Happy Korean New Year

February 3rd is the first day of the Korean Lunar New Year also called Seollal. It falls on a different day each year and is one of the country's biggest celebrations. It is a public holiday and last three days. Many people travel to their hometowns or areas where their ancestors live.

House Cleaning is one of the main customs on New Year's Eve as well as burning bamboo sticks to ward off evil spirits. The next morning special honor is also paid to the elders of the family and commonly the youngest members will do a deep bow to greet the elders at the start of the day. This is referred to as SaeBae. Most people also wear their traditional dress known as hanboks. The elders will give gifts to the youngest family members and exchange well-wishes for health and prosperity for the new year. Typically new crisp money is the most common gift given by elders.

Wonderful feasts are prepared including the traditional rice cake soup called Tteokguk as well as fruits, traditional cookies and nuts. The food preparation usually starts way ahead of time.

One of the most interesting facts is that all Koreans turn a year older on New Years instead of their actual birthday. We wish all of our Korean family and friends a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year. We sent a card to Miles' foster family along with new pictures so we hope they received it in time for their holiday. Best Wishes!!!! We hope to always keep Korean traditions special so Miles will never forget what a special place it really is and how important it is to our family.