Malbok

This past Wednesday was what the Koreans call Malbok. According to the lunar calendar this is the hottest day of the year and subsequently the end of the summer heat wave (as of today it wasn't any cooler!) On Malbok individuals eat Samgyetang or Poshintang. We were taken out for lunch by the Korean teachers at our school and had Samgyetang (luckily....as Poshintang is dog meat soup...literally.) Samgyetang is basically a chicken broth with a small whole chicken that is stuffed with rice, ginseng, chestnuts, garlic and a date. Both of these dishes are thought by Koreans to increase stamina and help you get through the extreme heat. We quite enjoyed the samgyetang (although I didn't feel staminated -yes Ry we know it's not a real word- afterwards!) and learning about this aspect of Korean culture.