The town called Bongpyeong in Gangwondo is known for its production of buckwheat. A book titled "When Buckwheat Flowers Bloom" was written in 1936 by Lee Hyoseok, a resident of the area. And so every year in September, the Hyoseok Culture Festival is held in honor of this Korean author.
The festival is a combination of a celebration of Lee Hyoseok and of buckwheat. The Korea Tourism Organization admits in its festival information that activities related to the works of Lee Hyoseok will be difficult for foreigners to understand and advise foreigners "not to concentrate too much on the meaning of festival themes, but just to enjoy yourselves at the festival." I'd say that's good advice, in general.
Despite being a small town, Bongpyeong's festival felt big. There were Korean festival ‘style' specialty products vending tents, snack food vending tents, shaded dinning areas, cross-dressing clown-like singing entertainers, and easy to find restrooms and information booth. The main performance stage was nice and included plenty of shaded seating in front of it.
One of the main attractions for the event is the fields of buckwheat flowers nearby the festival grounds. The fields of buckwheat flowers in Bongpyeong are beautiful, they say, when in full bloom. The flowers, which are white, are even more stunning in the light of the evening sky, I'm told. Unfortunately for me, the peak of the bloom had passed already and I was not able to see the fields when they offer the best view.
Not long after walking around the festival grounds, I met a married couple who happened to be English speaking Koreans. The two of them told me they think that the special thing about this festival is the food. I happened to have thought the same thing myself, only moments before.
There were many kinds of foods available that were made with buckwheat including: buckwheat vermicelli noodles, buckwheat rice-wine, buckwheat rice-cakes, buckwheat bread, and other food items. I tried everyone I could find and they were all delicious.
As always, one of my favorite things about a good Korean festival is the traditional entertainment. I was not let down at all this time. I saw two excellent performances on the Sunday afternoon I was attending the festival.
One was a large group of percussion players wearing brightly colored hats and uniforms. The group marched in various formations while playing and occasionally singing a few lyrics.
The second performance was of a special kind of farmers music called Pyeongchang Arari (평창아라리), which shouldn't be confused with Arirang (아리랑). Arirang is a kind of bluesy sad folk song related to everyday life. Arari is specifically a kind of song that is sung while working in the farm fields. This was my first exposure to the music and I was very happy to have had the experience. I'm looking forward to the chance to hear it again.
Sitting at my desk and looking back, attending the Hyoseok Culture Festival was totally worth it. The food, the performances, the fields and the facilities were all top-notch. Take it from me, this is a festival worth putting on your calendar.
Online Resources:
Hyoseok Festival (Korean)
