After a long day on the road, I made it to my mother's house where she had a feast waiting for us. We had spinach, bean sprout salad, pan-fried snapper, marinated beef, ginseng kimchi, beef and turnip soup, and rice cakes. Oh, and egg battered fish and crab sticks. It was a great meal and it was great to have my fiancé and my mother get along so well. To walk off the meal we are at Beojusal temple at Songnisan mountain. It is truly great to get out of the craziness of Seoul.  Happy Chuseok everyone! Dan

It is the first time I will be traveling on Chuseok day to my mother's house in Boeun. It is going to be far and I think pretty painful because I heard that that traffic is terrible. People going to Busan by car had to travel 10 hours to get there. It usually takes 3 hours to get to my mother's house but they will try and go around the traffic. I hope to get to my mother's house by 1pm.  Sadly, I won't be able to stay long this time. I have a lot of responsibilities back at home and there are a ton of email to answer. I wish my mother didn't live so far away.  This is an important day for me because my mother will meet my fiancé. We are planning on getting married next January. I am looking forward to it but I realize I really have to change. For my fiancé I am willing to change. I hope my mother approves of my future wife and adores her as much as I do.  Well because of the Internet, I can work anywhere. Time to put a dent in all those emails. 

Chuseok is coming and that means there are a lot of food gift sets going on sale. I think it is great that Koreans are so practical. I mean seriously, how many scented candles and wine decanters does one need? I had a house warming party where I got 3 wine decanters on the same night. (I guess people think I must really enjoy red wine.) I think the food gift sets are great things. I love the ornate boxes of seaweed, apples, pears, and fruit baskets. Oh, and you have to love the Spam gift sets.  The colorful food gift sets have their origins in the harvest festival as part of the ancestor memorial service. People would lay out the food in the center of their households to commemorate the memory of their ancestors. Colorful and various foods were important to let ancestors know that your family was doing well. 

Chuseok Chuseok  Chuseok is the Korean version of Thanksgiving. During this holiday, the family gives thanks to their ancestors by welcoming the spirits into their houses to taste the ethereal flavors of the year's harvest. This may sound superstitious, but the real intention is to commemorate the departed. Because without our ancestors, literally, we wouldn’t exist. This is a family holiday and to be invited to a family's Chuseok celebration is a very special honor. Basically, the family is accepting the guest into their family to not only meet the living relatives that attend, but also the spirits that have passed. During my first year in Korea I was bestowed this special honor by the Kim family in Gyeong Ju. Jikyeong was a student of mine and we became fast friends and she knew that I was new to Korea and I didn't have anyone to celebrate this holiday with. I accepted her invitation, but with one request: I wanted to participate in the preparation of the vari...

Chuseok is coming. This year it is September 21st to 23rd. I'll be in Nova Scotia for a business conference there so I will miss how tranquil Seoul can be when everyone is out of the city. As Chuseok approaches, you'll see more and more gift sets appearing for sale. The one that has always been my favorite (to see, not to receive) is the SPAM gift set. This year at E-mart, they are upping the premium-ness of SPAM and they are packaging this with Canola or grapeseed oil so Korean families can pan-fry their processed ham snacks with healthy oil. (It sounds a bit like having a diet coke with a big mac and supersized fries to me.) Anywho, be sure to give the gift of SPAM this holiday. Spam and Canola Oil Spam with Canola, Grapeseed, and Tuna Fish!!!

Chuseok is the time of the year when Seoul is empty and everything is calm and tranquil in the city. This year Chuseok is from Tuesday, September 21st 2010 to Thursday, September 23rd. Many people have the Monday off. I'll be in Nova Scotia for a business conference so I'll be missing all the festivities. Chuseok is a ancestor memorial service- to honor the relatives who bore the hardship of life to give a better life for their children. For those looking for a primer, he's an article I wrote explaining Chuseok a while back. Cheers, Dan Chuseok Chuseok is the Korean version of Thanksgiving. During this holiday, the family gives thanks to their ancestors by welcoming the spirits into their houses to taste the ethereal flavors of the year's harvest. This may sound superstitious, but the real intention is to commemorate the departed. Because without our ancestors, literally, we wouldn’t exist. This is a family holiday and to be invited to a family's Chuseo...

Chuseok Chuseok is the Korean version of Thanksgiving. During this holiday, the family gives thanks to their ancestors by welcoming the spirits into their houses to taste the ethereal flavors of the year's harvest. This may sound superstitious, but the real intention is to commemorate the departed. Because without our ancestors, literally, we wouldn’t exist. This is a family holiday and to be invited to a family's Chuseok celebration is a very special honor. Basically, the family is accepting the guest into their family to not only meet the living relatives that attend, but also the spirits that have passed. During my first year in Korea I was bestowed this special honor by the Kim family in Gyeong Ju. Jikyeong was a student of mine and we became fast friends and she knew that I was new to Korea and I didn't have anyone to celebrate this holiday with. I accepted her invitation, but with one request: I wanted to participate in the preparation of the various dishes. This ...