Osan City Hosts New Year Sunrise Celebration at Doksan Fortress

Osan City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Kwak Sang-wook) held a New Year sunrise celebration on New Year's Day 2014, the Year of the Horse, at the summit of Doksan Fortress and Semamdaegi.

The event was attended by Mayor Kwak Sang-wook, City Council Chairman Choi Woong-soo, city councilors, officials from the Osan Cultural Center, and many citizens. Participants gazed upon the first sunrise of the Year of the Horse while praying for the health and happiness of 210,000 residents and pledging to build an active and happy Osan City.

Organized by the Osan Cultural Center, the event saw participants walk from the entrance of Doksan Fortress to Semamdaegi, the venue, starting the vigorous new year with a healthy mountain hike.

The sunrise viewing ceremony at the summit of Semamdaegi continued with pre-ceremony performances including traditional percussion, vocal performances, and nanta percussion, followed by congratulatory messages from Mayor Kwak Sang-wook and other distinguished guests. The event reached its climax as participants cheered the rising sun and sent 2,014 wish balloons bearing residents' hopes into the sky.

Through his New Year congratulatory message, Mayor Kwak Sang-wook said, "We have left behind 2013, in which we ran breathlessly, and a new morning of the Year of the Horse, filled with hope and development, has dawned." He added, "As we welcome the new year of 2014, I hope every household among our citizens will be filled with happiness and vitality, and that all their hopes and aspirations will be achieved as desired."

Meanwhile, at the sunrise celebration venue, the Sema-dong Saemaul Women's Association, Christopher, and Bojeoksa provided warm fish cakes and tea to citizens who visited the event.