Seollal (Lunar New Year) was February 14th this year. I had planned to go to Seoul with a friend to see some cultural demonstrations, but she couldn't make it at the last minute so I went on my own. The tradition is to hike up a mountain or to the beach, stay the night, and make a wish for the new year as the sun rises... but it was still cold and snowy so I didn't do that :)
Instead I went to the folk village in Seoul and saw a few of the traditions associated with the holiday. Hanboks are the traditional dress of Korea for any important celebration like weddings, holidays, ceremonies of government or at schools and such. On seollal they make wishes for the new year usually by writing them down on little slips of paper... at the folk village they tied them all on hanging lines, it reminded me of the prayer pouches lined up in the monasteries. They also make ddeok (rice cakes) and ddeok guk (a beef and rice cake soup) to eat on the holiday. They play traditional games like yut nori (the stick tossing game I sent home for the boys,) a little hackey sack like game called jaegi, making and flying paper kites, see saw (which they jump on instead of sitting... (amazing watching the older women flying through the air on these,) and a hoop game where they roll metal hoops using a stick to guide it... much harder than it looks! They also have their fortunes told for the new year... I was luckily able to find someone willing to translate for me from the Korean. Apparently I will have great fortune in my profession (which here means being something like a doctor, nurse, or teacher) and will find luck in love around November or December of this next year... good to know :) A very fun day trip to Seoul! (And much warmer than sitting on an icy mountain all night!)
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