Jinju Lantern Festival

Last weekend we traveled to a southern city in Korea called Jinju for the lantern festival. For those interested, here's a quick history lesson.

This festival is to commemorate the resistance of the people of Jinju in the face of Japanese invasion in 1592. The soldiers defending the Jinjuseong Fortress sent signals to its back-up forces outside the fortress by flying lantern-kites in the sky or floating lamplights on the Namgang River. Leading only 3,800 troops, General(Chung-Mu Gong) kim Si-Min killed 20,000 Japanese troops who invaded Jinjuseong in October of 1592, heightening Korea's national pride.

During the Japanese invasion, the general raised a lantern in the sky and floated lamplights and torches on the river to send military signals to loyal troops and other support forces outside the castle.
Soldiers inside the castle sere able to use the lantern as a means of expressing their safety to their families. The city now remembers this difficult time of suffering by lighting thousands of lanterns on the Namgang River.





Below: Boys will be boys

Erin with Andrea






Jenn and Jord getting a portrait done. Doesn't the sketch look like Jordan?!?

Fireworks


Remembering history with a parade.










Captivated

Loving those sun visors.