Photo Essay: Jinju Lantern Festival

Jinju Lantern Festival

By Eric T. Friestand

Lanterns. Lanterns everywhere. Hanging in trees. On the ground. Floating on the water. Lining the walkways. This was a dream come true, as I finally had the opportunity to visit the Jinju Lantern Festival (진주유등축제) in December 2021. As I was learning more about Korea and discovered this festival, I knew that I had to visit due to its beauty and diversity of attractions. The variety of lanterns was impressive: dragons, dinosaurs, traditional lanterns, boats, planes, animals, birds, houses, people, fire. The list could go on forever. My favorite place was on the south side of the river looking north. Here you could see the bright lanterns on the river and the Chokseongnu Pavilion (촉석루) in the background contrasted against the dark night sky.

The Photographer/Author

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Eric T. Friestand moved to Korea in August 2021 to pursue his passion of learning more about Korean culture, food, music, and language. Eric’s goal is to be conversationally fluent in Korean and understand Korean entertainment without subtitles.