Fly Me To The (Full) Moon: Spring's Jeongwol Daeboreum

Jeongwol daeboreum is a Korean tradition celebrated at the start of spring, the day of the first full moon of the lunar year.

This year, jeongwol daeboreum is on February 19, Tuesday.

In Korea, people will wish everyone for good fortune and good health by cracking a peanut or walnut with their teeth. Everyone will also drink rice wine to wish for good news all throughout the year, and share and eat with neighbors boiled rice mixed with five grains and seasoned vegetables.

In Seoul, you can experience the celebration of jeongwol daeboreaum at the Namsangol Hanok Village, where the First Full Moon Festival will be held starting 3PM.  

If you have work that day, you need to get there fast if you plan to watch the finale of the festival which is daeljip tae-u-gi, or the burning of the daljip. The tradition involves the gathering of twigs and straws, binding them together, and burning them to ward off misfortune throughout the year. It will be an interesting spectacle. It's like arson but with a fire truck standing by.😀

At Namsangol, the organizers will create a wigwam-like structure made of twigs and straws, and burn them at sundown as part of the tradition. As a precaution, there will be a fire truck standing by to make sure the fire consumes only the dried twigs and straws, and not the things that would otherwise turn the festival into a disaster. Although this is held on a weekday, I expect a huge crowd to gather around the burning daljip tonight chanting "Burn, baby, burn!"  Well, if nobody chants that way, I will. Ha-ha-ha! If you unexpectedly hear that chant, you know who it is.  I'm thinking of bringing hot dogs and marshmallows; I don't want to fire to go to waste.

The burning of the daljip is scheduled at 7PM. So, if you want to watch it, be there before that time. You can call the tourist information hotline for more details of the events that day.

Namsangol Hanok Village is accessible from Exits 3 or 4 of the Chungmuro Station (Lines 3,4). Do dress warmly as the forecast says it will still be very cold. Or, you can always stand next to the burning daljip to warm you up. Kidding!😛

And since it's the first full moon of the lunar year, everyone will be making their way to a higher ground tonight to catch the rising of the full moon. Some may go up to their apartment's rooftop, while others may just trek to the nearest hill.  

But if you want a really high vantage point, head up to the NSeoul Tower after Namsangol.  If it won't be cloudy tonight, the view of the full moon will be spectacular. The fastest way to Namsan is (1) take the subway from Chungmuro Station to Dongkuk University Station - just one station away; (2) after getting out of Exit 6, make a U-turn and without crossing the street, turn right where you find a bus stop for Namsan buses; and take any yellow bus (02, 03 or 05). Any yellow bus will go up to Namsan.

Here's wishing everyone their first full moon of the lunar year!

Here's a link to Namsangol's event page:

https://www.hanokmaeul.or.kr/ev/event/