Hey yall! As Bryan told you, it was Chuseok yesterday and we have had the best first Chuseok ever! I am enjoying another day off today, and go back to teach tomorrow (Friday), and then its the weekend! Woohoo!
The celebrating actually started for me last weekend when I took part in a cooking class that was offered at Homgbeop-sa Temple, one of the many Buddhist temples here. This temple offers a different cultural class each month (cooking, lantern making, hiking, etc), so I am excited to take part in these over the next year.
Hongbeop-sa Temple
In this class we learned how to make Songpyeon, which are the traditional rice cake deserts made for Chuseok. Chuseok is a holiday celebrating the ancestors for each family, and these treats are made as one of the main dishes for them.
The shape of the Songpyeon vary from region to region, but most of them are in the shape of a half moon. Since Chuseok is held on the largest full moon of the year (it was raining last night...we didnt see it), the moon symbol is an important one. It is said that mothers use to tell their daughters when making Songpyeon, "You will have beautiful children if you make beautiful Songpyeon"
What do ya think? Pretty kiddos in my future? Eh..might need some more Songpyeon classes..
So in addition to the Songpyeon class and the AMAZING hike we did on Tuesday, we had an incredible dinner last night at our friend Ryan's house! There were 8 of us there, from 4 different countries: USA, Mexico, Korea, and China. We grilled delicious steaks and enjoyed them with yummy baked potatoes, sauteed veggies, and a spicy Chinese tofu dish.
Ryan and Kareem "manning" the grill. We were at Ryan's apartment on the 26th floor so we had to get a little crafty with the grill. The police actually came at one point because someone reported smoke billowing out of the windows...woops! :)
Absolutely amazing American/Korean/Chinese meal!
It was so nice to spend the holiday with this lovely group of friends, and our laughter and good times made our first Chuseok very special :).
John, Bryan, and Nick
Soo and me!
Before I head out for the day, I wanted to leave you with some pretty hilarious little videos from last night. Before viewing, I need to preface a little bit.
The first video is of Soo and John doing the dance from a verrry popular Sojo commercial here in Busan. Bryan and I have not seen it because we dont have a TV, but watching Soo and John is enough entertainment for me, I could not stop laughing :)
Soju, which we have probably mentioned before is THE drink of Korea. It is extremely cheap, and is at every Korean table for every dinner. It tastes sort of like vodka, but is about half as strong...and some Koreans can rrreally go through this stuff. Bryan and I have tried it, and its ok, but I doubt we will develop a taste for it like the Korean men do here.
*I should also add that Ryan makes an appearance in this video, and even though it might look like this is his 20th Soju drink of the night, its really only his 2nd, and he was just adding a dramatic touch for the song :) Enjoy:
For all of you "Friends" fans out there, this video is for you! IngIng, our teeny adorable Chinese friend, stated in the middle of dinner that she knows how to dance "American style". When she unleashed "The Monica", I knew I had to record this hilarious moment.
Alright, over and out!
love yall,
Amy
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