Chen climbed into the driver's seat and looked back. "The next destination is the Sky Lantern experience. It's just down the street." He looked forward and started the van.
Five minutes later, they were parking the van again and getting out.
As a group, they walked across a concrete bridge and up a small incline. Reaching the top, Bella could see that there was a railway in front of her.
Chen led them to a big tree standing proudly beside a souvenir shop. It was on the right side of the entrance. "This will be our meeting place after you look around once we complete the Sky Lantern experience." Everyone nodded. "Okay, that should be around 4:45 pm. Let's do the Sky Lantern first. Follow me."
He directed the group to the first shop to the left of the entrance. He greeted the shopkeeper and spoke to him in Mandarin. The shopkeeper nodded and came back out bringing three red canvases. He proceeded to hang one each on three separate contraptions, opening them up into red lanterns. One lantern was given to each group: the solo, duo and the family. Chen instructed the groups to take a brush and some black ink.
"Please write your wishes on the lantern. You can write as many as you want to. Write your sincerest wishes as the lantern will carry them up to the heavens." Chen spoke. "Once you are ready, please let me know and we can get you in line to release them."
Bella turned to her lantern. "Sincerest wishes? What is it that I wish for?" After some thought, she wrote, "Good Health. More travels. Happiness and Contentment." Chen appeared beside her. "You still have a lot of space to write your wishes."
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"I know." Bella responded. "But there's not much more I wish for, to be honest with you."
Chen nodded, "Are you ready to release your lantern?"
"Yes, please!" Bella chirped. This was one of the things she really wanted to do and accomplish on this trip.
Chen led her to the shopkeeper and a younger man appeared beside the older shopkeeper. The younger man and Chen exchanged some words which Bella did not understand but she thought she heard Chen say Filipino.
Chen led Bella to the middle of the railroad and asked her for her phone. The younger shopkeeper would take a video of her releasing the lantern, he explained. Bella handed her phone to him and he in turn handed her the lantern which bore her wishes. He had lit a fire inside it and Bella could feel that the lantern had started to heat up.
The younger shopkeeper said a few words which Chen translated. He took a few pictures of Bella holding her lantern and then asked her to make a Korean heart. She had no idea what that was until Chen showed her. The lantern was growing increasingly hot by now.
Then he finally gave the signal to release the lantern. Bella released it and watched it climb higher and higher. Whether or not that lantern would actually reach the heavens was anyone's guess but Bella certainly loved the experience.
