Pepero Day is an observance in South Korea similar to Valentine's Day. It is named after the Korean snack Pepero and held on November 11, since the date "11/11" resembles four sticks of Pepero.[3][4] The holiday is observed mostly by young people and couples, who exchange Pepero sticks, other candies, and romantic gifts. Lotte denies starting the holiday and instead states that they noticed a bump in Pepero sales around November 11th and after continued popularity they decided to then encourage the holiday with special gift boxes and other promotions.[2] Some consider it to be a contrived holiday and some teachers have encouraged children to exchange healthy snacks to help combat obesity. According to one story, Pepero Day was started in 1994 by students at a girls' middle school in Busan, where they exchanged Pepero sticks as gifts to wish one another to grow "as tall and slender as a Pepero".
With that brief description in your head, let me tell you about my Pepero Day, which was filled with these damn chocolate cookie sticks everywhere I went. All day long, I was either receiving boxes of these sticks or being given one stick by students who wanted me to eat it right there in front of them. Don't get me wrong, I was totally flattered that all these students cared enough to want to give me these treats. It's always awkward when students do things like that in front of Mrs. Sung, but bring nothing for her. I was sure to thank all of them and show that I was appreciative, but by the time I went home I was so sick of these things, and it didn't make me feel any better that my backpack was filled with boxes of them for my own personal enjoyment at home. I guess the reason I really wanted to tell you this story is so that when some of you open your next package from me and find a box of Pepero, you'll know it's because I'm just spreading the joy of Korean Pepero Day. With love from my home to yours.
With the chocolate cookie stick holiday serving as the background, my school had an English speech contest today for 4th through 6th graders, and an English storytelling contest for 1st through 3rd graders. I can't even begin to describe how unbelievably cute the storytelling contest was. Try to imagine these little Korean kids reciting stories they memorized in English, with some of them even dressing up, using props and getting VERY animated to help the audience capture the essence of the story they were telling. Never in the entire time I have been here have I been so upset that I didn't have my camera with me to record some of these students. I'm so bummed that I don't have those moments permanently recorded, because they really deserved to be. I did have my iPhone with me, so I was able to snap some photos, but they just don't provide an accurate measurement of the adorability of these students. Anyway, I was a judge for both the speech and storytelling contests. As soon as the first student started going with her story, I was upset that I had to pick a winner. You'd be amazed at what these kids can memorize in a completely different language. I was blown away, especially by the first and second graders. I mean seriously, they haven't even mastered Korean yet and they're up there telling me about the three little pigs in English! The speech contest for the older students was obviously a little more serious in tone. I counted at least three speeches either about global warming or protecting the environment. The speech that stands out the most though, is one where a student talked about the many kinds of strange foods eaten around the world. Here's why it sticks out. He opened by talking about how eating dog meat is very delicious and many people outside of Korea can't seem to understand this. Talk about your attention getter. He even showed a picture of dog meat, which I'm almost positive is the first time I've actually seen it, because I've never bothered to look on the Internet or anything and I haven't been in the presence of it here that I'm aware of. As he started to go through the various types of strange foods eaten around the world, he finally got to America. What do we eat that could possibly be considered strange, let alone deserve to be in a presentation alongside dog meat? Barbecued turkey. Now, I know there are probably some vegetarians out there who might agree, just based on the fact that they're both meat from an animal, but seriously. It really makes me wonder what the Korean population at large thinks about turkey meat. I honestly don't know. I know that it's a difficult meat to find here and maybe that's why. Maybe turkey meat to them is like dog meat to us. To be honest, I'm probably most shocked that they would think any kind of food is strange, because from what I've seen, the line between what's edible and what's not is pretty dang thin. I'm not kidding, sometimes at lunch we're served these vegetables that look and taste like grass. Unless they put that nasty kimchi sauce on it, in which case it tastes like grass with poo on it. Man, I need some Olive Garden breadsticks stat.
I posted recently about the upped level of concern over the H1N1 flu virus and it's still riding a pretty big wave right now. A handful of students at my school have officially contracted it, with some having already returned from their hospital stays and others still out. Those medical masks are more regularly seen now and the school has installed hand sanitizing dispensers on each floor for everyone to use. Lucky for me I have about 15 mini bottles of my own hand sanitizer, courtesy of my dad. You better believe I'm putting those suckers to good use. I'm using that stuff just about every chance I get, because the last thing I want is to be spending time in a Korean hospital. I'd rather that not be part of my year-long cultural experience. I even purchased a can of Lysol-type disinfectant, which I spray all over the English room constantly. There's no doubt that I'm going overboard (Seriously, I went through the can in two weeks), but I just don't want to risk it. Plus, it's good practice for when I finally cross the line from being a guy who likes things clean to a full-fledged germaphobe. It's only a matter of time, I know it. I continue to have to remind everyone, adults included, how important it is to cover their mouths when they cough or sneeze. I would be so happy if I left Korea knowing that I convinced just one person here how logical it is to cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze. If they just figured that out, it would eliminate the need for them to wear those masks, which even now don't do much, because if someone sneezes in your face, you're only blocking your nose and mouth. Your eyes are just as susceptible to catching those germs floating around. The next problem to solve then would be getting them to wash their hands properly, with soap and warm water. Running your hands under a cold faucet doesn't do a whole heck of a lot Korea! I know. I did a science project on it in fourth grade. And now that I've unfortunately let you look into a shaded window of my life, I should go before I become the crazy germ-obsessed friend you used to have.
Take care everyone!
Just come home already.
ReplyDeleteHi Robert,
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to send any of the little cookie sticks home because they sell them here. You can even find them at Vons. Emily, Brent's little sister, loves them.
-- Susan, Brent's rent-a-mom
P.S. to above:
ReplyDeleteForgot to mention that here they are called "Pocky."
I love Pocky!
ReplyDelete