A little city is now a big tourist attraction....Yeosu, Korea
Have you ever been to an Expo? It has been 161 years since the first World’s Fair was held in 1851 in London. The one last year in Shanghai was the biggest to date yet. This year Yeosu, Korea will hold a small scale, recognized World Expo that will last 3 months, from May 12th to Aug 12th. Here is a little profile and brief overview of the Expo that will take place in a few months.
If you have ever planned to travel to a country going while an Expo is taking place will give added value to your vacation. While most itineraries to Korea wouldn't normally include Yeosu as a stop, this year it's sure to be included on your "have to go to" list. Be sure to see Dolsan Bridge by night, and visit the Hyangiram Hermitage while you are there.
Yeosu is located on the southern coast of Korea and is rich with sea resources making it a great choice to showcase this years theme: "The Living Ocean and Coast: Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities." It's a train ride away from Seoul, but you can also take a flight there as well.
Expo 2012 Yeosu's mascots, Yeony and Suny, take their names from the host city. "Yeo" means "beautiful and "Su" means water. Keeping with the ocean theme, they're plankton in human form. The blue color represents the deep ocean water and the red color represents living organisms.
Want a Souvenir? A popular memory to take home from a World Expo is an official passport. Montréal’s ‘67 expo marked the beginning of “passports”, and they have been included ever since. This year in keeping with tradition commemorative passports for the Yeosu Expo will also be available. A unique commemorative stamp is available at each pavilion to be visited, collecting them in your passport is a good way to have a personalized souvenir. Yeosu Passports are due to be on sale at Expo souvenir stores and online shops in early April. To ensure quality they will be printed by the same company that prints Korean passports.
If you had plans to head to Korea than be sure to head to Yeosu, it's close enough that even if you only had one night it would be certainly worth the trip. Like any major event hotel space is getting limited and tickets are already on sale.
For more info see the official Yeosu Expo's website.
Do you have any tips for a visit to the Yeosu Expo?
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