PHL JOINS EMBASSIES DAY IN SEOUL 2016

By: Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines, Seoul

SEOUL, 06 November 2016 ? The Philippine Embassy in Seoul joined 45 other foreign diplomatic missions in participating for the third straight year in this year's Embassies Day in downtown Seoul's Gwanghwamun Square on 4-6 November 2016.

Philippine Ambassador to Korea Raul S. Hernandez poses with Embassy staff in front of the Philippine Embassy booth at the Embassies Day event held at the Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul on 4-6 November 2016.
The event, which was organized by the World Masters Committee, a non-profit international cultural organization with a vision of "Creating One World through Art and Culture," brought together thousands of embassy staff, foreign nationals, traditional artists and artisans from around the world for three days of social and cultural exchange.

At this year's Opening Ceremony, Ambassador Raul S. Hernandez, who led the Philippine Embassy in Seoul in the three-day event, commended the World Masters Committee, under the leadership of its Chairman, Mr. Kim Min Chan, for its tireless efforts in bringing people together.

"Embassies Day is a rich exhibition that provides us a glimpse of other countries' domestic and traditional culture that reveals and celebrates the vibrancy of this modern world. Through initiatives such as this one, it is my hope that the spread of knowledge among our countries continues to flourish," Ambassador Hernandez said.

This year, the Philippine Embassy operated a booth showcasing a variety of Philippine cuisines such as pork adobo (vinegared pepper stew), pork binagoongan (fish paste stew), pansit (rice noodles), pork barbecue, longganisa (pork sausage), other local delicacies such as cassava cake, puto (steamed rice cake), and biko (sweet sticky rice), and Philippine bananas and pineapples.

The Philippine booth also doubled as a tourism promotion booth, introducing popular Philippine destinations such as Boracay, Palawan, Cebu, and Ilocos to foreign visitors of the booth.

At the closing ceremonies held on 06 November 2016, Madame Maria Ana A. Hernandez received on behalf of the spouses of foreign ambassadors a Plaque of Appreciation from Chairman Kim Min Chan for their respective Embassies' participation to this year's event as well as for lending support to the World Masters' Committee's activities and programs.

Embassies Day is the most successful event to date of the World Masters Committee, featuring a variety of performances and exhibitions in Gwanghwamun Square for three days. It provides the different foreign missions in Korea ample opportunities to promote their domestic culture. Last year, 71 foreign missions participated in the said event.

World Masters Committee is a non-profit international cultural organization that conducts a variety of programs designed to foster the vision of creating one world through arts and culture and to advance world peace and harmony.