all about South Korea

On 4th of October South Koreans celebrate Chuseok , which is something like Korean Thanksgiving. 추석 ( Chuseok ),  also known as “hangawi” ( 한가위 ), in the traditional agricultural society was the time for farmers to relax after their hard work. Now Koreans, several days before Chuseok, go to their ancestral tombs to clean them and pay respect. In the morning of “Thanksgiving” Koreans perform charye  ( 차례 – ancestral worship ceremony) and put plenty of dishes on the offering table of charye. After that, the food used for charye is eaten by the family members and shared with relatives or neighbors. On that day Koreans would eat bite-sized half-moon-shaped rice cakes stuffed with sweet fillings called Songpyeon ( 송편 ) . Another important tradition during that day is Ganggangsullae. This circle dance is performed by women and it combines group entertainment with dancing and singing. Sources: https://koreancultureblog.com/2015/09/26/here-comes-chuseok-korean

One of the traditional dishes your family or friends will make on your birthday is miyeok-guk  미역국 (seaweed soup). That's because in the past mothers, after giving the birth,  would eat this soup for about month, because it was thought that seaweed was good for milk production and uterine contraction. Therefore, eating this soup became a tradition in order to memorialize mother's pain of child-birth and the care they gave to us when we were little. In Korean culture there are also some important birthdays such as 100th-day celebration, first birthday, the 60th, 70th and 80th birthdays that are celebrate with big feasts and parties. During them people invite all of their family and friends to eat together the meal and share, for example, rice cakes. Sources: https://koreancultureblog.com/2017/07/02/korean-birthday-celebrations/ https://moeslema.com/1150 https://mykoreankitchen.com/korean-rice-cake-skewers/

Hanbok is a traditional Korean clothing that Koreans wear on the special occasions or formal events, such as weddings or funerals. This 1,600 years old attire consists of an upper short jacket worn with baggy trousers (for men) or a floor-length skirt with wide waistband tied above the chest (for women). Traditionally, women worn 6-7 layers of undergarments to make the skirt look more voluminous but nowadays they normally wear only 1 layer, for example pants. Sometimes, outer garments like jacket or a vest also can be worn. The main fabric of which hanbok is made is silk. That's why the good quality ones are really expensive.  However, these days Koreans don't really wear this kind of attire on the daily basis, but don't worry you can always see some of them in the Korean, historical dramas. And if you are ever planning on visiting Soul you can always go and check  the photo studios which provide both Hanbok rental and photo taking services .  Sourc

According to Korean legend, Korea was founded by the god-king Tangun in 2333 BC. In every part of its history country has been either invaded, influenced or fought over by its neighbors.  Korea was under the Mongolian occupation from 13th century until early 14th century. Not long after that country was divested by Chinese armies. Also at the end of 16th century Japanese warlord  Hideyoshi launched major invasions.  During centuries China was the only expectation to Korea closed-door policy, playing the role of the "big brother". However its isolation ended when Western powers and Japan sent warships to forcibly open the country. That's the time when the Japanese colonial era began (around 1910). At the end of the World War II Korea was split into 2 occupations zones with USA administering southern part of the peninsula and Soviet Union administering the north, leading to the   division of country   into two political entities:   North Korea   and South Korea.