South Korean Holidays: April 14-Black Day

Today is Black Day which is an unofficial holiday for singles. Its for the people who didn't participate in Valentine's day or White Day.

Single people get together and eat jajangmyeon (noodles with black bean sauce).

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I love jajangmyeon!

South Korean Holiday: March 14-White Day

Today is White Day in South Korea. It's an unofficial fun holiday that is the guy's version of Valentines Day. On Valentines Day the women give candy and gifts to the men. On White Day the men give candy and gifts to the women. The holiday is mostly celebrated by couples.

White day is celebrated in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and China.

White day began in 1978 in Japan as an "answer day" to Valentines Day. Men should reciprocate after getting candy and gifts from women on Valentines Day.

South Korean Holiday: March 1 Movement

Today is the March 1st Movement which is a public holiday in South Korea. The Official name is the Samil movement (삼일 운동). It is also known as the Manse Demonstrations.

The day is named after an event which happened on March 1, 1919. Koreans wanted to be free from Japanese rule after hearing a speech by Woodrow Wilson.

33 people started the movement. They met at a restaurant in Seoul to prevent a riot. They read the Korean Declaration of Independence written by Choe Nam-Seon. They all signed the declaration and sent it to the Japanese Governer-General of Korea. They called the police to tell them of their actions and they were arrested.

Crowds gathered in Tapgol Park (Pagoda Park) to hear a student read the declaration. Protests broke out demanding freedom from the Japanese.

Japanese police used force to end the movement. They did horrible things to the Koreans. In one of the most famous incidents they took Koreans to a church where they locked it and set it on fire. Those who were arrested were taken to Seodaemun Prison where they were tortured or executed.

My Visit to Seodaemun Prison: http://valeriebethinsouthkorea.blogspot.com/2009/03/day-80-seodaemun-prison.html

Here is a video that describes the March 1st Movement:

2013 Official Holiday Schedule

January 1--New Year's Day

Febuary 9-11--Seollal (Lunar New Year)

March 1--Independence Movement Day

May 5--Children's Day

May 17--Buddha's Birthday

June 6--Memorial Day

August 15--Liberation Day

September 18-20--Chuseok

October 3--National Foundation Day

October 9--Hanguel Day

December 25--Christmas

Holidays on the 14th of each month...

There is an unofficial holiday on the 14th of every month in South Korea. These holidays are mostly celebrated by couples.

Here are all the holidays which fall on the 14th of the month:

January 14: Diary Day

• Couples exchange blank diaries so they can share what happened during the year.

February 14th: Valentine's Day

• Valentine's day is celebrated differently in South Korea. The women are give gifts to men that they are dating or interested in.

March 14th: White Day

• This is when the men reciprocate for Valentine's day. The men give gifts to women.

April 14th: Black Day

• This would be "singles awareness day". The singles get together and eat black noodles (jjangjangmyeon).

May 14th: Rose Day

• On this day couples exchange roses.

June 14th: Kiss Day

• I think you can guess what happens on this day :)

July 14th: Silver Day

• Exchange silver accessories on this day.

August 14th: Green Day

• Couples get out and enjoy nature while singles drown their sorrows by drinking a lot of soju.

September 14th: Photo Day

• Couples take pictures together in a romantic setting and place the photo somewhere they can look at it.

October 14th: Wine Day

• Couples get together and drink wine.

November 14th: Movie Day

• This is a day when couples go to the movies together.

December 14th: Hug Day

• This is a day to give hugs.

Valentine's Day, White Day and Black Day are the most popular holidays among couples and singles.

I don't know how popular the other "holidays" are because I never really heard anyone mention any of them to me.They weren't promoted like Valentine's Day and White Day. Around those days you see advertisements and special displays of gifts all over the place.

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Korean Holiday: August 15 (Liberation Day)

On August 15th Koreans celebrate 'Gwangbokjeol' or Liberation Day. It is a public holiday that marks the liberation from Japanese colonial rule.

A ceremony led by the president is held at a history museum in Cheonan, The Independance Hall of Korea, or Sejong Center. The Independance song (광복절 노래) is sung at the ceremony.

The Korean flag (태극기) is raised in honor of those who fought for Korea's freedom.

