Lunar New Year in Korea

Kung hey fat choy! Chinese greetings as they celebrate the Lunar New Year. Here in Korea it's Sae-hae Bok Mani Paduseyo! which means Many New Years Blessings to You!

Seol or Seolnal(New Year's Day) is a very important holiday here in Korea along with Chuseok (Thanksgiving). Seolnal is a three days (paid) holiday, too bad it falls in the middle of the week (Tues - Thu) that people had to go back to work or school on Friday. I was hoping for a colorful, extravagant and traffic-jamming new year celebrations like Chinese does but Korean approach to this holiday is quieter. But then again we are in the boonies, so who knows what's happenings in the city.

Anyway, today we were invited at the school directors house for an all korean lunch and as we ate they tell us how Seolnal is celebrated. Families are gathered at their parents (elders) houses and prepare foods, liquors and tea, for Chesa (the offering to ancestors) and family members make a bow. Traditionally the must-eat food on this day is the Mandu-gook, soup with rice cakes and small dumplings, it's good though! Some people wear hanbok (traditional korean clothing) on this occasion and some don't. For fun, they fly a kite outdoors and play the Yut game indoors. I don't know much about the yut game which they said is very popular, but the kite sure is colorful. The Yut game is composed of four stick and part of playing it is throwing it in the air.


the hanbok that I wish to wear somedaybefore we leave Korea

yut game

a colorful kite