This is called a BapBeogoh or a rice burger! You pick what you want inside then they sandwich it between 2 layers of rice. I got the chicken curry rice burger an it was $2.50. To eat it you have to squish it down to make it more flat then you use a spoon. They have many different flavors to choose from and they are all cheap and very filling!! :)
Korean thanksgiving, also known as Chuseok, is a combination of Americas memorial day and turkey day. It iss a huge holiday here; families drove back to their hometowns, Mon-Weds. all the stores closed down, traffic was crazy. I was lucky enough to be invited to spend Chuseok with my Korean family. Whereas most of the foreign students stayed in the dorm. My Korean parents parents both live in Gunsan which is middle - left Korea, on the ocean border. Normally it is a 2 hr drive but with Chuseok traffic it was 4 hrs. This is still nothing compared to the drives i'm used to in America, but to a Korean this is a really long trip. I met both sides of the grandparents, many aunts and uncles, some cousins, and a cute dog named Cookie. None of these people spoke the slightest bit of English so it allowed me to practice the Korean that I knew. Gunsan is a well known tourist place. It has the famous Lee Sung Dang bakery known for their red bean and vegetable buns. Then there is Seonyoudo Island and Lizzy and I took a ferry to. We rented a motorcycle, and rode around the entire Island in less than 2 hours. Gunsan is also known for their sea food which I tried a lot of and it was delicious! Although Chuseok spans from Sat to Wed. the main day is Monday. Moms and grandmothers spent all Sunday in the kitchen preparing for Monday. The main morning feast was spent at the dads side of the family then dinner was spent at the moms side of the family. This is traditional Korean culture, the parents also slept at the dads parents house as well (I slept at the moms moms house). They laid out the Chuseok food on a nice table, lit some incense, and did a wine pouring and bowing ritual. Only the men participated in the bowing ritual. They also moved chopsticks around on top of all the dishes. After we cleared the table and put the food on normal plates and ate. It was really yummy food! My favorite was the songpyeon; the green rice dumplings with sesame inside. After that we hiked up a small mountain where the great grandparents were buried. We cleaned up the plants and then did a smaller similar food/bowing ceremony. I felt really honored to be a part of their Chuseok. I was able to participate in all Chuseok festivities. I know not many foreigners get to experience this and it will be a strong memory I will have forever. |