"Korean Festival 2018 Palembang: Hallyu Come On!" held at Palembang Sport and Convention Center, South Sumatra, on Sunday was attended by thousands of K-pop enthusiasts.

K-pop posters of all sorts could be seen at the venue, while the smell of kimchi and Samyang instant noodles lingered in the air. Teenagers and adults seemed to be the majority of attendees.

Organizer United K-Pop Lovers Indonesia in Palembang initially provided 2,000 tickets for the event, but the crowd reached 3,000 people. “At first, we hoped for 1,000 attendees. We didn’t expect so many people would come, so we had to make do with impromptu tickets,” said Yunas, organizing head, to The Jakarta Post.

He went on to say Hallyu (Korean wave) fans could enjoy a wide variety of activities in the festival, including a Buchaechum traditional dance performance and K-pop dance and singing competitions.

The Korean Cultural Center Indonesia (KCCI) offered cultural activities in its booth, along with community and culinary booths. Visitors could try on hanbok (traditional Korean attire), for free as well as try out Korean-style archery.

“This is the fifth edition of 'Hallyu Come On' for K-pop fans in Palembang. This year, not only was the visitors’ number was more than what we expected, we had to limit the number of contestants,” Yunas said.

Read also: Jakpost explores Palembang

KCCI director Chun Young-poung said they, along with the Embassy of Korea in Indonesia and the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE), supported the festival as it was designed to promote and share information on South Korean culture. “We hope more people will know and understand Korean culture,” he said.  

He added that the event was necessary to increase understanding and strengthen the friendship among the world’s countries.

With Palembang being one of the cities that hosts the 2018 Asian Games, the organizer offered tickets to the the sporting event for 20 Hallyu fans in the city. The fans will support Korean athletes in matches held at Jakabaring Sport City Palembang.

Chun Young-poung said they had received around 2,500 registrants from Jakarta and Palembang. With two stages of selection, they then chose 50 supporters in Jakarta and 20 in Palembang.

Pitria, one of the festival’s attendees, said she was very pleased with the event. However, she regretted that it was held for only one day, compared to the 2013 festival, which lasted three days. “There was so much to uncover and one day is not enough. Thankfully, I still managed to buy K-pop merchandise,” she said. (wng)

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