The government also issues pardons on this day.

South Korean Holiday: November 11-Pepero Day

I love Pepero! My favorite is dipped in chocolate with almonds.


Pepero (빼빼로) is a cookie stick, dipped in chocolate syrup, manufactured by Lotte in South Korea since 1983.

Pepero Day is an unofficial holiday in South Korea similar to Valentine's Day. It is named after the Korean snack Pepero and held on November 11, since the date "11/11" resembles four sticks of Pepero.The holiday is observed mostly by young people and couples, who exchange Pepero sticks, other candies, and romantic gifts. Lotte denies starting the holiday and instead states that they noticed a bump in Pepero sales around November 11th and after continued popularity they decided to then encourage the holiday with special gift boxes and other promotions.Some consider it to be a contrived holiday and some teachers have encouraged children to exchange healthy snacks to help combat obesity.

According to one story, Pepero Day was started in 1994 by students at a girls' middle school in Busan, where they exchanged Pepero sticks as gifts to wish one another to grow "as tall and slender as a Pepero".

Day 296...한글날 day

Friday October 9

안녕하세요!

Today was Hangul day. 한글 is the written form of the Korean language was created by King Sejong the Great. It used to be an actual public holiday. Its legal status as a holiday was removed in 1991 because of pressure from major employers to increase the number of working days. (that's too bad...it would have actually been a day off from work instead of another Saturday holiday).
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Hangul is pretty easy to learn. It didn't take me long to get the hang of it. I can read Korean. I just can't speak it very well! When I'm reading Hangul I find it funny that some words are just English words that are 'koreanized'. Example: 맥도날드 홈 서비스--it literally says 'Mcdonald home service'. maek do nahl deu hom seo bi seu (that's my attempt at romanization)

Well my first class was same as always. We did spelling.

In my 2nd class we did the online newspaper.  I gave them a worksheet to answer about one of the articles.  One boy just wrote down random answers. All of them were wrong. I made him do it again and he still got it wrong so I just wrote the answers. Some of these kids can't answer the questions because they don't want to read the article. They just want me to give them the answer.

We also had the online newspaper in our 3rd class. They weren't so cooperative. They don't like it when I interrupt them to tell them to do their work. They are talking and not doing their work.. I am so tired of these students ignoring me. I know their Korean teachers wouldn't let them act that way and I bet they don't ignore them. Why do they treat me this way? They don't understand that they are at a school setting and it isn't play time. The 3 boys didn't even make it to the questions because they were goofing off too much. I just told them to do it for homework. (they won't do it!)

My 4th class was okay. We had 2 tests first. A spelling test and a test on the online news content. One student does well on the spelling tests and one student always does poorly. I always give them time to study and they know about the test days in advance so they have a chance to do well. Then we learned our new words. Some of the students start writing their words before I tell them to. Then some of them have already completed page 39 when I tell them to do page 38.  I think the silent letters will trick them on the test on Monday.

Day 289...What is Chuseok?

Friday October 2

I didn't have to work today! It was nice to have a day off!
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This year Chuseok falls on Oct 2, 3, and 4.

Chuseok is one of Korea’s most celebrated holidays in South Korea. It is a time when families and friends gather to share food and enjoy their time together, giving thanks to their ancestors for the year’s bountiful harvests. It's kinda like Thanksgiving in America except its longer and has more traditions.

Chuseok Customs

- Charye (ancestor memorial services)
On Chuseok morning, family members gather at their homes to hold memorial services in the honor of their ancestors called Charye.

- Beolcho (removing weeds around the grave) and Seongmyo (visiting ancestral graves)
Visiting ancestral graves during Chuseok is known as ‘Seongmyo’ and during this visit, family members usually cut the weeds that have grown around the graves in the summer season. Taking care of the ancestral graves such as removing weeds is called ‘Beolcho’. This custom is considered a duty and an expression of devotion. On the weekends, about one month prior to the Chuseok holidays, Korea’s highways become extremely congested with families visiting their ancestral graves to fulfill their ancestral duties.

