The dazzling lighting of the Wanjin Christmas Season features a 1-kilometer-long light display connecting the main tree and a musical light show.

▲The 2016 Pingtung Wanjin Christmas Season officially lit up on the 15th (Photo provided by Pingtung County Government, the same applies below).

The Wanjin Christmas Season was launched with a lighting ceremony on the evening of the 15th. This year’s main Christmas tree was designed by leading Chinese interdisciplinary artist Li Mingdao and featured creative works by elementary school students from Chishan Elementary School and Taiwu Elementary School for the first time. The entire Christmas tree stands 12 meters tall. During the day, it serves as a colorful public art installation, and when lit up at night, it transforms into a dazzling, fantasy-like structure through LED lighting effects.

The lighting ceremony was conducted by Vice President Chen Chien-jen, County Magistrate Pan Men-an, Archbishop John Hung Shan-chuan, Father Xu Qingxian of the Wanjin Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and main tree designer Li Mingdao, who ignited the Christmas tree using a meteor-inspired lighting method.

▲Vice President Chen Chien-jen and his wife, along with County Magistrate Pan Men-an and others, jointly launched the Wanjin main tree.

After the lighting, the Christmas lights on the streets of Wanjin and Chishan areas were also turned on simultaneously. The street lamp decorations, themed around biblical stories, guide visitors from the statue of the Virgin Mary at the entrance of Wanjin Village into the community. Following the animals from Noah’s Ark and the white dove, they make their way to the Wanjin Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Along the way, they encounter the wings of an angel, symbolizing the covenant at the end of the Noah’s Ark story, as the angel blows a horn of peace, and the candle of hope shines eternally.

The section in front of Chishan Elementary School features the 12 disciples of Jesus transformed into beams of light, guarding the schoolchildren as they come and go. Prophets from the East, bearing Christmas gifts and accompanied by angels, lead visitors from the Wanjin Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary toward the Wulaluz Tribe. Along the route, there is also an ice and snow kingdom stretching over one kilometer in front of the Wanjin military camp area. The overall light display is designed with storytelling elements, connecting the main tree and the musical light show area—two major zones—to offer visitors a journey full of surprises.

▲The 2016 Pingtung Wanjin Christmas Season main tree.

This year, the county government has also collaborated with the Pingtung Post Office to set up a Christmas post office in front of the Wanjin Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Christmas cards designed by students from the Department of Visual Arts at Pingtung University are available for free during the Wanjin Christmas Season event period, allowing visitors to send holiday greetings to family and friends.

The Christmas musical light show will be performed starting at 6 p.m. on December 17th at Taiwu Elementary School.
 

The Tourism and Communications Division urges the public to make use of the shuttle buses. Four shuttle routes depart from the Pingtung Bus Terminal, Wanjin Military Camp Area, Chaozhou Railway Station, and Neipu, picking up and dropping off passengers to Wulaluz Tribe and the intersection of Dongshan Road in Chishan Village. On December 17th and 18th, the service runs from 4 p.m. to midnight, with the Wanjin Military Camp Area starting pickups as early as 11 a.m. On Christmas Eve, December 24th, the service will extend until 2 a.m. the next day, with additional buses added as needed based on the situation.
▲The 2016 Pingtung Wanjin Christmas Season.
Wanjin Christmas Season