Stuff Waygooks Like #2 - The Chuseok Holiday (추석)

Chuseok (aka 추석 aka Hangawi aka 한가위) is the major harvest festival and always a three day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar.  Like most harvest festivals, it is held around the time of the Autumn Equinox.  Because it is a celebration of the harvest, Koreans usually leave the cities in mass and return to their ancestral hometowns and family farms to share a feast of traditional Korean food.  One of the major foods prepared and eaten during the holiday is songpyeon (송편), a cresent-shaped rice cake which is steamed upon pine needles.  Other foods commonly prepared are japchae (잡채), bulgogi (불고기), and fruits.

Although many waygooks are invited to join Korean families for the holiday and participate in the festivities, this is not the reason why waygooks like it so much.  They like it because it is a guaranteed three day holiday!  If Chuseok falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, most schools and businesses shutdown for a five day weekend.

Now, if Chuseok lands on a Wednesday, like it did in 2010, the holiday is officially Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.  But most schools and businesses want to be able to stretch it to the weekend, so the holiday is extended an additional work day and most of the time either the Monday or the Friday is also given off work.  This gives waygooks (and Koreans) a six day holiday from working!  There are even some lucky SOBs who received both the Monday and the Friday off, leading to a nine day holiday!  Many waygooks capitalize on this abundant vacation time and take fun trips either within Korea or abroad to exciting destinations in Japan, China, or SE Asia.

Thank you Korea!

The cities being empty of foreigners is also a lot of fun.  The folks at Eat Your Kimchi took advantage of the holiday to dress up like dragons and dance around Seoul.  A solid idea while in a relatively empty city.

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