35,000 people flocked to the application to see the cherry blossom trees… When I went to Yeouido,’Cherry Blossom Lotto’ [르포]

“It’s a pity that the flowers fall a lot, but it’s nice to be able to enjoy it like this.”

Lee Mo (37), who met on the 5th at Yunjung-ro Cherry Blossom Road in Yeouido, Seoul, said, “I am looking for the Yeouido Cherry Blossom Festival every year. Lee, an office worker, paid annual leave to see cherry blossoms and visited Yoon Joong-ro with her sisters.

Yeongdeungpo-gu limited visitors to the cherry blossom festival through a random lottery in the aftermath of a novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19). As a result of receiving online applications on the 1st and 2nd of this month, a total of 35,000 people flocked. Of the 1,080 winners, 360 people a day on the 5th, 6th, and 7th will watch the cherry blossom festival. The competition rate is 32.4 to 1.

Admissions take place from 11 am to 8 pm in 7 sessions, 72 people each. Two of these times went to the culturally caring class. The viewing time is an hour and a half. Winners can enter only by presenting the QR code and identification card sent by text. There was no act of’scaling’ to redeem tickets for a surrogate because it was impossible to issue a ticket by proxy or individual admission. The winners entered in order after going through quarantine such as fever check and hand disinfection.

Yoon Joong-ro, who visited at 11 am that day, was generally busy. This seems to be because the number of applicants was relatively small because it was during the day on weekdays. Each visitor saw the cherry blossoms from a distance. An official in Yeongdeungpo-gu explained, “Because it is a weekday, the competition rate in the evening time was higher after 6 PM than in the morning.”

The audiences were of various ages. From a couple in their twenties to a couple with a stroller, a nearby office worker, and an old couple with gray hair, they walked leisurely along the cherry blossom path. There were also YouTubers who were holding selfie sticks and mediating the situation at the cherry blossom festival. Lee (36), who visited the Cherry Blossom Festival with her two-year-old child, said, “I wasn’t interested in the Cherry Blossom Festival normally.

Various things to see were also prepared. Visitors sat on camping chairs and enjoyed the DJing stage, and a large screen was also prepared for online performances. One visitor wrote a message on the cherry blossom tree, saying, “I hope the festival will become a daily life again, where you can embrace your hands and hands, heart and heart.”

Many visitors expressed regret that the cherry blossoms fell earlier than usual. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, cherry blossoms in Seoul this year bloomed on the 24th of last month and were the fastest since observation began in 1922. Yoon Mo (23) said, “I was worried because it rained on the weekend, but I am already sorry for the green leaves.”

Accordingly, Yeongdeungpo-gu decided to cancel the cherry blossom festival scheduled until the 11th and operate it until the 7th. In the future, the Cherry Blossom Festival will be replaced by an online program on the YouTube channel operated by the Yeongdeungpo Cultural Foundation. Chae Hyun-il, head of Yeongdeungpo-gu, who visited the site that day, said, “Many citizens will be disappointed because the cherry blossoms fall early.

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