Many religions of South Korea

Korea has been influenced by four major religions: Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, and Shamanism. Additionally, a very large mosque in It'aewon-dong holds services for those of the Islamic faith. Many Koreans follow more than one religion as many new Christian converts continue to practice ancestor worship and perform Buddhist rites.

Mmmm...food

Korean cuisine is based mostly on rice, noodles, and tofu, seams like the perfect place for a vegetarian. Each mean is accompanied by many banchan or side dishes. A very popular banchan is Kimchi, includes various vegetables (cabbage, radishes, and various roots) fermented with spices (garlic, red pepper, and ginger). Korea produces several types of grain alcohol, most notably soju. Nowadays, many people eat more and more Western, Japanese, and Chinese food, with pizza becoming more popular than kimchi among the younger generation.

Education is Key

In the Korean culture education is the key to success. The Korean education system consists of six years of primary school, three years of middle school, then three years of high school. Those who pass the national exam go on to 4-year colleges or universities. Others go to 2-year junior colleges, while the rest enter the work force. Until recently, most middle and high schools were segregated by sex. However, because of complaints about differences in education levels between the boys and girls schools and socialization problems later in life, most schools have gone co-ed.

Sports Time

Many people may no know this but, basketball is a popular sport in the country as well. South Korea has traditionally had one of the top basketball teams in Asia and one of the continent's strongest basketball divisions. Seoul hosted the 1967 and 1995 Asian Basketball Championship. The South Korea national basketball team has won a record number of 23 medals at the event to date. Baseball is also becoming increasingly popular

What to wear

Although most people prefer "Western" clothes like suits and jeans, the national costume, hanbok, is worn by many during national holidays. Traditionally, people wore white clothes, reserving colors for the upper class or during festive occasions. People no longer wear rubber shoes and sandals, instead they wear sneakers and designer shoes; however, even these are removed when entering a house or other area where shoes are not permitted.

The Calendar

The South Korean Calendar

Korean Family Values

One of the first thing that drew me to South Korea is the family values. Family comes first, the needs of the family are to be met before the needs of the individual. The father is responsible for providing food, clothing and shelter which seems familiar to american customs. One thing that varies is the the father MUST approve of every marriage, that's put a little pressure on making a good first impression. Lastly the eldest son has special duties: first to his parents, then his brothers older to younger, then his sons, then to his wife and lastly to his daughters. So much for being daddy's little girl. Until next week when we will learn some more about south korea together.