On May 22nd (yes, yes, I know this post is way overdue), from 11am to 6pm, hundreds of herbivores and omnivores alike gathered at the Seoul Innovation Park for Korea's first Vegan Festival.
Making it its goal to introduce "easy" veganism in a fun way, it definitely didn't disappoint. The entire time, I couldn't spot even one face that wasn't smiling. Between holding delicious food in each hand, and trying on beautiful vegan kimonos, everyone found something to keep them busy enough to say, "wow, it's been an hour already?". There were rows upon rows of veganized desserts, drinks, and meals. Vegan Mexican food, vegan fried chicken, vegan hot dogs, vegan burgers (the burger booth was one of the most popular), vegan cupcakes, and vegan cookies were just the beginning. "So much food I want, but not enough stomach space," I heard one lady say to her friend as she walked toward one of the rows of booths.
I was there from about 10:30am to 3pm, filming a promotional highlights/recap video. Though my new tan lines seem to disagree, I was actually quite happy to be there for a long time. I met some amazing people and managed to get a whole new perspective on the rise of veganism in Korea.
When I first moved to Korea just a few months ago, I barely knew one place that served vegan food. I felt so alone, ultimately falling out of veganism for a few weeks following. At the Vegan Festival, I found out that I wasn't the only one who'd felt this way. I talked to one man running a booth, who admitted that he wasn't vegan (or vegetarian!) himself. His reason was not surprising. "In Korea, it's a very difficult situation to be vegan..."
Soy, one of two owners of Cafe Dalyang, introduced herself as one of the people behind the festival. According to her, the festival is currently put together by fellow vegan restaurant/business owners. "All of the planning group members are friends", she emphasized that the planning group was actually quite small, and that everyone on the committee were volunteers. They started the festival because they wanted to introduce veganism to more Koreans in a fun way. "We want to share the good value of being vegan. We want to share the vegan culture in Korea, but we've never had Vegan Festivals in Korea, so we wanted to make something fun and happy and enjoyable...".
I interviewed many different people for my video; some were vegan, some vegetarian, and some omnivores. People from all different backgrounds had come from near and far to attend the festival, yet I was able to find one thing in common: everyone, at one point or another, has felt lonely as a vegan/vegetarian in Korea. There were people who had been through the fire, as well as people who were afraid of going veg because of the isolation one may feel while pursuing a cruelty free lifestyle in this meat-loving country. But as with everything, there was a positive side to it all- events like this make all the difference. As one man put it, "it's a chance to get out and meet other people who are also vegan or vegetarian in Korea; there's not that many of us, so sometimes it's just nice to get out and see everyone".
[ Video coming soon! ]
Did you miss this Vegan Festival? Don't worry, there's another one coming in the Fall!
For updates, follow the Vegan Festival Korea Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/vegankorea/?fref=ts
