Heng & Joon Celebrate their Love on the Day of Chocolate Covered Pretzel Sticks

Why would anyone knowingly spend hours at Minto Communitas? To assemble a massive heart formed out of boxes of Pepero, of course!















11/11 is known amongst young Koreans as Pepero Day. Lotte, the makers of these chocolate covered pretzel sticks, have managed to institute a whole day that compels young consumers to purchase and give out massive amounts of Pepero as an expression of love. Pepero Day has become so popular that even bakeries have gotten in on the action by making their own version of Pepero. The one pictured is a loaf of French bread dipped in chocolate. How decadent.

Korea has all sorts of unofficial, yet popular holidays that are driven by some consumer action. Remember "Apple Day?" Created by concerned parents or concerned apple farmers? Cyndi's aunt told me that there's also a samgyupsal day. Now, that sounds like my kind of holiday!















We spent 11/11 celebrating the nuptials of our favorite 언니 in Busan. I know what you're thinking. ANOTHER wedding? What can I say? The year of the pig is apparently the year to get married, and people want to get hitched before it gets too cold. Anyway, you will probably recognize the bride of this wedding (though she may look a little different with her eyelash extensions ㅋㅋㅋ).




The wedding was lovely, but I did observe a few more wedding customs that I've only seen in Korea.

• Incessant chatter. Throughout the entire ceremony, guests, particularly those standing in the back, gabbed on like they were at a baseball game. The chatter was quite distracting. American bridezillas would not have tolerated such a disruption.
• The ceremony was officiated by Joon's former college professor. I couldn't understand the majority of what was said, but I did recognize the words, "IBM", "semi-conductor", and "Wi-bro." I wonder if he used those terms metaphorically? May your love prosper like an IBM compatible PC. May the future of your marriage progress like current developments in Wi-bro technology.
• Bubbles and smoke. The walk down the aisle was further dramatized through the use of bubbles and an artificial smoke machine.
• Joon and HY cut the cake at the altar, which to my great disappointment, was merely a symbolic gesture. The cake was fake. Fake cake? That's an intolerable cruelty!
• Joon serenaded his bride at the altar. I once suggested that he bust out some Ne-Yo (because I know that he practices in the car), but he ended up singing a sweet Korean ballad.
• This was the first time that we stayed through an entire Korean wedding ceremony. We didn't duck out early to eat as is the custom in Korea. That's because we respect HY... and know that she would kill us if we left early :)

By the way 언니, I apologize in advance for messing up the group wedding photos. I tried to take me and my granny coat to the back rows, but people forced me to stand in the front because I'm so dang short.

요리를 합니다. Cooking it up in Busan.

Cyndi and I went over to her aunt's (작은 고모) house to help prepare food for Chuseok. I was very pleased to find out that we were going to help her aunt prepare one of my favorite types of cuisine -- fried food. Ohhhhh yeah!

First, we fried some tofu and imitation crab.















Then, we fried some fish jun; fillets covered in flour, then egg, and fried to golden perfection.




























Our master fry cook and co-teacher was Cyndi's cousin, Yeong Jin.














Afterwards, we fried up some 동그랑땡, frozen mini patties of pork, tofu, veggies, and chicken. (Dredge the patties in flour, cover in egg, then fry it up!)
























































After we fried up the tofu, fish fillets, and patties, it was time to cook the smelliest of them all -- fresh fish.
























































As those smelly fish fried, we prepared the shrimp tempura (튀김). First, we dipped the (peeled) shrimp in the tempura batter. Then, we rolled the shrimp in bread crumbs. Finally, we dropped those babies in some hot corn oil. (Fry the shrimps twice for a nice golden brown color). A tip for all you novice cooks: Be sure to blot all the excess water from your shrimp before deep frying them.







































































After all the frying was said and done, we were able to take a break and sample some of the Chuseok songpyun, rice cakes filled with some sort of peanut paste. We tasted both regular- sized songpyun and 왕 (king-sized) songpyun. The king-sized songpyun was filled with a yellow bean paste.





























I learned that traditionally, women celebrate Chuseok with their husbands' family, and the wife of the eldest son prepares the Chuseok table. That's why Cyndi's aunt was cooking up a storm. In addition to all of the fried food, Cyndi's aunt prepared a multitude of other dishes, including a special soup, seasoned beef, and various side dishes. Unfortunately, we were not able to partake in the feast the following day, because we were scheduled to return to Seoul that afternoon. Cyndi's aunt did pack us a bento, and if I do say so myself, it was all quite tasty.

I will conclude with a photo of Henney''s cousin, Shuna.

"추석이야? 슈나의밥은어디야!?!"

추석 Korean Thanksgiving (Harvest Moon Festival)

On our belated train ride to Busan aboard the KTX, I came across a delightful article on Chuseok. Originally written in Korean, but translated into English by I&T Service, the article was both informative, and awkwardly wordy. Here are some of my favorite facts and excerpts:

• As I noted in my previous post, Chuseok is one of the biggest holidays of the year; a time when family members gather in

  "one place to tribute ancestral rites as well as paying a visit to ancerstors' graves, sharing the warm affectionate feelings for the family bond."

  Chuseok falls on the day of the brightest full moon of the year, the 15th of August, according to the lunar calendar. Koreans were very grateful to the moon for bringing light to the dark night, when humans were vulnerable to attacks by wild animals and shady humans (The sun, notably, is still taken for granted, and not recognized with its own national holiday).

