South Koreans began quietly seeing the old year out and the new one in Sunday, with hundreds of thousands gathering in urban centers, on mountains and at beach resorts across the nation for bell-ringing ceremonies or to witness the first daybreak of 2007.
Seoul's metropolitan government said it will host its annual Bosingak Bell Ringing Ceremony at midnight on Sunday in the center of the capital, with as many as 150,000 citizens, including ranking government officials, business leaders and celebrities, attending.
The bell in Seoul's Jongno district will be rung 33 times to greet the New Year. During the Joseon Dynasty, the Bosingak Bell used to ring 33 times at 4 a.m. everyday to signal the opening of the four gates surrounding Seoul.
The nation's major highways were also jammed in the late afternoon with cars carrying holidaymakers and other people heading to major coastal resort areas to usher in the New Year.
The festive mood in Busan's Haeundae Beach was mounting, with tens of thousands of New Year greeters already gathered alongside the beach. A separate bell-ringing ceremony was scheduled to take place at the port city's Yongdusan Park.
Meanwhile, the southern resort island of Jeju was bustling with some 50,000 tourists hoping to catch the first sunrise of the year.
A variety of ceremonies and events, including parades, fireworks and traditional cultural performances, will amuse visitors to Jeju until early Monday, according to promoters of the events.
Seoul, Dec. 31 (Yonhap News)
S. Koreans rush to catch first bell-ringing, sunrise of New Year |
