The 30th Yeongdo Bridge Festival
Reporter Seo Yea-weon
seoyeaweon@naver.com
The 30th Yeongdo Bridge Festival will be held for three days from Friday, 14 October to Sunday, 16 October 2022, in the Yeongdo area, Amir Park, and on the YouTube channel of the Yeongdo Bridge Festival. It will be hosted by Yeongdo-gu and organized by Yeongdo Cultural Center and various performances. The programs will be held with the meaningful theme of 'Inheriting of Culture.' Yeongdo Bridge is evaluated as a symbolic building of modern and contemporary Korean history, and it is said that it was designated as Busan Metropolitan City Monument No. 56 on 25 November 2006. In addition, the Yeongdo Bridge Festival is attracting more people's attention because it is the only bridge festival in Korea.
The construction of the Yeongdo Bridge began in March 1932 and was opened in November 1934. During the Korean War, the vicinity of Yeongdo Bridge was filled with refugees who have vague expectations that they would find relatives, and it is a bridge that preserves the sorrows of refugees who are tired of life after the Korean War. In addition, it is a structure that has played a role in the modern history of Korea and has a symbolic meaning for modern Busan. The construction of the Yeongdo Bridge was an important project in the urban development of modern Busan, along with the expansion of the Busan Port logistics center and the opening of an arterial road.
The overall program composition will be followed by the opening performance, and a special theme performance of the Yeongdo Bridge Festival will be prepared to mark the 30th anniversary. After that, Forestella will be in charge of the opening of the Yeongdo Bridge Festival, and Kim Yeon-Ja will perform along with other professional performances and people wearing colorful costumes. The next program is expected to be popular with many people as it includes a marine fireworks show that will shine brightly on the night sky to pray for a bright future in Yeongdo. Finally, the inhabitant's harmony parade will take place, which is said to be for the harmony of Yeongdo residents and the successful hosting of the festival. A total of five programs have been prepared for this event, and the first is 'Yeongdo's King of Trot'. The second is an amateur band competition. The third is a program called 'Local star in Yeongdo'. Another program is 'Challenge! Yeongdo Golden Bell' and the last is a busking performance.
As the Yeongdo Bridge Festival is a participatory festival that not only fuses historical traditions and modern values, but also experiences the modern cultural history of Korea, there are a total of four fun programs that require participation. One of them is the online search for Yeongdo treasure, a program that lets people searche for hidden treasures throughout Yeongdo in a virtual reality metaverse. The remaining three programs will be held in the form of direct participation, and first, there is a tasting event where 1,000 servings of bibimbap will be shared while expressing harmony and sharing in the name of 'Bibimbap of love'. The second one is under the name of 'Clean Yeongdo! Marine Plogging.' Time will be given to pick up trash, experience the marine culture of Yeongdo, and create a clean Yeongdo together. Finally, the program called 'Amir Picnic' is expected to be more meaningful because you can experience a cozy picnic, which can only be enjoyed at the Yeongdo Bridge Festival.
Lastly, there are a total of three programs in collaboration with other places, and the first is the 'Yeongdo Fishing Competition' with Dongsam Fishing Village, which is indispensable in Yeongdo, as it is famous for fishing. Second, there is a marine leisure experience where you can enjoy a boat experience at the Korea Maritime & Ocean University. Finally, 'the archive Yeongdo, <Docu Festa>' will be held to display the 100-year history, culture, records, and memories of Yeongdo, and to remind people of the cultural identity of Yeongdo again. The Yeongdo Bridge Festival is expected to give positive synergy to future generations as a festival that can attract tourists to revitalize the relatively underdeveloped local economy of Yeongdo while designing a hopeful future.