Well, well, well, where to begin? We had such a jam packed, awesome holiday this past weekend. We had 5 days off of school so we went to my friend Yuri's house for Chuseok and sight seeing. Chuseok is the Korean thanksgiving and takes place on the full moon usually during September (it is based on the lunar year so it can change). During Chuseok you are mainly giving thanks to your ancestors for the good harvest.
For our Chuseok, we woke up Sunday morning and Yuri's mom was already cooking up a storm and started to prepare the food for Chuseok. A table is prepared with all the food on special plates. Chopsticks are laid on your mother and father's favorite food and you bow twice. Afterwards you take one piece off the table to eat and that is your blessing of good fortune from the ancestors. I am by no means an expert, this is just what we did and what Yuri translated for me but here is a link for more information. We then ate a lot of delicious food, much like America's thanksgiving.
Afterwards, Yuri, Derek and I went to Gwangju's Folk Museum. We got a tour by one of the docents who spoke pretty good English. It was a great experience and way to learn a lot about the customs and traditions of Koreans throughout time. The lanterns, clothing, embroidery and pottery were all so inspiring! I should have taken more pictures but of course I forgot.
We then went to Yuri's grandmothers house to pay our respects and eat even more delicious food, so spectacular! Then we went to a autumn flower field by her house. It was the perfect time of day to experience it.
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| A first Chuseok portrait. |
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