- Ssireum (Korean wrestling)
In the past, the strongest of the villagers gathered to hold wrestling competitions. The sport of wrestling on sand while being surrounded by spectators has become a traditional favorite in Korea. The last wrestler standing was considered the winner and was acknowledged as the villager’s strongest man and took home cotton, rice, or a calf as his prize. Today, Ssireum (Korean wrestling) competitions are still held as a folk competition, a one-on-one game to determine the strongest man in Korea.

- Ganggangsullae (Korean circle dance)
Mothers and daughters dressed in hanbok (traditional Korean dress) gather around in a circle, holding hands, and sing together. This dance originated from the Joseon Dynasty during the Japanese invasion when the Korean army dressed Korean mothers and daughters in military uniforms and had them circle a mountain peak to make the Japanese think the Korean military was greater in number than it actually was. Through this strategy, the Koreans were eventually able to defeat the Japanese.

- Chuseokbim (Chuseok dress)
Traditionally on Chuseok, the head of the household would buy new clothes for everyone, including the servants. This custom was known as Chuseokbim. Usually, a traditional hanbok is worn, but nowadays newly purchased clothes are not limited to hanbok. Today, families put on a modern type of hanbok called Chuseokbim and hold Charye services, and afterwards, they enjoy their time together.

Chuseok Food

- Songpyeon
Songpyeon is one of the representative snacks of Chuseok. This rice cake is prepared with rice or non-glutinous rice powder that is kneaded into the perfect size, then filled with sesame seeds, beans, red beans, chestnuts, and a host of other nutritious foods. When steaming the songpyeon, the bottom of the rice cakes are layered with pine needles, which fill the rice cakes with their delightful fragrance. On the evening of Chuseok Eve, the entire family gathers together to make songpyeon under the bright moon. There is an old Korean saying that says that the person who makes the most beautiful songpyeon will meet a good-looking spouse. Therefore, the single members of the family try their best to make the nicest looking songpyeon as they laugh out loud in merriment.


- Alcoholic Beverages
Another major element of Chuseok is the alcoholic beverages. This traditional Chuseok drink is made of newly harvested rice and is also known as “The Hundred Year” Drink. People who look forward to this major holiday are also rich in generosity and like to share their generosity over drinks.

Day 171--Memorial Day

June 6 Saturday

In South Korea, Memorial Day is held every June 6 to remember the men and women who died while in military service, especially during the Korean War.

On this day, a memorial ceremony is held in National Cemetery in Seoul. Also, the South Korean flag is flown at half-staff.

Day 150 Holiday: Teacher's Day

May 15 Friday

Teacher's Day

Teachers Day: Originally was started by a group of red-cross youth team members who visited their sick ex-teachers at hospitals. The national celebration ceremony had been stopped between 1973 and 1982 and it resumed after that. On the celebration day, teachers are usually presented with carnations by their students, and both enjoy a shorter school day. Ex-students pay their respects to the former teachers by visiting them and handing a carnation. Many schools now close on Teacher's Day because of the rampant bribery implicit in the expensive gifts often given to teachers. Schools can use the day to have an outing for the teachers.
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I did not get the day off for Teacher's day. Its odd how the children are off for Children's day, but teachers are not off for Teacher's Day.

I didn't get anything from my students for teacher's day :( Maybe they only give gifts to their real teachers at their daytime school.

Today all the teachers from my academy got together for a "celebration". I was thinking it would be like a party. It wasn't. We just sat in a room and listened to a few people speak in Korean. I didn't understand a word they said. The school gave us a "luxury romance towel" as a gift. (Whatever that is!)Its a small towel about the size of a handtowel and they had the school's name embroidered on it.

Today was Mk's last day!! He wants to get together with me and Lesley next weekend.

Now my person in charge of making sure I pay my bills is one of my Korean teachers. She gave me a schedule that tells me what day of the month all my bills are due. I don't know why the school wants a receipt for every bill I pay. Why is that necessary? I'm still confused about why I haven't received an internet bill. I've told 2 people at the school. If it doesn't get paid KT won't be on my case anyway. Its not even in my name.

My students in my 2nd class were being rowdy today. I had to keep telling them to be quiet and get in their seats. Today we were just reviewing. In one of our songs in the unit there is a line that says "there are 20 noisy kids and one poor teacher". That's how I felt today. There are 6 noisy kids and one poor teacher!! I gave them their essay topic today. Their essay topic was to write about their favorite movie. They all handed their papers back to me and said they don't watch movies.(I don't believe it) Anyway I have to make a new essay topic.

