By Li Xinyi, compiled and reported

The 2012 Kaohsiung Lantern Festival Art Festival runs from January 27 to February 6. It is the earliest lantern festival in the country and the only one held on a waterfront in Asia. In addition to featuring the nation’s only harbor water dance and fireworks show, you can also listen to the Kaohsiung Lantern Festival theme song “Water Lantern Love Song” by the Love River, release water lanterns, and taste the first-ever water lantern feast.

Chen Shengshan, Director of the Kaohsiung City Government Tourism Bureau, said that this year’s Kaohsiung Lantern Festival includes many innovations, such as the first maritime art gallery featuring the Dragon Character Culture and water dance fireworks. The event will open at 7 p.m. in three areas — Qishan (1/27), Gangshan (1/28), and Glory Pier & Love River (1/29) — on a rotating basis. Activities include the Naked Dragon Blessing, the Fortune-Turning Light Car, the Flying Dragon in the Sky with Double Dragons Bestowing Auspiciousness, and the Romantic Love River Water Lantern Blessing. In addition, visitors can also stop by the newly opened Buddha Memorial Center at Fo Guang Shan.

The “Water Lantern Feast,” launched for the first time this year, is created by combining local ingredients from Kaohsiung with recipes developed by renowned chefs. It will be available in limited quantities daily at Kaohsiung’s True Love Pier during the event period. In addition, well-known hotels and restaurants in Kaohsiung will also pair water lantern feasts with their New Year’s Eve menus. Visitors to Kaohsiung can enjoy New Year’s Eve cuisine, purchase water lanterns at discounted rates at hotels, and then release them by the Love River to pray for good fortune in the new year.

Kaohsiung Lantern Festival Public Transport Transfer Plan

Kaohsiung Lantern Festival Art Festival official website: www.2012khl.com