Geoffrey Cain
SEOUL, South Korea — It was the International Day of Forests on Saturday. So it was a good time to break the slightly odd world record for “largest tree hug in one minute.”
It wouldn’t be easy. Portland, Oregon — to no one’s surprise — has held the record since 2013, when 936 people hugged a bunch of trees for one minute. But the people of Seoul intended to try, and to make a statement about South Korea’s own environmental success.
A few more than 1,220 Koreans stood in position just north of Seoul of Saturday afternoon, listening to a countdown before they began to take in their embrace an unusually large number of trees. The Korean National Arboretum, which organized the even, said they not only probably broke the record, they continued to hug the trees for a full 10 minutes, as they waited for officials to make their count. Glorious.
