Outdoor library to open at Gwanghwamun Square in April

Seoul City will launch an outdoor reading project at Gwanghwamun Square this spring, following the open-air library at Seoul Plaza showcased last year.

Titled “Gwanghwamun Book Yard,” five open libraries and reading spaces will open on April 23 for World Book Day and run until November, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

The book yard will operate at three outdoor venues around Gwanghwamun Plaza, which opened to the public in August after two years of renovation, and at two indoor locations -- inside Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5 and the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts.

The Sejong Lounge library will open for a pilot run starting in February, offering over 400 books on culture and arts.

Meanwhile, the “Read at Seoul Plaza” open-air library in front of City Hall will resume from April to November. It will be expanded to four days a week from three days last year. Some 5,000 books will be curated under the theme of lifestyle.

Programs such as yoga and stretching exercises will be held on Thursdays; classic literature readings or poetry classes on Fridays; and hands-on activities for children on weekends.