Angela Yi ’19
What is your cultural background?
I’m Korean-American. I moved to the States when I was six years old, but still stay close to my Korean culture.
Can you tell me about Korean Valentine’s day?
In Korea, Valentine’s Day is celebrated differently than in Western countries. Korean girls and women, and not boys and men, give gifts, usually chocolate, to their romantic interest. A lot of people actually make the chocolates by hand to personalize them and to give them a little extra love. White Day occurs a month after Valentine’s Day, March 14. This is the time for men to reciprocate and give gifts to the person who gave them chocolate during Valentine’s Day. It’s also celebrated in Japan, Taiwan, and China. But Black Day is a month after White Day, April 14th, and it’s the sad month for singles. There, single people get together and eat jjajangmyeon, blackbean noodles. Jjajangmyeon is delicious, so it’s definitely not a bad way to celebrate being a strong, independent woman who don’t need no man. Some groups of girls or women sometimes dress up in black dresses to celebrate this unofficial holiday.
Do you usually celebrate American Valentine’s day and Korean Valentine’s Day?
The first time I celebrated Valentine’s Day was when I moved to the States and my first grade teacher told the class that if we were going to make and pass out Valentine’s Day cards, we had to make it for everyone in the classroom so that things would be fair. Like many other kids, I made cards and stuck a piece of Hershey’s Kisses on each of them. To be honest, I felt a little frustrated because I had a crush on this cute boy and wanted to make and give a card and a chocolate Kiss just for him.
What about this year?
This year, I’m looking forward to dressing extra fancy in all black and dark lipstick to go on a Black Day date with my girlfriends and eat some delicious jjajangmyeon