Korean New Year

Korean New Year

Koreans usually celebrate New Year twice. One is from the solar calender, the other one is for the lunar new year. In the past thime before I or my parents came up on the world, Asian people had a tendency to follow the lunar calender. I think the Pacific Asian people had regarded the lunar was a kind of pivotal standard for the life.

Firstly, I don't want to mention and explain about the lunar calender because I think you are here with your interests of Korean things or Asian things. Unless you were, you can type in "the lunar calender" and get some information or contents about it.

I remember that some of media say Asian people have Chinese New Year. When I read, I got depressed. Why was it from China? I don't know and can not find out where the origin from. It's obvious that there are lots of hypothesis and assumptions but I can not insist which one is logical and valid. Anyhow, I want the New Year on the lunar callender to be called like "the Lunar New Year" now that China, Japan, Mongol, Vietnam or others which I don't know have a celebration of the lunar new year.

The Korean New Year is known as "Seollal" [설날] . It has other names such as "Sesu", "Wondan", "Sinwon" or "Wonil." It's the biggest Korean festival with "Chusok"[추석].

(Chusok is like the Korean Thanksgiving day.)

Starting the Japanese period, the Korean has accepted the solar calender.

Koreans have solar and lunar new year celebrations now. The solar new year is called "sin jeong"[신정], the other one is "goo jeong."[구정] . Part of Korean conservertives asks Koreans not to use "sin jeong" and "goo jeong" because the two words were from Japanese expressions.

What does the Korean do on Seollal? As is the case with other countries, Koreans also have like New Year's resolutions and greeting with their precious reletives. With roughly a couple of weeks to go before Seollal, Koreans send some postal mails with their sweat hearts.

Many people go back to their hometown where they had been grown up. Many Korean people with dreams of success gathered into Seoul or around Seoul from other cities or provinces in 1970's. Those were the babyboom genereation from their parents suffered from the Korean War. By virtue of their efforts, South Korea could stand and come up.

On one or two days before Sollal, lots of cars are clogging up on all the highways and all tickets for travellers on the holidays are sold out. Do you want to feel the day? Just take your car on highways. You may have to wash your hands around highways, not in a restroom of service area.

With pleasure of getting together with family, they are going back their hometown on that day even if they get great tons of stress.

On Seollal, Koreans have new year's greeting, called "Sebae"[세배]. Young people bow formaly in Korean ways, with kneeling down and bending their body, to their parents or grand parents. (You can see the pictures on the top of the post.)

--NEW WORDS-----------------------

세배 (sebae) - bow formaly in Korean ways.

설날 (sollal) - the Korean New Year based on the solar or lunar callender

신정 (sinjeong) - the Korean solar new year. The word might be from Japan.

구정 (goojeong) - the Korean lunar new year.

고향 (gohyang) - the hometown where you were born and grown.

추석(chusok) - the Korean Thanksgiving day. It's not the same with the American or Canadian one.

할아버지(hal ah bu ji) - grandfa

할머니 (halmoni) - grandma

아버지 (abeoji) - father [formal]

아빠 (abba) - dad [informal]

어머니 (oemoni) - mother [formal]

엄마 (eomma) - mom [informal]

중국(joongguk) - China

몽골(mongol) - Mongol

일본(ilbol) - Japan

아시아(Ah si ah) - Asia

-------------------------------

Quiz.

What's the Korean lunar new year called in Korean?

Why the Korean gets the traffic congestion on highways during the national holidays?

The Seoul Subway System

I'd like to talk about the Seoul Subway system. Many people visiting in Seoul ask me about their destinations. Perhaps, the Seoul metro is complicated for them.
Anyway, the Seoul Metro offers the Seoul subway map. It's available for English, Chinese or Japanese. If you need it, you can connect to www.seoulmetro.co.kr .
On the top of right side, you can click an English icon as you want. (Before downloading, Acrobat Reader should be installed in your computer.)
There are eight line and four local lines including the Airport Railroad in Seoul area. Although Seoul city is not huge, compared to other capital cities, it has many lines. It means that you can have your journey easily and lots of Korean people usually take the subway. If you visit to Seoul, you would realize that there are a lot of people packed in subway.

How to use the Seoul metro?
When you get a subway map, you can see that each line has each color. Yes! You got it! Seoul Metro has been classified in colors symbolized for line numbers.
Then, check up your destination. Where are you going to? Actually, it must be helpful with comparing to the map for travellers. And you should check the shortest way not to squander your precious time in Korea. Because the subway system is not simply composed, I strongly recommend you have to imagine how you get to your destination in the shortest time.


