[MANNAM Korean Culture] Korean Folk Tales - Two Brothers

In times gone by there lived two brothtrs whose loving ways were the talk of the valley where they lived. They took care of their widowed mother and upon her death they divided everything evenly.
Together they worked diligently from sunup to sundown to produce the most they could from their fields. It never failed that come autumn they had the largest harvest in the valley.

One late autumn evening, after they had spent the afternoon sacking and dividing the last of the rice harvest, the older brother thought, "Brother has lots of expenses since he just got married a few months ago. I think l wiIl put a sack of rice in his storehouse and not tell him. I'm sure he would never accept it if I offered it to him." So, late that night, he carried it to his brother's storeroom.

 The next day, while tidying up his own storage, the older brother was surprised to find he still had the same number of sacks of rice as he had before taking one to his brother. "That's odd," he said, shaking his head, "I'm sure I took a sack of rice to Brother's house last night." He counted his sacks again. "Well," he said, scratching the back of his head, "I'll just take him another one tonight."

So, late that night. he carried a sack of rice to his brother's house.

The next morning, he was again shocked to find he had the same number of sacks as before. He shook his head over and over and decided he would take his brother another sack that night.

 After a late dinner he loaded the rice and set out for his brother's house. It was a full moon and he could see the path quite clearly. Soon he saw a man carrying something bulky coming down the path.

"Why, Brother!" they both called out at the same time. The two brothers put down their sacks and laughed long and hearty for they both understood the mystery behind their unchanging number of sacks of rice. The younger brother thought his older brother could use the rice because he had a larger family.

[MANNAM Korean Culture] Korean Street Food

Korean Street Food

 Compared to other developed countries such as Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, and other Asian countries, Korean street food is more widely exposed. Street food is a spin-off of a snack corner that has been franchised to sell snacks such as rice cake stir fried in spicy sauce (tteokbokki), deep fried fritters (tempura), fish cakes (oden), and Korean sausage (sundae).

Pojangmacha The pojangmacha (street vendor) is one of the best places to grab a quick snack or pass the night away drinking with friends. The types of food they serve can usually be eaten quickly while standing up (although someplaces have cheap chairs or benches) or take with you. They have many types of food on sticks or "finger foods." Other specialize in seafood and are geared more towards people who want to sit and have some drinks as well. Smaller stands can be easily carried or rolled from place. Larger, more elaborate ones have plastic tarps to protect patrons from the rain and cold.

source: http://www.lifeinkorea.com/culture/streetfood/streetfood.cfm?xURL=main


I'd like to try it with MANNAM International members when they get a chance.
I think it is loved by foreigners who eat Korean street food.
Also, it can be cheap and simple.
How about having lunch at that Korean street food right after we finish Korean class?

[MANNAM Internationl] We had opened MANNAM Protluck Party

 

Last weekend we had opened protluck party after we moved to our new MANNAM office.
Many MANNAM Volunteer members attended this party.
We were able to try many other countries traditional food through this potluck party.
As enjoying the party, we talked about our country and how foreigners are doing in Korea and the most thing I enjoyed was eating each traditional foods.
One of our members 'Kevin' wrote his feelings that day.

     My name is Kevin and I’ve been a member of MANNAM International since March of this year.  I was looking for a volunteer group that was involved with the local communities around Busan.  After a Google search and a link from KoreaBridge, I found MANNAM and, ever since my first activity with the organization, I’ve made friends with a great group of individuals who all share, despite their various ages, ethnic and educational backgrounds, the same spirit of love and generosity. 

     It was really nice to see the new and familiar faces when I attended the opening party of MANNAM’s Gwangan office this past August 10.  Like all of their volunteer activities, this housewarming/potluck “meet, greet and eat” event was organized yet relaxed.  I met up with Tae-kyu, who showed me the way to MANNAM’s building.  It was only more smiles and hellos when I arrived.  I played catch-up with a few members and had fun chatting with people I had not met before, while enjoying a glass of homemade blue lemonade and a plate of Filipino-style noodles, BBQ beef, crepes and an assortment of table appetizers.  The Korean members of MANNAM did an excellent job in catering to everyone invited.  Some members served the drinks while other members prepared the food and snacks. 

About half an hour into the evening, Ben introduced the group, its mission and members who are in charge of specific activities within the organization.  After introductions, the eating and chatting re-commenced.  I floated around, chatting with guests and members before settling in with the photography group for the rest of the evening. 

     Before the short night was over, we had the obligatory group picture, then cleanup.  Even though everyone was a bit tired, the teamwork didn’t stop as the Korean members along with a handful of the foreign members helped each other rearrange the main hall.  Even though MANNAM has become a bit bigger now, there’s plenty of room for growth.  I look forward to seeing what the group has planned in the future for its members and at its new office space.

이심전심 in MANNAM International

In Korea, like the proverbs, Koreans use four-character idioms a lot.
Today, I will introduce one to you
Before that, four character idiom is called 사자성어.
Each character represents meaning and together, it works like proverbs.
Like the title of the article, today’s four-character idiom is 이심전심.
이 means to write, 심 means mind and 전 means to tell or to communicate.
(two 전 in this idiom represents the same meaning.)
All together, it means, instead of writing or saying it, people can communicate with each other’s mind, understanding without the words.
How can this happen? It might look weird, but I think many of you already have experienced this.
Between friends or families, even they don’t say something, by just looking at each other or just know how they feel and what they want.
Also, among the people who look for the same things, because they have the same goal that they are heading to that they know what they need to each other.
One example for this is MANNAM International.
Even though we have different nationalities, religions and gender, when we work together, we know what to do, what we need and what we can do.
Which is sharing love and achieve WORLD PEACE.
Not only between MANNAM members, through volunteering, we learn to understand others


* Korean four-character idiom
-이심전심(i-sim-jeon-sim) : Instead of writing or saying it, people can communicate with each others mind, understanding without the words.