The third of October this year was the Chuseok (추석) festival. The date changes every year for Chuseok on the solar calendar. However, on the lunar calendar Chuseok is always celebrated the fifteenth of August. Long ago, Chuseok was called Hangawee (한가위). Chuseok is an old festival that celebrates the autumn harvest. When Korea used to be primarily an agricultural society, the fall harvest was usually designated in the middle of August. Farmers would celebrate and give thanks for the bountiful harvest. In lots of ways, Chuseok is the Korean version of Thanksgiving.

On Chuseok, families usually go to their 고향 or hometowns. By hometown, I mean rural villages. On the day of Chuseok, the city of Seoul is almost bare. On this day, plane flights are booked, and so are other modes of transportation. If you try to buy a ticket on Chuseok, you’ll probably have to wait a long line.

Anyway, people go to their hometowns to visit their ancestral gravesites. Korean graves are usually marked by a large round mound of dirt and grass. Families come to pay their respects by offering food and drinks to the deceased. The good harvest is thought to be a blessing from the spirits that have passed, so the offering is given as thanks. Families also go to trim some of the grass around the graves and even bring mats to perform ritualized bows to the grave.

The most characteristic food consumed on Chuseok is songpyeon (송평). Songpyeon is a rice cake made from sticky rice. Songpyeon is made in the shape of a half moon. The inside of the rice cake is made of honey and seasame seeds. The Songpyeon is steamed over pine needles to give them a piney smell and taste. The Songpyeon come in all colors like white, green and pink.