Seolnal (Lunar New Year)

For Seolnal (February 6-9) I got 3 days off from work plus the weekend. On Tuesday night a group of us went out for dinner and then to a Noraebang (노래방). Noraebangs are private karaoke rooms. You go and pay a set price (it's really cheap) and you get a private room with tables, couches, two microphones, and your very own karaoke equipment, complete with monitors that display the lyrics of the songs you choose. The great thing is they have tons of English songs. I've gone 3 times since I've been here and it's a really fun group activity.

The next day we all chilled out and basked in the glory of a Wednesday with no work. Fran and I went on a huge food shopping trip and then we had all had a movie night. For the holiday our Korean boss had given all of the teachers a choice between two New Years gift options. Option one was entitled "Spam Gift Set". Option two was a choice between a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon or a bottle of Merlot. And yes, the first option was indeed a Spam Gift Set which is exactly what it sounds like - 10 cans of spam. elegantly wrapped and presented in a lovely gift box. Spam is a huge deal here - kind of a delicacy, actually. Koreans really like to put in everything - soup, sushi, sandwiches... Funnily enough all of the Korean teachers chose the Spam Gift Set. All of the foreign teachers chose the wine. I got the Merlot. So Wednesday night we kicked of our vacation time by cracking open our free wine and enjoying it with some delicious brie cheese.

Thursday was New Years and the city was eerily quiet. There was hardly anyone on the subway, and nearly all businesses were closed due to the holiday. Everyone was home celebrating with family. Thankfully, some museums were still open so Fran and I spent the day at the National Museum of Korea - the biggest museum (in terms of building size) that I have ever seen in my life! I'm not sure if the pictures capture it or not. Anyway, the museum is full of historical artifacts (pots, weapons, paintings, pots, tools, jewelry, pots, scrolls, statues, pots...), mostly from Korea but some from Japan and China as well. Thursday night since it was New Year's, we got dressed up and went out for dinner at the only Western Restaurant around: Outback Steakhouse! Unfortunately, Outback here is such a commodity that it is ridiculously overpriced - the cheapest entrees are between $30 - 40 each. So we decided to just get appetizers to share and it was sooo yummy.

Friday Fran and I bundled up and headed to the Seoul Museum of Art. Friday was the opposite in terms of city bustle. Thursday was kind of like Thanksgiving in the states. Every one is home so for a while there is no one out and about. But Friday was like Black Friday - everyone was suddenly out and everything was unbelievably crowded!

The reason we went to the Seoul Museum of Art was because they are currently showing a Van Gogh exhibit! We saw over 60 original Van Gogh works, including drawings and paintings. It was really amazing. It was also ridiculously packed but it was so nice to see that Seoulites were eagerly taking advantage of such a wonderful opportunity in their city. After the museum we went to see "Nanta", the longest running show in Korea. It is a non-verbal performance done by 5 actors. It combines rhythms of traditional Korean folk music with modern music all centered around a cooking theme. So the performers do all kinds of rhythms and beats with cooking utensils and they actually cook food on stage, etc. One review referred to it as a combination of "Iron Chef, Blue Man Group, and The Marx Brothers". It was really impressive and highly entertaining. Definitely worth the price of admission.

So that was Lunar New Year! Unfortunately there aren't many pictures because you can't take pictures inside museums or inside the theater....