For blind visitors, Yeouido's cherry blossom festival a scent and touch to behold

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For blind visitors, Yeouido's cherry blossom festival a scent and touch to behold

Published: 08 Apr. 2025, 20:18 Updated: 09 Apr. 2025, 11:47

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A blind resident touches flowers during Yeongdeungpo District's annual Spring Flower Festival in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 8. [YEONGDEUNGPO DISTRICT OFFICE]

Some say spring has arrived in Seoul when they spot the first cherry blossoms blooming along the streets. But for others, the arrival of warmer weather is felt by more than just sight — it’s about feeling the texture of petals, breathing in their fragrance and hearing the laughter and chatter of others marveling at the scenery.

The annual Yeongdeungpo Yeouido Spring Flower Festival officially began Tuesday, drawing tens of thousands of families, friends and couples strolling under a bright sun and fresh breeze in western Seoul.

While most visitors snapped photos of the soft pink cherry blossoms or simply took in the view, a group of a dozen blind visitors experienced the flowers in a different way — by touching and listening. They learned about the flowery scenes not with their eyes but through vivid descriptions coming from the accompanying guides and tour instructors.

These 12 Yeongdeungpo residents were paired with volunteer guides, staffers from a local welfare center and family members.

People visit the annual Yeouido Spring Flower Festival in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, on April 8. [NEWS1]

“There are apricot blossoms to your left and bridal wreath spirea to your right,” one of two tour instructors explained as the group walked slowly along Yeouiseo-ro, the cherry blossom-lined road in Yeouido.

The Yeongdeungpo District Office began offering guided flower tours for residents with blindness or low vision last year to make spring accessible for everyone. This year, 58 residents are expected to take part in the program, which runs through Saturday. The program also comes as a total of 1,490 residents in the district were registered as blind or of low vision.

“The petals feel so soft,” said one participant, smiling as she gently felt a light pink rose with both hands as the group was invited to explore the flowers by touch.

Throughout the walk, the group moved carefully, quietly taking in the instructors’ rich descriptions of the scenes around them.

“There are sidewalks on both sides of the road lined with tall king cherry trees,” one instructor said.

As a participant walked slowly with her cane, she asked, “How wide is the road we’re on?”

“It’s about as wide as two children standing side by side with their arms stretched out,” the tour instructor replied.

A tour participant touches flowers during Yeongdeungpo District's annual Spring Flower Festival in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 8. [CHO JUNG-WOO]

During the two-hour program, the group also listened to a lively street performance by TuneAde, a five-member acappella group, who sang three songs including Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely." When one member began beatboxing, a tour participant responded by lifting his head, clapping and nodding along to the rhythm.

As the group followed the road lined with cherry blossoms, they engaged with the surroundings using all their senses — hugging tree trunks, slowly tracing the delicate branches and petals with their fingers.

“The weather is so lovely today,” Jo Seung-ree, a writer in her 30s who joined the program for a second year, told the Korea JoongAng Daily. “It’s great to be out here.”

Jo recalled that the festival seemed much less crowded than last year. But Tuesday’s mild, sunny weather brought waves of visitors to the 1.7-kilometer (1-mile) stretch of Yeouiseo-ro and parts of the Yeoui-downstream Interchange, which had been closed off to vehicles since Sunday.

A tour participant touches 3D models of the National Assembly during Yeongdeungpo District's annual Spring Flower Festival in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 8. [CHO JUNG-WOO]

Tour participants touch flower sculptures during Yeongdeungpo District's annual Spring Flower Festival in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 8. [CHO JUNG-WOO]

Participants also had the chance to run their hands over a tactile 3-D model of the adjacent National Assembly building — allowing them to understand the landmark through touch.

“The important thing is to create a festival everyone can enjoy,” Yeongdeungpo District head Choi Ho-kwon, who joined the first day of the program, told reporters after the event.

Due to the windy weather conditions on Tuesday, however, the participants couldn’t enjoy the much-anticipated part of the day’s activities, which was to ride the Seouldal, a tethered hot-air balloon that floats above Yeouido.

Yeongdeungpo District Office chief Choi Ho-kwon, left, watches a tour member touch flowers during the district's annual Spring Flower Festival in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 8. [YEONGDEUNGPO DISTRICT OFFICE]

This year’s Yeongdeungpo Yeouido Spring Flower Festival, which was postponed from its original start date of Friday to Tuesday due to the Constitutional Court’s verdict on former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment, runs through Saturday. Around 3 million visitors are expected during the five-day festival.

The tour program for blind people will be held daily throughout the festival, with up to 15 participants and their guides joining each session.

With positive responses coming from the participants, the district plans to continue the program annually, with hopes of inviting not only more people with low vision but also to others who may benefit from the guided tours.

People visit the annual Yeouido Spring Flower Festival in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, on April 8. [NEWS1]

Though Jo said she enjoyed the program overall on Tuesday, she stressed the need for a greater understanding of how blind people experience and appreciate their surroundings, recalling a moment of frustration during the tour.

“Someone passing by said we were pulling the petals off the flowers when were simply feeling them,” she said.

“Everyone has their own way of visualizing things.”

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]