A Hoosier in Korea: Chuseok - A Korean Thanksgiving

When I returned from the States, I received the following email:

Dear scientists and students,

...

I believe you recieved the inviitation letter to the Chuseok Celebration for Int'l community.

For the event, we will be having a Talent show which needs your participation. If this notice is too late for you to prepare I apologize you for that, though, it will be a great opportunity for you or your collegues, classmates and friends to show off your talent in front of other international scientists and students.

Your participation will be greatly appreciated and we are preparing prize as well.

Please do think about this and help us to well-organize upcoming Chuseok Celebration.

If you would like to participate in Talent show, please fill out the form below and send it back to me.

Thank you very much.

A talent show? Really? Initially, I thought participation was required, and a thousand disasters passed through my mind. What would I do? Sing? Dance? Clog? Asians tend to take these types of events very seriously. Thankfully, when I broached the subject with the ladies in the business office (I was looking for back up singers) I discovered a way out. They had no idea what I was talking about. They were never invited. It was to be an international event; Koreans weren't allowed. Usually, if there are no Koreans, it's boring. Besides, it's wrong not to invite the Koreans, so as a sign of unity I was going to boycott the event. "Uhm, Brad, it says there will be free food... and Cass." Fortunately, the talent show was voluntary.

Chuseok is the Korean version of Thanksgiving. The definition from wikipedia:

Chuseok (Korean: 추석), originally known as Hangawi (한가위, from archaic Korean for "the ides of August"), is a major harvest festival and a three-day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. Like many other harvest festivals, it is held around the Autumn Equinox. As a celebration of the good harvest, Koreans visit their ancestral hometowns and share a feast of Korean traditional food such as songpyeon and rice wines such as sindoju and dongdongju.

Our institute is pretty good at putting on events. The Chuseok Celebration had many activities before the food was served. There was a painter doing artful calligraphy. There were games you could play to win prizes as well as a raffle. The first place prize was a bicycle. The five other prizes were.... soap. There was also a best dressed competition. I thought the kids in the picture should have won, but no. The competition was a little strange. You would get your picture taken wearing the traditional Korean outfit provided and people would vote for who was best dressed. But everyone was wearing the same thing! How could it not be a tie?

My nominees for best dressed

There was a martial arts demonstration as well. These guys were serious.

Then it was time for food. But first we had to have our picture taken and a toast by the Ambassador from ... Nepal. Finally we lined up for food. There were lines at both ends of the tables since there were plates at both ends of the tables. Unfortunately, the chicken was at one end and the salmon at the other resulting in a rather unpleasant convergence near the center.

"Excuse me! The line is back there."

"Uhm, there is also a line here," I said pointing behind me.

"I don't think you understand..."

I didn't listen to the rest. Her name tag said she was from Nepal. When did that invasion happen? Oh well, one of the benefits of moving to Seoul was to be nearer to Nepal. Mission accomplished. Too bad that benefit didn't really pan out as I had hoped.

The talent show was good... and serious. There were Indonesian singers, Pakistani dancers, and a Chinese flutist. It was too dark for video so you will have to trust me. It was very entertaining.

At the end of the evening we were given a parting gift. "Male or female?"

"Uh, male."