Winter Time 2011

Winter Time 2010~ Slideshow: Jaimito’s trip from Seoul, South Korea to York, United Kingdom was created by TripAdvisor. See another York slideshow. Create your own stunning slideshow with our free photo slideshow maker.

Seolnal설날 2011 ,새해복많이받으세요!

This week, celebrate the Lunar New Year. Seollal is a major holiday in South Korea where most people go to their ancestral towns and visit relatives. It is a good chance to enjoy a family celebration while eating lots of delicious food such as Teokguk (rice cake soup). If you are a child, then it is even better because you will likely receive money from your elders. Although this all sounds great, Seollal is also a season when many people stress out. Just few days before Seollal, everybody rushes into supermarkets and department stores to buy gifts for their relatives and lots of food for the ancestral rituals. Although it is a great time for retailers, the same can’t be said for the shoppers. People often push each other out of the way to get to products high in demand. Also, bus terminals and stations become packed with people. If you were not able to reserve a ticket and don’t even own a car, then you might as well just give up. Families make travel preparations ahead of time in order to avoid the traffic, but it ends up being futile. On the highway, sometimes cars won’t move for hours, so you are basically stuck there until God knows when. In other words, it is a crazy time that will leave you exhausted. But, despite all this, in the end, it’s all worth it. If you survive the travel, then you get to spend quality time with relatives you haven’t seen for a long time and stuff yourself with food.



Sadly, not everybody has an opportunity to travel for several different reasons. For those who are not going to their hometowns, this holiday season might make you feel lonely. I’m also one of those who won’t get out of the city. Regardless, I try to see the positive side of it. One of the reasons to enjoy Seollal alone is to have the whole city to yourself. It is refreshing to see Seoul almost empty. There is a great chance that you might get a seat in the subway, and you can walk around comfortably without bumping into people. Since most places in South Korea are open 364 days a year, you’ll have many options. This is a great chance to get together with friends who are also not traveling and explore the city.