• On the morning of Chuseok, the ancestral rites table is prepared, including songpyun, korean rice cakes. As the article describes,

  "After confessing abstinence from prohibited activities, all family members gather around the table for the partake of sacrificial food and drink, and breakfast begins."

  The rice cakes, songpyun, are traditionally prepared the evening before Chuseok. There's a saying that the prettiness of your rice cakes will determine the attractivness of your spouse. That's such an ingenious ploy! Can you imagine the number of boys and girls, diligently preparing the rice cakes in hopes of finding a spouse that looks like Gong Yoo or Hyori? I'm sure the ancestors are patting themselves on the back for that old wive's tale.

• Following breakfast, families visit the graves of their ancestors. Traditionally, in August, people cut the grass on graves (this is when folks used to be buried under huge, grassy mounds in the countryside). Consequently,

  "Those graves with uncut grass mean having no descendants, or, even if there are descendants, they lack filial piety and become the subject of mockery."

  Ah, the good ol' days -- when people were mocked for the lack of filial piety.

• In addition to the ancestral rites, Chuseok festivities celebrate the abundance of the harvest. People celebrate through food, games, songs, and dance. The traditional games include a form of Korean wrestling called ssireum.

  "People thinking they are strong enter Ssireum contest. Surrounded by spectators, they test their strength and sagacity on a grass lawn or the sands. The final winner is called 'jangsa' and receives both cotton cloth, a sack of rice, or a calf as the prize."

  I wonder if they still do this in the country, and what sort of prizes are awarded. Do strapping young men, who "think they are strong" enter the contest, hoping to win a calf, and end up winning an iRiver mp3 player instead?

• The article goes on to note that

  "Country boys used to make a group raid on a soybean field mischievously. It is a delicacy to eat the beans cut by the stalk after roasting in an open fire fueled by wood."

  Ah, the good ol' days -- when raiding soybean stalks was a young boy's idea of mischief.

• Another important part of the Chuseok tradition is the rice wine, called Baekju (white wine) or Shindoju ("new wine of vigor"). Apparently,

  "When a few guests are knocked down from drinking excessively, the feast is regarded successful. Thus, wines are absolutely necessary to cater the guests."

  Now you can add Chuseok, along with St. Patrick's Day, to your list of reasons for excessive late night "festivities."

• Chuseok is often compared to American Thanksgiving, a holiday which began when

  "[Europeans], who settled after a long journey of hardship, wished to express their thanksgiving to God. They ate turkey meat, corn bread, potato, pumpkin pie, etc. Following this tradition, Americans eat turkey during the holidays, causing the sacrifice of over 45 million turkeys all over the USA."

  That last statement was a little judgemental, but I suppose that's how a lot of foreigners view our excessive consumption of those big, ugly birds. Some countries slaughter millions of rice grains; Americans slaughter millions of turkeys. It's the thought that counts, right?

• I will conclude this lesson on Chuseok with a insightful analysis of the significance of Chuseok:

  "Here is the reason why so many people visit their hometown, disregarding the dreadful traffic jam. It seems that this mentality stems from the customs of the agricultural society of the past and the influence of the Confuscianism culture, which became the foundation for the ancestor worship... Although industrialized society brought about the scattering of the family, Chuseok provides the chance for their reunion. It functions as the center of affirming the cooperation and reconciliation among the family members... Chuseok becomes an intermediary to connect the affectionate feelings of people, who are being forgotten in our daily life."

  Wow. First "sagacity", then "intermediary." This I&T Service does not fool around.

Chuseok is a big deal here. In a working culture, where employees clock in at 8 am and stay until 10 pm, a three day national holiday is not easy to come by. I'm not sure when gifts entered the picture, but Chuseok is also a time for gift giving, similar to the Hallmark version of Christmas in America. I'm not sure about the details, but it seems that folks present their relatives, particularly their parents with gift sets or gift certificates, and employers present their employees with a gift or bonus. I, for example, received a beautiful (and expensive) set of 유통기한 (manju), chestnut filled rice cakes, from my school.

Chuseok is a time to pay reverence to ancestors and appreciate the abundance of the year, so it is especially nice for me to celebrate and learn more about this holiday, right here in the Motherland.

source: Yi, Mee S., ed. "Chuseok." KTX Magazine for Travel Culture & Lifestyle. Sept 2007.

부산

Now that I finally have my visa, I've rapidly gained more teaching hours. I'm currently teaching reading and writing to junior high students. Most of them are quite sufficient in English. Teaching is quite a challenge, but I'm enjoying it -- so far. In addition to a bunch of cheesy workbooks, my classes are currently working on The Westing Game and The Princess Bride. (Classical schmasical. Canon schmanon. That's right, I'm picking books that I like! )

Anyway, that's why I've been slow to blog. I was trying to make blogging a daily thing, but I seriously doubt that's going to happen. :)


We went to visit Cyndi's family (her Dad's side) in Busan...several weekends ago. They are still as nice and fun as ever. They patiently took us around a couple of famous Busan sights, including a Buddhist temple by the sea and a famous lighthouse. We also ate a lot while in Busan -- hanshik style. You know the drill. Check out the movie below for a sampling of photos.