Korean holidays
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Happy New Year!
A little late, you think? Not really. Because in Korea, the lunar new year holiday called Seollal (설날) starts tomorrow and lasts through Monday, giving the hard-working Koreans four whole days off. While this sounds lovely, the truth is that this season brings as much stress to Koreans as Christmas can bring in the cultures,…
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My Chuseok family trip
This past Chuseok was something else. Chuseok isn’t a holiday that I usually spend much time or energy on. Usually, it’s just a season for some rest and quiet time in a busy city that momentarily slows down. This year was different. To be honest, all holidays have felt odd since my best friend died.…
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Touring Korea
I’m so lucky to have great friends. I’m even luckier that some of them want to visit me in Korea. The reason that you haven’t heard from me in a while is that I’ve been busy touring Seoul and traveling all over the (southern) Korean peninsula. One of my best friends from home came and…
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End of the year traditions in Korea
While Christmas is stealing the picture everywhere in Korea with Christmas trees, Christmas music and Christmas gift sets all over, it has limited significance to the Koreans. Those who identify with Christianity may go to church and have a small family celebration, but the big picture remains that Christmas in Korea is reserved for friends…
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August 15th, Korean liberation day
Today is the Korean liberation day, a national holiday in Korea. I’m still so super excited about my new office that even though it’s raining cats and dogs, and I technically could stay home, I still went to work anyway. What can I say, my new office is just that nice! But back to the…
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It’s Buddha’s birthday – and I need a break
Not from the festivities that is, it’s absolutely amazing to see all the lanterns hanging everywhere in Seoul these days. So colorful and bright that it’s impossible not to feel happy when you look at them. No, I need a break from school. Oh, I know I sound like a spoiled brat when I say…
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Christmas in Korea
Although this year is the third year in a row that I spend the holidays in Seoul, I’m still amazed at how different Christmas is here. I’m used to this season being all about family, getting together, getting cozy, relaxing, talking, eating, celebrating, all for days on end. In Korea, on the other hand, things…
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My first Chuseok
Although I actually celebrated my own little version of Chuseok last year, this year marked my first Chuseok in Korea. Chuseok is the Korean harvest festival, or Korean Thanksgiving, which is usually celebrated some time in either September or October. Since the date is determined by the lunar calendar, it varies from one year to the next.…
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Happy Black Day
Today is April 14, also called Black Day or 블랙데이 in Korean. Those familiar with Korean popular culture will know that the 14th of every month is some kind of “couples day”. In the west, we are mostly familiar with Valentine’s day on February 14 but Koreans have taken it a step further by introducing all the…
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Happy Hangeul Day!!!
Today, October 9th is Hangeul Day (한글날) in Korea. This day marks the celebration of the introduction of the Korean script Hangeul by King Sejong the Great in 1443. The purpose of introducing this scientifically developed script was to improve the literacy among the Korean people who until then had to rely on Chinese characters in order…
Sofie to Korea 