10 Things That Only Happen In South Korea

1. South Koreans Are Crazy About Sweet Potatoes

There you can find this vegetable in any dish be it the main course dessert, breads, salads, chips and even as a pizza topping. Coffee connoisseurs can try a sweet potato flavored latte and if you like the authenticity of Street food there are tons of cute sweet potato snacks sold on every corner. But South Koreans don't just love sweet potatoes they're also big fans of honey butter chips. That's right potato chips covered in butter and sweet delicious honey. You probably won't have much luck buying them in a store because they sell out fast but if you're really determined to try these chips you can put a bid for them on eBay where one bag can cost as much as $100 even McDonald's joined the craze and was selling honey buttered flavoured french fries for sometime.

2. Shopping Is A Favorite Pastime Activity In South Korea And Seoul Boasts Some Of The Largest Malls In The Whole World

What's really funny is that restaurants and cafes and bars they're closed at 11:00 p.m. but you can shop till 4:00 in the morning. Maybe that's why the residents of salt along with those of Tokyo when compared to other major cities get the least amount of sleep no more than 6 hours a night.

3. Their Valentine's Day Is A Little Different

It's the women who express their love to their partners so boyfriends and husbands receive gifts and chocolates. But on the 14th of March they celebrate so called white day, this time the men present gifts to their lovely ladies but tradition dictates that they spent 3 times more on this present than the cost of the Valentine's gift. Actually there are several couples related holidays on the 14th for example June 14th is kiss day and on December 14th Koreans celebrate hug day but hopefully you'll never have to celebrate the 14th of April known as black day. That's the day when single Koreans can warn the absence of love in their life they do it by eating sticky black noodles called jajangmyeon.

4. South Korean Men Have A Super Macho Reputation To Uphold

They're simply obsessed with cosmetics more than 20% of men use makeup on a regular basis and the male population in South Korea spends over 900 million on cosmetics every year a good BB cream is a must but anti-aging moisturizers, facial cleansers and eye creams are no less popular. In Korea you can even find TV shows about the men's makeup and this isn't just for men in the fashion and entertainment industries. The job market in South Korea is extremely competitive so if a man wants to make a good impression at a job interview he has to wear makeup to hide blemishes and look perfect sounds like a lot of pressure.

5. When A Baby Is Born In South Korea It's Already Considered One-year-old

And why is this the way they see it a newborn has already spent nine months in its mother's womb which is almost one year and that's not all as soon as the new year comes you automatically get one year older no matter when your birthday is so if a baby is born in December its 1 year old and in less than a month it'll already be to talk about time flying. If you want to calculate your Korean age just subtract your birth year from the current year and add 1 to that but if you're not into all the complicated calculations if you ever find yourself in South Korea and someone asks you how old you are you can simply provide the year of your birth.

6. Most Koreans Believe In The Urban Legend That If You Sleep With A Fan On You Will Die

They think that if the windows and doors are closed the fan will bring your body temperature down so much that you'll die from hypothermia plus the fan blows the air in the room around too fast so it's difficult to breathe and a person can suffocate. Of course not all Koreans believe in these superstitions but if they do don't try to persuade them otherwise it won't work.

7. South Koreans Are By Far Asia's Heaviest Drinkers

First of all they believe that drinking helps you get closer to others. People tend to open up after they've had a couple of glasses of soju a traditional hard liquor even the shyest ones. So if someone you've just met invites you for a drink they simply want to get to know you and break the ice faster. Another reason for the high drinking rates in Korea might lie in easily accessible alcohol if you have a proper ID of course not to mention. Alcohol is pretty cheap a bottle of soju costs less than a bottle of water in most Western countries and Koreans don't have to worry much about hangovers they have a lot of reliable home remedies for that from a specific soup they'd in the morning after a night of partying two miraculous grapefruit ice cream.

8. If You Decide To Move Into A New House In South Korea And Throw A Housewarming Party Don't Trouble Yourself With Buying Laundry Detergent Cleaners Or Toilet Paper

Your guests will bring all the household supplies you'll need and they'll bring a lot so clean some space in your cabinets. This is actually a really practical gift.

9. South Koreans Love Showing Off The Relationships

They do it not only on social media but also publicly they kiss hold hands and even wear matching clothes.

10. Very Few South Koreans Decide Not To Get Married

But if they do they're referred to as a big baby it's lying. Marriages come in two types chungmae ( arranged) and yonae (for love).


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