White Weekend

One of the first things I noticed right away when I came to Korea was the large amount of couples surrounding me at all times. There were couples on the subway, streets, stores, restaurants, at the movies, etc, etc. Obviously there are couples everyone you go in the world, but it seemed like every Korean I saw was in a 'couple'. Korean couples are quite humorous to watch. Often times they are wearing matching outfits. Sometimes it's a jacket or sweatshirt. Sometimes it's a baseball hat. 9 times out of 10 the guy is carrying the girl's purse for her. Not kidding. This is just common behavior here. Lots of times couples are fighting and Korean girls are putting their pouting faces to the test. I always see couples play fighting as well; hitting, kicking, and generally bugging each other just playfully. My favorite scene is when one member of a couple is leaving another, especially at the bus or subway stop. The goodbyes are so dramatic you would think they were auditioning for a soap opera. They are also usually accompanied by a wave-and-follow walk (or run) along side the road or subway.

Koreans celebrate Valentine's Day in a special way. February 14 is still the Hallmark holiday over here, but there is a twist. Girlfriends give their boyfriends presents (usually chocolates) on Valentine's Day. Then when March 14 (White Day) rolls around it is the boyfriends' turn to reciprocate. The guys usually buy their girlfriends chocolates or some kind of gift in return. There is even a 'singles' holiday (Black Day), although it does not sound like much fun to me. On April 14, single people in Korea eat a kind of black bean noodle called jjajangmyun and celebrate their freedom? Or cry into their sauce? I have no idea. Hopefully it is accompanied by friends and lots of soju.

I was lucky enough to celebrate White Day this year with my boyfriend, Sean. We kind of celebrated on both days this weekend.

On Saturday we went into Seoul and did a little shopping in Myeong-dong. Afterwards Sean took me to the Cheonggyecheon stream. It is a man-made stream of water that runs through the busy downtown area. It's really cute and surrounded by walking paths on either side. Lots of couples come to the stream on dates to take a stroll. Very romantical.

view from the street

Cheonggyecheon stream

Sean and I

lights at night

We came back to Bundang and Sean took me to dinner at a great little Italian restaurant where they film lots of Korean TV shows and movies.

Sunday afternoon we caught a ride into Seoul to meet some friends for a soccer game. The FC Seoul team was playing another Korean team at the World Cup Stadium. When we arrived the line for tickets was literally halfway around the stadium and we wondered how we were ever going to get in. It actually ended up moving quickly and we were inside before we knew it. The game was not very exciting, but I had a good time catching up with friends, drinking warm beers, and playing with these free blow-up clapping things they gave us to cheer with.

World Cup Stadium

FC Seoul game

the girls at the game

Sean and I at the game

Namaste