul Madang' Full of Style and Excitement This Saturday!

[Seoul District News] Songpa-gu to Host Community Center Hanmaeum Eoulmadang at Olympic Park on October 1 at 3:30 PM & Enjoy Fun and Food Linked with Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival! Community Harmony Event Held ... Eunpyeong-gu to Hold Various Stage Performances During Festival Week from October 1 to 8 at Fragrant Bulgwangcheon ... Gangnam-gu to Host 2022 ‘Gangnam Medi Tour Festa’ ... Geumcheon-gu to Hold Geumcheon Harmony Festival from October 13 to 16 ... Seocho-gu Warms Hearts with ‘Seoripul Concert and Bazaar’ of Sharing Spirit

2019 Hanmaeum Eoul Madang

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) will hold the ‘17th Hanmaeum Eoulmadang’ at the Peace Plaza in Olympic Park on October 1.

The ‘Hanmaeum Eoulmadang,’ held for the first time in three years due to COVID-19, will be presented as a program presentation and exhibition of each neighborhood’s community center, linked with Songpa-gu’s representative festival, the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival.

On the second day of the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival, October 1, from 3:30 PM, the ‘Community Center Program Presentation’ of Hanmaeum Eoulmadang will take place at the Peace Plaza in Olympic Park.

The ‘Community Center Program Presentation’ is an event where residents come together to freely showcase their talents and skills. This year, 16 selected teams out of 481 programs from 25 community centers in the region will compete.

The event will be hosted by entertainment MC Kim Tae-jin, and a passionate and beautiful stage by the Songpa-gu Folk Arts Group, boasting 26 years of history, will be prepared as a pre-show performance.

Following this, a heated competition will unfold where selected teams from each community center will demonstrate their honed skills in dance, Nanta (Korean percussion performance), singing, and instrumental performances, culminating in an enthusiastic congratulatory performance by trot singer Kim So-yu.

Additionally, the ‘Community Center Art Exhibition’ will be held from September 30 to October 2 at a separate booth in the Peace Plaza of Olympic Park. Nineteen works including calligraphy, paintings, and crafts will be displayed.

Moreover, during the three days of the Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival, a food market will be held at the Peace Plaza in Olympic Park. Food booths and food trucks prepared by residents and organizations from 25 neighborhoods will operate to offer both the fun of watching and the joy of eating, fostering community harmony.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, said, “The ‘Hanmaeum Eoulmadang’ is a festival that enhances the pride of residents participating in community center programs and promotes harmony together. We plan to offer various enjoyable experiences not only for participating residents but for all citizens, so we hope many will attend.”

Eunpyeong-gu (Mayor Kim Mi-kyung) will host various stage performances at Bulgwangcheon, filled with the scent of autumn, from October 1 to 8, the festival week.

The local representative festivals ‘Pabalje and Eunpyeong Nuri Festival’ will kick off on October 1, offering a variety of attractions such as concerts, Samulnori (traditional Korean percussion quartet), and singing contests during the festival week. Anyone visiting the Bulgwangcheon floating stage can enjoy the performances.

On October 1 at 6 PM, a ‘Commemorative Concert’ will be held to celebrate Residents’ Day. Popular singers including Eunpyeong-gu’s ambassador and national singer Kim Yeon-ja, Kim Hyun-jung, Park Kang-sung, Park Nam-jung, and Jo Kwan-woo will gather to present a magnificent congratulatory performance.

On the same day at 7 PM, the ‘Integrated Festival Opening Ceremony’ will take place. A feast of arts including dance, orchestra, and choir will decorate the autumn night. Following this, a ‘Drone Light Show’ will illuminate the night sky over Bulgwangcheon like a Milky Way of stars, featuring 300 drones creating eight different images.

On October 3 at 3 PM, the ‘Bonsandae Yeonhui Festival’ will be held. This stage reexamines ‘Eunpyeong,’ once the center of Sandae Nori and Yeonhui (traditional Korean mask and folk performances). Five teams will perform, including Yangju Byeolsandae Nori and creative Yeonhui incorporating modern elements. The program includes street parades, Tohwa, Panggut, Aesadang Beopgo Nori, National Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 3 Namsadang Nori, creative Yeonhui ‘Bernard’s Returns,’ lion mask dance, and Menari prayer ritual, offering entertaining performances.

