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Last weekend, I went to the National folk museum. The national folk museum is located inside the gyeongbokgung palace, and it shows the life of korean ancestors. The national folk museum is divided into 3 parts, which each of them show day to day life of Koreans, then the ancestors clothing, food, and houses during the four seasons, and lastly, the life of a Korean person. The first exhibition shows the day to day life of Koreans. The koreans' life is divided to 4 groups; morning, day, evening, and then night. The morning came together with the roosters cry, which made the farmers notice it was time to wake up. Also, the commoners could know it was morning by looking at the sundial installed by the government. The day was the time to work. The farmers worked during the day, on their fields. Sometimes, they collected woods. While men were working on the field, women took care of their children, prepared meals, and made clothes. At evening, the farmers went back in their come, and they talked with their family. At night, the people looked at the constellations and predicted the next month or year's weather, which was very important for farmers. Moving on to the next exhibition, where it shows the clothing, food, and houses depending to the seasons. In the spring, farmers prepared for the planting. Before planting the seeds, they made the soil softer and in right condition for the crops to grow well. In the summer, the rice plants starts to grow, and the farmers take breaks, just like the summer vacations. They also make summer clothing using ramie and hemp. In autumn, the farmers become very busy. they start to harvest their fully grown crops, and they celebrate together. Also, they repair their house to prepare for the cold winter. In winter, it is very hard to find vegetables. So, the women prepare kimchi for the winter. Women also make quilted and padded clothings for their family to keep them warm for the freezing winter. The last place is where it shows the life of koreans. First, when the baby is born, a straw rope is hung on the door to show that the baby is in the house. After the birth and 100 days later, they have an celebration called Baekil, which is the day the baby is defined to live because in the past, the babies died earlier before they reached 100 days. Then, when the baby is one years old, they they have a celebration called Dol, which is still passed down to our Koreans. After several years, the children are no longer children; they are an adult. They have a celebration called Gwallye in this period, which means that the child- who used to be a child- is no longer dependent. After the Gwallye, the adults have Hollye, which is marriage. Then, the men have to take a test, which is a huge success if he passes the test. After that, the adults, who aged more, have an celebration called Hwangab, which wasn't very common since the Hwangab was existed only when a person reaches the age of 61, which was a very long life for the past. The person dies, which is the last part of the life. At this, they have an funeral. It was a meaningful class for me, visiting the National folk museum and seeing all those ancient objects. I recommend the place to people who wants to know about the Korean culture and see things that isn't seen by now. |
