The Boryeong Mud Fest is in its tenth year. The festival is held in the coastal city of Boryeong and thousands and thousands of people from all over show up to partake in the fun.
I left home at 10am and didn’t reach the fest until five pm! All thanks to taking the wrong bus.
Finally, I arrived in the late afternoon and the beach was still full of people enjoying the last of the day.
The stage had several performerances and ceremonies.
As evening approached my friend Morris took a direct express bus from Seoul and joined me at the festival.
The sea was a bit too cold for me at this time of day but everyone else seemed to be enjoying the water.
Motels and restaurants and bars filled the streets next to the beach.
There were still people walking about who hadn’t bothered to wash off their mud baths yet.
They even had loudspeakers that blared the coming activities for all to hear every hour.
Morris during our trek on the beach.
The water receded so far that you could walk on the mounds of algae covered rock.
In the distance the bright lights flicker on and pretty soon most people fle
d the beach for a taste of seafood and soju.
d the beach for a taste of seafood and soju.
More mud is to come, these are just a few glimpses of how mudtastic the festival gets.
Sunset brought an end to Saturday evening and the very next morning we kicked off Sunday with a spell in the bright burning sunshine and sandy beach..
Morris wasted no time trying to get a tan.
The mud fun all starts with a bucket of mud and a couple of paint brushes.
Festival workers haul pails of mud to every table that needed a refill.
And that’s the montage of how to apply the mud step by step until you’re covered head to toe.
I couldn’t resist the mud and had to join in.
Couples, kids, grandmothers, teen agers, everyone took to the mud like it was made just for them.
Morris completed his look with a big pair of seventies Charlie Angels Sunglasses.
I went for the cannabilistic mud zombie from Boryoeng look.
No fest is complete without mud tug of war!
Sportsmanship in defeat and victory is what its all about.
Not sure if he won or lost but he gave it a great effort.
Not to be outdone the mud wrestlers took on a
ll comers.
ll comers.
This was a contraption where the people on the platform rode a zipline and had to drop onto a moving target in the pool.
Despite the mud not covering my not so perfect physique the photographers couldn’t get enough photos of me much to my bewilderment.
Joining in on the music making was not only allowed but encouraged.
There’s the huge slide where people who waited in line for hours could whiz down in a stream of mud.
When you tired of the mud the sea was waiting to wash you clean or somewhat clean until you get get into a shower and scrubbed that mud off with a heavy duty brillow pad.
She was so insistent on her sand castle creation that she must have been on something. And I don’t think she was sniffing the mud, but who knows?
Live music topped off the sweltering day.
Too cute!
The bus station on the way home.
And saying goodbye to the festival mascots. At least from the back.
