Bringing a significant other to Chuseok festivities can indicate to your family that you are getting serious and that your date may one day become part of the family.
A recent marriage bureau survey asked which celebrity people in their 30s might want to bring home for Chuseok. Voters decided that Song Ji Hyo, Kim Tae Hee, Moon Chae Won and Lee Bo Young were the most likeable female celebrities and So Ji Sub, Jo Jung Suk, Lee Seo Jin, and Lee Sang Yoon were the top male celebrities to be welcomed at their festivities.
But what exactly is Chuseok?
It's one of the most important annual holidays in Korea. The three-day fall festival is similar to other fall festivals around the world in that it offers celebrants a chance to give thanks for nature's bounty.
But there are other customs that are uniquely Korean.
Some think that the holiday started as a harvest festival in which the spirits of departed ancestors were honored for blessing the harvest and protecting the family. It is celebrated on the brightest full moon of the year, which is the 15th day of the eighth month on the lunar calendar. The first recorded Chuseok celebrations date back to the kingdom of Silla and featured weaving and archery competitions, and martial arts demonstrations.
Today, most Koreans return to their hometowns for the celebration, usually going to the home of the eldest family member. The celebrations mostly involve preparing and eating traditional foods but for some the festivities also still include visiting and tidying up the graves of immediate ancestors. Charye, the holiday's memorial ritual, involves the ritual of placing food and drink on a table in a set order. For example, meat might be placed to the west of the table and soju to the east. Details differ from region to region.
In many homes, Chuseok means three days of cooking, mostly done by women, and washing a lot of dishes, which is often done by men. Certain foods are prepared and eaten during the holiday. Their preparation can be time-consuming, meaning that the women of the house spend much of the three days in the kitchen. One traditional Chuseok treat is songpyeon or rice cake, which is made with sesame seeds, black beans, mung beans, cinnamon, pine nuts and honey. The treats smell deliciously of pine. By eating a moon-shaped songpyeon under a full moon, families wish for a brighter future.
Another traditional food is hangwa, made from rice flour, honey, fruit and roots. It's decorated with colors and patterns. Also eaten are japchae, bulgogi and fruit.
Entertainments traditionally include playing games but today many families prefer to entertain themselves watching the special entertainment or sports events that are scheduled on television.
Traditionally people dressed in hanbok, the clothes that were once worn in Korea, but today many people prefer to buy new clothes for the occasion. And if Song Hye Kyo or So Ji Sub were coming to your holiday festivities you would naturally want to look your best.
