A Weekend of Traditions

This weekend I was fully immersed in Korean and American cultural traditions. On Saturday after teaching my North Korean Defectors about Thanksgiving I headed to the National Folk Museum of Korea in Seoul to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with my fellow ETAs, the Fulbright Office staff and the US Embassy. When we arrived to the museum we were able to walk through all the exhibits, which was really interesting. We then were treated to a traditional music performance- they even passed out lyrics to one of the songs and had us sing along. After the performance and several welcoming addresses given by Mrs. Shim, the Fulbright director, US Ambassador Kim and the director of the museum we were able to eat. The food was absolutely delicious. We had turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls, pumpkin pie and many other Thanksgiving foods. We also had some non-Thanksgiving American foods such as ziti and garlic chicken, that was much appreciated. It was so nice to be able to enjoy some American food while enjoying the company of my fellow ETAs. It is always so nice to gather altogether and share experiences. Living and teaching in Korea can sometimes be very trying because you always have to have your game face on. Since I live with a home stay family it is sometimes really hard to find time when I can completely have my guard down and be myself. Therefore, being able to spend time with other people who are facing the same challenges is extremely rejuvenating. It is so refreshing to be able to share stories and advice. Additionally, we all became very close during our seven-week orientation and don't get to see each other frequently because we are scattered throughout the country.

The feast

During the dinner several ETAs performed for everyone. The performances ranged from poetry readings to Irish Step Dancing to violin solos. I loved seeing everyone's talents. It will definitely be difficult to be away from home on Thanksgiving since my family has well-developed traditions. I don't think Thanksgiving will ever feel complete without watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and going to the movies. And Thanksgiving certainly feels incomplete when I'm not surrounded by my family. I really cherish the time we spend together and relish the joy we all feel from being silly together or engaging in some good-natured teasing. This dinner made the loneliness I will surely feel on Thursday much more bearable because I know it will be a shared loneliness and I know that there are so many people here in Korea who care for me. This year, particularly after Hurricane Sandy, I am thankful for so much and it was wonderful to be able to count my blessings with friends. I am so pleased that the US Embassy and KAEC put together this dinner for us. It was so refreshing to just embrace being American for a night.

Sunday morning I woke up early and departed Seoul for Woncheon, a small town outside of Hwacheon. One of the teachers at my school lives there and invited me to her family's kimjang, or kimchi-making party. Kimchi is fermented cabbage and Koreans eat it with breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day. It's pretty much the national food of Korea and every November Korean families will make enough kimchi to last them the entire year. As you might imagine this is an incredible undertaking. Most families devote countless hours every Saturday and Sunday in November to making kimchi. Needless to say I was thrilled to be invited to participate in such a meaningful part of Korean culture. My friend Kelvin, who teaches English at a nearby middle school, also joined in the fun.

When I first arrived at my teacher's house I was introduced to her entire extended family. It was really fun meeting all her nieces and nephews, in addition to her siblings and their husbands and wives. I was also welcomed with a huge hug by her mother, who owned the house. The family was so eager to have us participate in the kimjang and I felt extremely welcome at their family gathering. This was a great feeling, considering that no one in the family really speaks any English. We mainly relied on my limited Korean and her son's English. It's unbelievable how much can be communicated without language. After having a cup of tea we headed outside to begin making the kimchi. Kelvin and I were put right to work and began washing an extremely large number of heads of cabbage. We then helped make the sauce that the cabbage ferments in. The sauce is extremely spicy because it is composed primarily of crushed red peppers and the family made us try a piece of cabbage coated in the sauce. The grandmother actually had me open my mouth and put the piece of cabbage in my mouth. Needless to say, despite my increased spice tolerance, my eyes watered immediately. The family still applauded. I have learned that the easiest way to impress any Koreans is to eat really spicy food. After we finished some more work we were rewarded with samgyeopsal, which the men cooked outside right next to where we were making kimchi. Samgyeopsal is thick slices of fatty pork that you then put on a lettuce or cabbage leaf with some spicy sauce and eat. It's normally not my favorite Korean food but I was eager to eat after working hard. While eating, the family then brought out a bucket of raw oysters and urger Kelvin and I to eat them. I was extremely hesitant since I don't even really like cooked oysters but decided to try it since the family had been so kind to me all day. I don't think I need to tell you it was a little hard to keep down.

My co-worker is on the left and her younger sister is on the right.

Making the sauce

The raw oyster!

Struggling to eat a raw oyster

After our snack we continued working and actually placed the kimchi in pots that are buried in the ground. In the old days this is how all Korean families stored their kimchi because it refrigerated the kimchi without a refrigerator. Since refrigerators are super common now, this is rarely down anymore. Most families have special fridges just for their kimchi. Therefore, I was thrilled to participate in this activity. Even my homestay family could not believe that the family still keeps their kimchi in pots in the ground. While we were stuffing the kimchi in the ground several of the younger kids tried to impress Kelvin and I by eating some insects they caught. They just kept popping them in their mouth. Back when Korea was extremely poor people frequently ate insects and a lot of that culture was passed down. As they say, in America the motto is 'all you can eat'. In Asia the motto is 'you can eat all'. After the work was completely down Kelvin and I were graced to another huge meal which we enjoyed with her entire family. We then just talked and watched tv until it was time to go home. The day was so much fun and I am still completely floored by the hospitality of her family. Koreans have consistently stunned me by their generosity. As we left the family invited us back for Lunar New Year, one of the two most important Korean holidays, and gave us each big containers of the kimchi we made. They also told us to come back if we ever wanted more. I absolutely loved my experience and hope I get to visit with the Lee family again!

The kimchi pots in the ground!

Our feast