Can I get help from the Korean?
If you have been to Korea, you may know that Korean people can't speak english fluently or they have tendency to avoid and look at you strangely. Don't worry. You can ask young people. There is one thing you should do when you ask. Speaking in English, you should speak slowly with easy words. Even if the Korean can't speak in english, the Korean would get your meaning.
Actually, I have guided American students studying Asian Culture in L.A toward their guest house. They asked me why Korean couldn't speak in English. They thought weirdly because they had heard the young Korean is eagerly to study English for their own future. I just answered it's kind of Korean personality against other languages.

How to purchase a ticket?
You can get a ticket from vending machines. But I am not sure that the machines provide English voice service. If you get a thought the machine could cheat you or eat your money, you can directly go to an officer.
I think the officers working for Seoul metro can speak in English well. So, you can say your destination and how many tickets you need. The fare depends on distance. Originally, KRW 1,000 is a basic fare and KRW 100 would be added per 5km. (In my experience, less than 5km) In addition, there is not a kind of unlimited ticket or round trip ticket. It's only available for one way by one ticket.

How to enter the gates?
There are two types. One is similar to Hongkong subway, and the other one looks up-to-date. Anyway the usage is the same. Try it. The line 1 to 4 have old one like Hongkong, The other lines have the latest system. You can just put your card or ticket into the hole following the arrow sign. Then you can go into the gate and take the ticket coming up from the other hole.

How to do while getting on?
The corner seats are given priority to the disabled like the old, the pregnant, and so on. Even though you take a general seat, you should yield the old to your seat. Why? It's kinda Korean courteousness originated from Confucianism. If you don't want to do so, you can pretend to doze off. Anyway, the Korean old will not hate you, unless your seat is given one of them, because you are a visitor interested in Korea.
While getting on, you will see like very loudly talkative people. (they are usually old.) And you will hear and feel like that they speaking in Chinese, not in Korean language. It sounds like "JJING JJANG JJONG." Unfortunately, I can't exactly catch the meaning what they say sometimes even though I'm totally Korean. Anyway, I think every person can see that kind of people anywhere.

How to feel Seoul people life in subway?
I strongly recommend you take it on rush hours during weekdays. The peak times are from 7am to 9am and from 7pm to 10pm. Take the subway bounded into residence area! Your nose can perceive something like Kimchi or Doenjang. (It's kind of soybean paste.) And then, close you eyes and imagine why Korea had grown up shortly. Whatever!!!
I don't know the information is helpful. If you can get more informations, visit to the site, http://www.smrt.co.kr/Eng/Subway/Howto/Subway_method.jsp.

Korean Language and Culture

Hi. I'm Ryu from South Korea. It's the first time that I tell you about Korean language and culture. But, as you hear me, my english pronunciation might be too poor to understand. There are lots of flaws in grammar or words. Please, understand me. You can drop by my blog to read an article about this podcasting. Feel free to visit to http://yourkorean.blogspot.com or to send an e-mail dooliya@gmail.com. and my skype account is dooliya. You can contact me with what ever you want at your convinience.

If you see a Korean person at the first time, you have to greet. How should you say? ok! I will tell you. You can say "처음뵙겠습니당.“[Cheo um boep get sum ni da.] It means "how do you do?" and you may say "hello" or "hi". You can say "안녕하세요.”[An nyung ha se yo] or "안녕하십니까" [an nyung ha sip ni gga]. There is another expession like that "nice to meet you". In Korean, it's "만나서 반갑습니당.“ [man na seo ban gap sup ni da.] You may response to it like that "So do I". ”So do I" is "저도요.“[jeo do yo.].
Ok. One more time!

처음 뵙겠습니당. [Cheo um boep get sum ni da.] = How do you do?
처 음 뵙 겠 습 니 당.
안녕하세요 [An nyung ha se yo] = Hello
안 녕 하 세 요
안녕하십니까 [an nyung ha sip ni gga] = Hello
안 녕 하 십 니 까
만나서 반갑습니당. [man na seo ban gap sup ni da.] = Nice to meet you
만 나 서 반 갑 습 니 당
저도요. [jeo do yo.] = So, do I
저 도 요

Let's practice. Follow the sentences what you've learned. First time I will say them slowly. And second time I will say them faster.


Actually, some of my friends living in other countries want to learn Korean language. But, I think before learning another language, it's essential to understand the culture. Don't you think so? hmm. nobody agree with me. Whatever!~
Anyway, I hope to be helpful for who wants to learn Korean.
If you want to get the article about this podcast, you can visit to http://yourkorean.blogspot.com or send an e-mail dooliya@gmail.com.