On October 7, a residents’ singing contest will be held. Twenty-two skilled contestants representing each neighborhood and workplace, who passed fierce preliminaries, will participate. The contest will be conducted in a masked singer format, creating a stage enjoyable for all.

On October 8 at 6 PM, the ‘Integrated Festival Closing Ceremony’ will be held at the Bulgwangcheon floating stage. Star performances by Aiki, a leading figure in street dance and Eunpyeong-gu ambassador, Kim Tae-woo, Song Dae-gwan, The One, and La Poem will conclude the autumn festival.

Kim Mi-kyung, Mayor of Eunpyeong-gu, said, “Festivals bring joy to those nearby and attract people from afar. With a variety of performances from classical to popular music, you can meet stars you’ve wanted to see. I recommend visiting Bulgwangcheon filled with the scent of autumn.”

Gangnam-gu (Mayor Jo Sung-myung) will hold the medical tourism festival ‘Gangnam Medi Tour Festa’ throughout October in cooperation with medical tourism partner institutions.

Since 2009, Gangnam medical tourism has cooperated with 159 institutions including excellent medical institutions such as Samsung Seoul Hospital and Gangnam Severance Hospital, hotels, and recruitment agencies. From 2010 to 2021, it won the Korea Global Medical Service Award for ten consecutive years (not held in 2019 and 2020), attracting 130,000 visitors annually (as of 2019), leading Korea’s medical tourism.

In line with the global trend of preparing to declare the end of COVID-19, this festival aims to revitalize Gangnam medical tourism with the theme ‘Re-visit Gangnam Medi for Better Life,’ promoting Gangnam as a global medical tourism city and widely publicizing the excellence of Gangnam’s medical technology.

First, a large-scale discount event ‘Medi Sale’ will be held for overseas medical tourists. Forty partner institutions in Gangnam-gu’s medical tourism, including plastic surgery, dermatology, ophthalmology, dentistry, and hotels, will participate, offering discounts of up to 50%. Detailed information on participating hospitals and discounts can be found on the ‘2022 Gangnam Medi Tour Festa’ website.

Notably, this year the festival is linked with the Gangnam Festival and K-POP performances. Overseas medical tourists who book and visit Gangnam medical institutions during the festival period will be invited to the ‘K-POP Concert.’

Other events include ▲medical consultation for Middle Eastern patients staying in Korea ‘Gangnam Medi Doctor Genie Goes’ ▲medical tourism forums and business meetings for Gangnam medical tourism partner institutions ▲medical tourism fam tours inviting overseas influencers ▲free surgeries for overseas patients in need through sharing medical care, among various activities.

Jo Sung-myung, Mayor of Gangnam-gu, said, “Gangnam-gu has continuously led marketing efforts such as ‘online medical consultations’ and ‘medical tourism dedicated online platforms’ to attract foreign patients. We will continue to focus on fostering the medical tourism industry and strengthening global competitiveness through synergy between medical care and K-culture to maintain our reputation as the world’s number one medical tourism city.”

Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yoo Sung-hoon) announced that it will hold the ‘Geumcheon Harmony Festival,’ which anyone can enjoy, throughout Geumcheon-gu from October 13 to 16.

This year’s festival theme is ‘Our Happy Heartbeats Today.’ It expresses the excitement of holding the festival face-to-face for the first time in two years and the thrill of awakening dulled emotions during the process of recovering daily life.

Main programs include ▲‘Harmony Bamboo Forest’ performance for the MZ generation ▲‘Harmony Tour Lululala,’ traveling around Geumcheon-gu ▲‘MBTI House,’ a program to understand one’s personality and find ways to get along with different people ▲environmental project ‘Geumcheon Green Stream,’ offering a variety of fun activities.

Unlike previous years held mainly around the district office, this year’s festival venue has expanded to Gasan Digital Complex. Performances for office workers and single-person households in Geumcheon-gu, new experiences open to all Seoul citizens, and programs for family visitors and seniors have been added so that all generations can enjoy the festival.

