Chuseok Festivities To Bring An Abundance Of Cultural Activities And Family Gatherings In South Korea

The South Korean Thanksgiving event known as Chuseok is observed for three days to celebrate the harvest season. Families hold gatherings and reunions as they return to their hometowns to visit family members and pay respect to ancestors.

Chuseok, originally called Hangawi, is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, around the time of the lunar equinox, much like other harvest festivals worldwide. In celebration of the harvest, families in South Korea usually gather around a feast of traditional Korean food, including cakes made of glutinous rice called songpyeon and rice wines, such as dongdongju and sindoju.

Asia One Travel notes on Friday that South Koreans will begin celebrating Chuseok on Sept. 26 until 29 this year. The long weekend will be filled with cultural activities and entertaining programs, which Korean families and friends can enjoy together. Historic sites and public museums of the nation will be in operation for the entire duration of the festivities, with special programs for their visitors.

The four royal palaces of Seoul - Changdeokgung Palace, Changgyeonggung Palace, Deoksugung Palace and Gyeongbokgung Palace - as well as Jongmyo Shrine will have free admissions on Sunday, which is the main Chuseok day.

Deoksugung Palace will also hold a traditional Korean gugak music concerts and fusion music concerts that incorporates gugak and contemporary music.

Meanwhile, the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts has prepared a two-week cultural festival, which will feature free performances of musicals and gugak concerts at the outdoor plaza and lobby. A mime performance for children will also be included in the program, which will be held at the centre's Chungmugong exhibition hall.

South Korea's largest amusement park, Everland, will also host a folk festival for families and children. The night life will also be as vibrant with performances from famous artists at 11 music clubs in Hongdae.

For locals and visitors alike, hotels will be offering special Chuseok discounts, wherein some establishments include discounts, free breakfast and even gift sets and movie tickets.

Traditionally, Chuseok was celebrated with people performing morning worship rituals to their ancestors followed by a visit to their tombs to clean the area of plants and wastes known as Beolcho. Koreans would also offer food, drinks and crops as thanksgiving to their ancestors to whom they attribute their harvested crops.