In warm May of this year, the JBNU Daedong Festival came back with the new name, “Gunji Daedong Festival”. Unlike last year, as the COVID-19 curve has flattened and the mask mandate has lifted, students enjoyed the festival mask-free. This year, there were new events such as laser gun survival, a healing spot, and Gunjisunrye[건지순례] held for three days from May 10th to 12th. Of course, there were food trucks, flea markets, performances, and various booths like last year.

In warm May of this year, the JBNU Daedong Festival came back with the new name, “Gunji Daedong Festival”. Unlike last year, as the COVID-19 curve has flattened and the mask mandate has lifted, students enjoyed the festival mask-free. This year, there were new events such as laser gun survival, a healing spot, and Gunjisunrye[건지순례] held for three days from May 10th to 12th. Of course, there were food trucks, flea markets, performances, and various booths like last year.

Booths and flea markets started from the old gate to the nearby area of the second Student Hall, which JBNU students call “notification street”. The General Student Council divided this strip into three sections. In the first section (from the old gate to the circular bench), there were DIY and student activity booths. Students could make perfume, plaster fresheners, and diffusers at the DIY booths. They visited them with their friends and made special memories. What is more, there was a photo booth where students could take a picture and post it on the bulletin board. A game booth, operated by The General Student Council, called ‘Guinness IN JBNU’ was located across from the DIY booths. Students enjoyed various games and found their hidden talents.

There were outside companies, organizations, and alliance company booths in the second section (from the circular bench to the clock tower). Students received information and enjoyed activities such as tarot card readings and physiognomy fortune telling. At the near circular bench, students spun the roulette and got various prizes. Sin Jin-hee from the Department of Industrial Design said, “I am enjoying the festival while walking around the booths and watching the celebrities on stage. I also visited the tarot and physiognomy booths. I will try to do as much as I can at this festival.”

The flea markets were in the third section (from the clock tower to the nearby area of the second Student Hall). The booths sold clothes, accessories, hand-made perfume, custom phone cases, and cosmetic products. People could also buy some snacks such as cookies, bread, dried fish, hand-made granola with ice cream and fruit, and hand-made snacks for pets. There was also a caricature and personal color booth. Many people were walking around this area and having fun, especially at lunchtime.

Unfortunately, some students expressed a bit of disappointment with the festival. The complaints were mostly about the lack of student activity booths. Lim Tae-hui from the Department of Semiconductor Science & Technology said, “I wish there were more booths that reflected students’ interests and were managed by JBNU students. The booths at notification street are mostly advertisements. It is difficult for students to enjoy a lot of the booths here.” An anonymous student likewise said he was disappointed that the activity booths were fewer than he thought.

As part of the three-day long Gunji Daedong Festival, the General Student Council held an event called Gunjisunrye[성 지순례] that means to get around and do the missions at the New-Silkroad Center, Munhoeru[문회루], and JBNU Central Library. There were activities, such as Jideokche[지덕체], decorating bandanas, space-out, the heart-beat competition, decibel game, and a jigsaw puzzle event.

First, the JiDeokChe activity was operated at the New-Silkroad Center. JiDeokChe means “knowledge”, “virtue”, and “health” in Korean. Ji[지] means knowledge, Deok[덕] means virtue, and Che[체] means health. There were three different games incorporating the meanings of Ji, Deok, and Che. Students participating in this activity did the games in the order of Che, Ji, and Deok. First, the game of Che (health) was to punch the punching machine. If participants exceeded a specific score by punching the machine, they could go to the Ji (knowledge) corner. At the Ji corner, participants had to solve a riddle. They could go on to the next step, Deok (virtue), if they solved the riddle. At the Deok corner, participants threw an empty bottle into a basket. If participants passed all three steps, they could win a prize at the JiDeokChe operating booth. Before they began, participants received a stamp sheet and then received a stamp after each game, thereby making them eligible to win a prize through a lottery.

At Munhoeru, an activity called ‘writing a letter to myself in 2023’ was held. Students wrote letters to themselves and hung it on the Munhoeru structure. There were also places to decorate one’s own bandana. The General Student Council prepared plain bandanas and students could decorate them. In addition, a fortune cookie booth was also operated at Munhoeru. 