‘Harmony Bamboo Forest’ for Geumcheon-gu office workers (Oct. 13?14, 4 PM?9 PM) will be held around Hyundai City Outlet Gasan branch. For young people whose main activity area is the Gasan Digital Complex with a floating population of 150,000, performances by traditional Korean music artist group Dongbangbaksa, haegeum player Eun Han, and DJ performances will be held. Counseling programs and play spaces such as punching and hammering games will also be operated to relieve office workers’ stressful daily lives.

There is also ‘Harmony Tour Lululala’ (Oct. 8?16) using Geumcheon-gu’s smart tourism electronic map. It allows visitors to explore Geumcheon-gu’s attractions such as the G-Valley Industrial Museum, Suni’s House, Hoamsan Historical and Cultural Trail, Ginkgo Market, and Siheung Hyanggyo site, telling the story from the Guro Industrial Complex to the present.

‘MBTI House’ (Oct. 15?16, 1 PM?6 PM) will operate at Geumnarae Central Park. It is a harmony-making program to first understand one’s personality and find ways to get along with different people for better communication.

The official event declaring the full opening of the Harmony Festival (Oct. 14, 6:30 PM) will be held at the special stage in Anyangcheon. It will feature special performances prepared by residents, including the Kim Chang-wan Band, which debuted 45 years ago with the nationally beloved ‘Sanulrim,’ the aerial performance ‘Harmony Journey,’ and performances by Geumcheon-gu choirs and local arts clubs, all gathered in one place.

Additionally, the ESG project ‘Geumcheon Green Stream’ (Oct. 15?16, 11 AM?6 PM) will be held around Anyangcheon. It includes exhibitions addressing the climate crisis emergency, photo zones using night lighting, and viewing experiences using QR codes to explore plants, birds, and ecological stories while walking along Anyangcheon, offering various eco-friendly programs.

This festival was prepared in collaboration with public and private organizations closely related to Geumcheon-gu, including the G-Valley Industrial Museum, cultural and artistic groups such as Cheongchun Building, Geumcheon Orang, the citizen planning group Harmony Us, local arts groups, and lifestyle arts clubs.

Yoo Sung-hoon, Mayor of Geumcheon-gu, said, “We focused on creating various outdoor programs for residents to enjoy. We hope this festival held throughout Geumcheon-gu will be a time for all residents to unite and enjoy together.”

Meanwhile, to ensure smooth event progress and participant safety, the bicycle road around the special stage in Anyangcheon will be closed from 4 PM on the 13th until the end of the event on the 16th.

Last week, the ‘Seoripul Concert and Bazaar’ warmed the spirit of sharing and justice in Seocho-gu, successfully concluding the event.

Seocho-gu (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) announced that about 10,000 residents visited the ‘Seoripul Concert and Bazaar of Sharing and Recovery,’ held over two days from the 23rd to the 24th.

This event was organized by the district to comfort residents affected by the record heavy rain last month and to help overcome difficulties.

In particular, the bazaar held from 11 AM to 6 PM on the event day attracted attention with wholehearted participation from 32 organizations and 51 booths, including local companies and welfare centers, to support flood victims.

Companies and organizations participating in the bazaar sold high-quality goods at prices lower than market value, and food trucks sold various foods such as hotteok, egg bread, and tteokbokki inside the venue to raise donations. The total donations collected amounted to about 44 million KRW, which will be used for flood damage recovery.

A district official said, “The bazaar was literally packed. Residents lined up in long queues even before it started, and about 5,000 people visited over two days.”

Seo, the owner of ‘Oh! Matnan Jip,’ a food truck operating near Gangnam Station, said, “As a business owner in Seocho-gu, I couldn’t just watch neighbors affected by the flood. I’m glad to participate in the bazaar event to help residents even in a small way.”

Meanwhile, the ‘Seoripul Concert of Recovery,’ held on the special stage at Seocho-gu Office over two days alongside the bazaar, featured top artists such as SG Wannabe, Forestella, and Song So-hee, captivating about 5,000 spectators with moving performances. Additionally, about 50 youth busking teams delivered energy of healing and vitality throughout the venue.

Jeon Seong-su, Mayor of Seocho-gu, said, “I thank everyone who actively participated in raising donations through this event. We hope this will be an opportunity to practice warm sharing in the community and support the daily recovery of residents affected by flood damage.”