Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Happy Children's Day!


Yesterday was Children’s Day here in Korea. This holiday, Eorininal in Korean, is a devoted to the children of Korea.

So what might one do on this day?

Many kids dress up in their traditional clothing, the hanbok. They get special treats from their parents like favorite meals, parties, or presents. Some families choose to visit the city parks where they can play and enjoy the grassy slopes and wide spaces. Or they might watch a parade, visit the zoo or see a Taekwondo demonstration on Children's Day.

The idea of this holiday was conceived by a man named Bhang Jung Hwan in 1923. Later it was proclaimed as a national holiday in 1975. With a minor change in the date from May 1st to May 5th , this holiday is now a central part of the Korean culture.

Of course, Koreans have used May 5th as a special day for hundreds of years. In olden times, Koreans celebrated Suri-day on May 5th. Suri-day was one of the four ancient Korean celebrations.

My family has taken up this holiday too. Over the years my boys have worn their hanboks and we usually visit World Cup Park.

This year we celebrated with friends. We had a campfire and a yummy cookout. I made hummus with pita bread and tuxedo cheesecake, my boys' favorite treat. We had a blast!

Caleb and Luke love Children's Day.
After all, who can resist celebrating a day made just for them?

11 comments:

Danyelle L. said...

Love the pics. :D What a wonderful holiday! Thanks for sharing--I love learning about other cultures. :)

Kimbra Kasch said...

Nothing better than celebrating children - love that.

PJ Hoover said...

What a great day! I love the culture!

Christina Farley said...

It was fun. But today it was back to work. Sigh.

Kate said...

Sounds like a great celebration. Thanks for the info.

Stacy Nyikos said...

What a neat holiday. I wish we could import it to the U.S.!

Jen and Steven said...

Wow, it's like an extra birthday! I'm sure you'll have to keep the tradition going whenever you move back to the States; they won't let you out of another opportunity for favorite foods and gifts. :-) I think that should be instigated into American culture, too. Your food contributions to the cookout sound yummy!

Unknown said...

What an awesome idea for a holiday! Wow!!!

Martha Flynn said...

Adorable!!!!

C.R. Evers said...

great pictures! What a great thing to celebrate!

:0)

Ello - Ellen Oh said...

Awww too cute! And how bad am I don't even know about the holiday!