Korean Spring Festival Series: The Jindo Sea Parting fest

Korea is still clinging to the last vestiges of winter, but spring is (finally) almost upon us. That means it’s festival season in the Land of the Morning Calm. (See a handy and comprehensive festival guide here). Beginning in March, there’s a new fest nearly every weekend. Themes run from the beautiful (cherry blossoms!) to the bizarre (anchovies?), and it seems that there’s a tribute to satisfy the most eclectic of tastes.

One of the more popular and impressive fests is in honor of the Jindo Sea Parting. In two weeks, Alex and I are going to play Moses when a changing of the tides causes the sea between Jindo and Modo islands to mysteriously part, leaving nearly three kilometers of dry land. Fest-goers can walk the path, collecting abalone and marveling at the natural phenomenon, all the while hoping that global warming hasn’t caused some cataclysmic shift that will cause the seas to come rushing down ahead of schedule.

We’ve read varying accounts of the fest, with some semi-reliable sources saying that this year’s celebrations are canceled to prevent the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease (darn that pesky virus!). But even if there aren’t any official activities, you can still get biblical with it and tackle the 40-meter-wide path on your own. We’ll be taking a bus directly from Daegu, but there are buses scheduled to travel to Jindo from several cities: here’s a bus schedule.

If you’d rather do a group thing (especially if you’re already in or near Seoul), check out this Facebook group. If you can spare the extra won for the sake of convenience, it includes the bus fare to Jindo, sleeping accommodations, insurance (they won’t be liable if you’re suddenly swallowed up by the sea) and an “entrance fee” (not really sure what this refers to).

And if you’re ready to start planning the rest of your Korean festival season, check out this list of events.

Photo courtesy of Contact Korea