I watched 2 episodes of "House" at work today. I'm trying to catch up on episodes that I have missed. I still have 10 episodes to watch and then I will be caught up.

In my 3rd class we did a writing unit. One of my students had this vest thing that you can zip all the way over your head and it looks like a skeleton. When its zipped it covers the whole face. He kept zipping it up during class. One time he was asking for help and he zipped it up. I started helping another student and he said "me first, me first." Then I told him to unzip it first so he could see what I was showing him. He also zipped it up when he came in the teacher's room to talk to a teacher.

After school I went out to eat with a few of the teachers. The school gave us money to celebrate teacher's day. (not individually but to the group to use.) We ate Galbi and Samgyupsal. It was yummy! I ate a lot of the corn salad. Its very interesting and delicious. I don't know what all was in it but I know it had corn and apples and some kind of mayonnaise based "dressing".  I think I ate about 3 bowls of it. Every time I would finish one they would bring another one. In Korean restaurants they have bottomless side dishes.(love it!) I also tried something weird. One of the korean teachers put the word into her korean-english dictionary on her phone and it said it was "Acorn starch jelly". We were in the restaurant for a long time-over 2 hours!

After we got finished eating they decided they wanted to go to a noraebang (karaoke room). My first Korean karaoke experience. Very interesting. The one we went to was open 24 hours.You go into this small room. You only sing in front of the people that are in your group. There were 8 of us. There are couches to sit on and books to choose what song you want to sing. They have a good selection of English songs.(and tons of Korean songs). They brought in snacks and drinks for us.They also have tambourines in the room. You have this remote control where you type in the number of the song you want to sing and the words come up on this big screen TV  While one person was singing everyone was standing up dancing, singing along, and playing the tambourine  We had a great time. Everyone was being silly! They tried to get me to dance but i wouldn't! I sang 4 songs. I started out with "Hero" by Mariah Carey. They all commented on how good I sang. Then I sang "Alone" by Heart. Then I butchered "Bohemian Raphsody" (note to self-never attempt that song!!). Then i sang the last song of the night which was "I Kissed a Girl". Fun times. I think we were in there for about an hour. When we got finished it was 2am!

Day 139 Holiday: Children's Day

May 5 Tuesday

In South Korea, [(어린이 날) in Korean] May 5 is officially recognized as Children's Day. Parents and teachers give presents to their children as well as spend time with them. The children are taken on excursions to zoos and museums. It was originally celebrated on May 1st, but was later moved to May 5th. The children's Author, Bang Jeong Hwan, was instrumental in creating Children's Day in Korea. He even invented the word in Korean for "children" (어린이) which did not previously exist in the Korean Language

Its a normal holiday..banks, schools and post offices are closed.
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Today I was up before noon on a holiday. Someone better check to see if I'm okay! I got up early to go to the gym to workout with Lesley. I was going to join her gym today, but I wasn't ready to pay the big price. A one month membership is 150,000($118). If you sign up for 6 months you get a 20% discount which is 576,000($454/$75 a month). I'm going to sign up for a 6 month but I didn't have that much money with me today. I'll be able to join after payday. I wonder why its so expensive!!! They let me workout with Lesley today. We were on the eliptical machine for 25 minutes then we worked with the weights. She showed me all the weight machines and I worked out my arms. I felt good after the workout.

After the workout I came back home and showered. They have a shower the gym but you have to change in front of everyone. The korean woman sure dont mind being naked and changing in front of everyone, but I'm self conscious esp since I'm so fat.

Then I headed out to find a lens for my camera. The subway was crowded today. I went to Namdaemun market. I navigated my way through the crowded market and then made my way to the camera district which has tons of camera shops. I walked into 2 of them and they wanted 200,000 for a new lens. I asked how much a used one would be in one store but they didnt have any used lens. Then i went to a 3rd store. I got a used lens for 130,000 (that was a decent price-lenses are expensive!) and I got a lens cleaning cloth for 10,000 won. So I paid 140,000 won in all which is about $110 usd. The man in the shop gave me a vitamin c drink. I actually have one in my fridge that I haven't tried. I was curious to see what it tasted like. Its actually tastes good. I might have to buy some of those. Its a small drink that provides vitamin c.

