Uhm, You're How Old?

Last Thursday (July 14th) was the first day of summer in Korea. The calendar is a little strange to me, but here is my best understanding. There are 12 to 14 seasons in Korea depending on who you talk to. In addition to spring, summer, fall, and winter, there are early spring, early summer, early fall, and early winter. So, it makes sense that there are also late spring, late summer, late fall, and late winter seasons. That brings the total number of seasons to 12. Midsumer and Midwinter bring the total to 14; though including those with the other seasons might be a translation problem.

There is some speculation that the rainy season has ended. The weather has been beautiful but hot. To battle the heat, Koreans typically eat a steaming hot chicken soup to give them vitality. The soup contains a whole chicken stuffed with rice and is traditionally eaten on the first day of summer. It is very good, but seems more appropriate for the first day of winter.

Fortunately for me, I celebrated the first day of summer with a special group of people. My Canadian friend had some friends from Halifax visiting, his former mentor and a former lab mate from Korea who has returned to Seoul. We decided to have a typical Korean dinner instead of the chicken soup which we had for lunch. I do not remember how many courses there were. It could have been as many as eight or even more. There were salads, soups, Korean pancakes, bulgogi, shrimp, jellyfish, octopus, skate, and pork. The meal lasted a couple of hours but actually flew by. It was great fun. Having good food with great people makes for a very rewarding experience.

The floor has been cut out making it easier for us westerners to sit on the floor.

Steaming bulgogi. A very nice beef dish.

An excellent start to the summer.

The strangest thing about the Korean calendar has to be how it is used to determine your age. When a Korean is born, he or she is one. Then, on January 1st everyone adds a year. Hello. Now that should be a hell of a birthday party. This means that a child born in December turns two Jan. 1 even though he or she is less than a month old. Let's do some future projections. I met a very interesting lawyer last weekend who is 28 except that she might be 26. If her birthday is August or later, her Korean age is 28 while her biological age is 26. If she has already had her birthday this year, then her biological age is 27. Or maybe she is 28 and her Korean age is 30. Doesn't really matter as long as she is not 25. Now, let's see. My Korean age is ...

"You look 31."

"That is a very good guess."

I've done the math several times, and I think my Korean age is 31.