The heart-beat competition was held at the JBNU Central Library. The participants wore a heart rate monitor. The person whose heart rate remained constant until the end won the heart-beat competition. In the decibel game, participants had to eat food quietly. If participants exceeded a certain decibel, they lost the game. The jigsaw puzzle event was held at the JBNU Central Library during the entire festival.

The laser gun survival went on with teams of five players each, two teams matched for five minutes, using the laser guns with sensors attached. Unlike typical survival games, because these were laser guns, there was no need for additional protective gear and students were able to enjoy the game safely.

The General Student Council operated a healing zone for people who wanted a relaxing and comfortable atmosphere. It was set up on the grass field in front of the JBNU Museum. Students were required to leave their identification or credit cards as collateral in order to receive mats or air beds for relaxation. Iced tea was provided for the first onehundred people in line.

To spread the festive atmosphere throughout every corner of the campus, unlike last year, small-scale performances were held. These were held in front of the New-Silk Road Center with different performances each day during the three-day festival. The magic show was held on the first day, a bubble show on the second day, and a balloon art show on the final day. These dazzling performances caught the attention of passersby during lunchtime. To cater to the students of JBNU who genuinely wanted to enjoy the festival, an event rewarding the color of peoples clothes was also held. The first 800 people to enter the raffle who wore blue tops got the opportunity to receive merchandise that was produced by The General Student Council. All the participants got the merchandise. The participants gave positive feedback as they had a chance to get merchandise just by wearing a certain color.

The night events began at around 5~6 p.m. every evening. On the first evening, it began with opening remarks by JBNU President Yang O-bong, and the mayor of Jeonju City, Kim Seung-su. The atmosphere ripened as the MC on stage and the audience bantered happily. After sunset, celebrity performances started with rappers GIRIBOY and LILBOI and ended with the solo singer 10CM, and So Soobin’s performance.

On the second day, the night events began with the Daedong Song Festival, in which students showcased their singing skills. A total of sixteen teams participated, and the audience could vote for the team they liked best through the Google Form, which was posted on JBNU’s school notice website and The General Student Council’s social media page. The first prize was won by the Dduddi and Ddochi team consisting of Lee Sang-hoon and Lee Ju-sung from the College of Humanities, and they won 500,000 won in prize money. Ha Young-mo, a member of the JBNU central band club AMBITION won the second prize, and he got 300,000 won in prize money. Kim Min-seung won the third prize and got 200,000 won in prize money. After the Daedong Song Festival, celebrity performances began with songs by the coed group The Ade, and many students praised the clear and beautiful voice of its vocalist Ahn Da-eun. In the final stage, solo singer PSY performed passionate dances and calm ballads. Thousands of people enjoyed the performance by jumping together when passionate and exciting songs were played, and swaying rhythmically when heart-warming ballads were sung.

On the last evening, the night events began with a student dance competition. A total of eleven teams participated, and audiences were able to vote in the same way as in the Daedong Song Festival. The students performed K-POP dances, creative dances, and hip-hop, and they shone on the stage while performing these various genres of dance. As a result, the central dance clubs of JBNU, called MAD, PIT A PAT, and Savage ranked first, second, and third, respectively. The prize money was also the same as the Daedong Song Festival’s prize. After the dance competition, solo singers Rothy and Kim Na-young, hip-hop duo group EZUZ, and solo singer Paul Kim performed on the stage for the celebrity performances. There were many ballad singers, so many students enjoyed the comfortable atmosphere together by holding up their cellphone’s flashlight and feeling the music.

At the same time as the night events, a night market was held in the small stadium. Hundreds of tables and chairs were prepared so that people could eat and drink conveniently. Adult confirmation was essential before entering, and people could enter wearing paper bracelets that served as tickets. Beer was available at the sales booth inside the market, but other alcohol had to be purchased directly from outside the campus. Anyone living in Jeollabuk-do, including students and faculty members at JBNU, could enjoy the festival here. Many people came from the main stadium after the evening’s events to the night market to fully enjoy the festival. It was crowded with people until 12 a.m., the closing time every day.

The Gunji Daedong Festival added new charm to the Daedong Festival with new names and events. It was planned so that Jeonju citizens could enjoy it together with JBNU students. International students, companies, JBNU faculty, Jeonju citizens, singers, and countless other people were able to mingle and have fun together at the JBNU festival.

l Lee Da-yeon, Ha Yae-won Editors, Shin Mu-hyun, Cho Min-hyeok Cub-Reporters