Then I headed out to Itaewon to go to a beauty salon. I was searching on google for beauty salons in Seoul that speak English. I found a review for a place in Itaewon called "The Green Turtle". Exit 4 3rd floor of the building that has Quiznos and Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. I got there at 5 they said I could come back at 6:30pm. While I was waiting I went to Geckos Terrace to eat. I had my usual-the cheeseburger. Then I sat outside for a little while just watching people. There was this man who was talking to himself. Then at 6:30 I went in for my appt. I saw someone that I knew there. I met her when my recruiter set up a get together back in December. We talked briefly. She is friends with my friend Joel from Charlotte who is also in South Korea.

They washed my hair and then I guess the next thing was leave in conditioner. They put it on and put on a cap then waited about 5 minutes. The person cutting hair was a man. I showed him a picture of when my hair was chin length and described what I wanted done. He did a great job. After he was done they styled my hair. I wish I knew how to style my hair like the beauty salon. I can't ever reproduce the look! The wash/cut/dry was 25,000 won.



Then I headed home. I stopped by the little river near my subway station. There's a waterfall and it was lit up with different colors and there were fountians that shoot water up. I took a few pictures. Then I went home and played around with my new camera. I love it. I tried out the remote also. I can sit the camera on a ledge and then hold the remote and take the picture. I took some pics of myself. I changed my myspace and facebook default pics. I haven't put up a recent pic in a while.



Back to work tomorrow. Instead of 2 classes I now have 4 on Wednesday. As of tomorrow I will have been here 20 weeks. This is my 10th week at my new school.

I'll be home in @299 days!

Day 118....Black Day

April 14..Tuesday

Today is Black Day. It's a holiday for singles. Its for the people who didn't participated in Valentine's day or White Day. I'm not participating in the festivities though.

Black Day (April 14) is a South Korean informal tradition for single people (a.k.a. Unit Solo/Solo Regiment, lee: 솔로부대) to get together and eat Jajangmyeon (noodles with black bean sauce), sometimes a white sauce is mixed for those who did not celebrate White Day.

The idea is that those who did not give or receive gifts on Valentine's Day (February 14) or White Day (March 14) can get together and eat Jajangmyeon (짜장면), white Korean noodles with black bean sauce (hence the name), to commiserate their singledom.
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I went to the bank today.I paid 2 bills using this machine that's like an ATM. I don't even have to see a teller to pay bills. I got my bill for the cable today. It was 14,000 for half of the month. (didn't sign up till 3/14). I paid my gas bill and cable bill.Then I wanted to send money home. The exchange rate for today was 1337 but she was going to give me a discount since I use that bank. The discounted rate would have been 1330 which would be 751usd for 1,000,000 won. I filled out all the forms and I had a paper with me that had all my information. She found out that I had transferred with Woori. In Korea you can only send money home from one bank. She said she would have to call Woori and I guess close my account there.She said it would take 10 minutes and I didn't have time to wait so I just left. She will keep my forms for whenever I come back.

I got to school a little late. Since I need to close my woori account I asked one of the korean teachers to call LG and switch my account. They couldn't switch my account because I don't know my foreign registration number (because they took my ARC card away). I didn't write it down because I always just show my card, but I don't have a card. I'll have to wait till I get my new ARC card. Then switch my LG account over to IBK. Then I can close my woori bank account and transfer money home. Why does this have to be so complicated? I was fine with Woori but the school made me go with their bank of preference which is IBK so now I have to close my woori account and use my IBK. And I have to go all the way to Nokbeon if I need to go to the bank. Which is a 15 minute walk or a 5 minute bus ride.

Classes were okay today. We didn't cover as much as I wanted to in my first class. Some students were late so that delayed the class a little. 6 people were there on time. 2 people were late. and 3 were absent. I'm going to have to spend more time on Was/Were because I don't think they are grasping the concept.

2nd class was good. One of the students brought ice cream so that delayed starting that class, but we are right on track so it didn't disrupt the flow of class. We went over 2 pages. then we reviewed the unit. then for the last 10 minutes I let them play a game. they played hangman.

