I hadn't met Tae Hun until tonight but he heard about me through Kyle, and decided to invite me to his home for New Years. The three of us went for chicken tonight - very topical, since New York City is suddenly mad about Korean bak-bak. The New York Times recently printed an article about the trend.Dakgalbi (닭갈비):
We didn't have the crispy fad chicken but rather Dakgalbi, a simmering pot of spicy breast with rice cakes, rice noodles, carrots, etc. It was divine; spicy with a hint of peanut sauce.Afterwards, we went to a coffee shop to get smoothies and discuss the pending holiday. Tae Hun had prepared notes to educate me about Lunar New Years. I am so excited. In the box at the top right corner of the page is the schedule he jotted down!
10:00 AM: Ancestral service.10:30 AM: Dokgu (rice cake soup) breakfast.
12:00: Traditional bowing. Family bow at the feet of their elders.
1:00: Take a rest.
2:00: Go to a cemetery, at a mountain, to again honor ancestors.
3:00: Play games like yoots (Hangul pronunciation.)
The ironic part is that Koreans turn a year older when they eat dokgu, and my birthday is on Sunday so it'll be the case for me, too!
There's something beautiful about your birthday, on the Christian calander, lining up perfectly with the Koren New Year, and you being there to eat the Dokgu. The stars are lined up in your favour this year (that's my horoscope for you, baby -- you, who got me into horoscopes). Who needs birthday cake when you have Dokgu, right?
ReplyDeleteI agree- it must be a really good omen.
ReplyDeleteI do have cake! Chung bought me one and it's customary for the school to give employees cake for their birthdays.
I'll have enough to treat my students, or get really sick!
I see you have found my favorite Korean dish. Dakgalbi (닭갈비) A little spicey but still wonderful.Enjoy you New Year's and birthday!!!
ReplyDeleteHi! I stumbled onto your blog... I don't know how! I'm living in Suwon, too- in Yeongtong, so it's fun to read about another Suwon-ite.
ReplyDeleteI'm so jealous that you get to celebrate New Year's with a Korean family! I bet you'll have such a great time (or had a great time, since it's Sunday night now!).
Hey Morgan, nice to meet you!
ReplyDeleteYeah it was incredible.