MERIDA — As part of the celebration of the 112th anniversary of the first immigration of Koreans to Mexico, the Yucatecan capital played host to the Korea Festival in Merida 2017, an event in which the ambassador of this nation in our country, Chum Lee Ho, was present to cut the inaugural ribbon.
The Korean diplomat said that in 1905 the first wave of Korean immigration arrived, bringing a little more than a thousand people to work on harvesting henequen.
This was, said the representative of the Asian country, the first contact of Korea not only with Mexico, but with Latin America.
(Photo: Reporteros Hoy)
“Today it is estimated that in Mexico there are at least 30,000 descendants of Koreans, so we can say that there is even a sixth generation of Korean descendants, with representation in Mexico City, Merida, Tijuana, Coatzacoalcos and Campeche,” he said.
“Due to all this history together and also the great respect and admiration we have for Mexico, it is a compliment to receive and accept the invitation made by the Merida Council to celebrate this festival, which will also help to bring the Korean culture to Yucatan,” he said.
The director of culture of the municipality, Felipe Ahumada Vasconcelos, said that the Korea Festival in Merida 2017 is a comprehensive cultural program organized by the Korean Cultural Center in Mexico, which “in addition to bringing our Korean culture and traditions closer to the inhabitants and visitors of Merida, we realize a series of activities for all the tastes and type of public”.
The official added that this festival consisted in artistic presentations (music and traditional dance and current affairs), Korean food tasting, in addition to Korean calligraphy workshops, fan painting, pen pencil (Hanji paper), as well as the projection of 12 Korean films of great renown, among others.
An exhibition of photographs of Korea is currently on display on Paseo de Montejo near Calle 39 as part of the festival.
Source: reporteroshoy.mx