When I went in my 3rd class there was no one in the class. Then about a minute later one student showed up. I started the lesson and about 5 minutes into it another student came in. The other student showed up about 5 minutes before class was over.

My 4th class is crazy! I was getting them to spell words in the vocabulary. They were acting all silly while they were spelling the words.One of the guys was asking me about American bad words. I wouldn't tell him any. I'm not going to tell children the bad words. Later in the class he said "I know one. Son of a bitch". This class loves the corny songs in the book. We listened to the one that went with today's lesson. Then they wanted to listen to the one in unit 3 that we heard a month ago. They laughed hysterically while it was playing. It is a funny song. At the end of class I let them listen to songs from unit 1 and 2 since we didn't cover those lessons.

I have to get up bright and early to go to the hospital tomorrow. I have to be there at 11am.

Days 38-41--Holiday--Lunar New Year

Days 38-41 January 24-27 2009

We got a little bit of snow this morning...just a tiny bit...just barely covering the ground....3rd time this winter...I've never seen snow 3 times in one winter!

Seol-nal (Lunar New Year)

The Lunar New Year holiday, also known elsewhere as Chinese New year, is second in importance only to Chuseok (the Harvest Moon Festival). Every year, family members make a grand pilgrimage to their hometowns. During the 3-day period, Seoul is almost deserted a most people leave the city to return to their ancestral roots.

Although many of the younger generation take advantage of the time off to go skiing or travel abroad, Korea's roads, railways, and skies are full of homeward bound travelers. People line up for hours when the bus and train tickets go on sale, about 3 months prior to the holidays. For those masochistic enough to try driving, taking over 24 hours to drive from Seoul to Busan is not unheard of! (Normally, it takes 5-6 hours. However, the family bond runs deep in Korea culture, and it seems that people gladly make the journey.

Family and Ancestor Worship

During the 3-day holiday, families go to their hometowns and visit relatives, bringing expensive gifts of food and drink. They usually stay with the head of the family (usually the eldest male in the family). The children and grandchildren perform saebae (bowing and paying respect to ones elders). If they do a good job, they are rewarded with envelopes of money.

The first thing in the morning, everyone cleanses their bodies then dress in their best hanbok (traditional Korean clothes). Together, the extended family performs ch'arye (a ceremony to commemorate their ancestors).

Afterwards, they trek to the ancestral gravesite for a grand picnic (although in the past, generally only the men would go, but this tradition has changed recently.). The females of the family have spent days and a minor fortune (the average cost per family is over W100,00) to prepare the Lunar New Year's sacrificial food. At the gravesite, the food and alcohol is placed around the graves in offering to the family's ancestral spirits. After a period of sang-myo (bowing and paying respects to their ancestors), the family enjoys the meal and drink.

Traditions

One New Year's Day, one should eat ddeok-guk (rice cake soup) for good luck. Children are told that they will not grow any older unless they eat their ddeok-guk. The soup is made by diagonally slicing sausage shaped rice cakes into thin, oval slices. The rice cake slices are soaked in water, then boiled in beef broth. The soup is garnished with chives, seaweed, and egg.

Throughout the first month of the lunar calendar, villagers hold ceremonies and events asking the spirits for fortune and peace in the coming year. While some of the rites are performed only by females, others involve the entire village, such as offerings to the Earth spirit.

On New Year's Day of the lunar calendar, after villagers have shown respect to their family members and visited their ancestral tombs, they will gather to enjoy a farmers band and pay respect and tribute to the Earth spirit. First they will visit the home of the wealthiest villager who entertains them with food and drink. All the village members then dance around the yard and through the house and any other buildings on the property, singing songs to the Earth spirit. The songs ask that the family and home be blessed with fortune and prosperity in the coming year. Afterwards, they move on to the next house and continue on until all the homes had been visited. If the Earth spirit is pleased with these activities, he will endow the people with many rewards throughout the year.

Traditionally, people would stay awake on the night before New Year's Day. Records indicate that the court held narye (exorcising ceremonies) to expel any evil spirits. Ten dancers in Ch'oyong masks danced to a musical accompaniment. In rural areas, a musical performance of nong-ak (farmers' music) was also used to expel evil spirits and usher in good fortune