South Korean couples have no shortage of romantic days to celebrate their love. As Americans help push Hallmark into the black this Valentine’s day, Koreans will be celebrating their second “couple’s” holiday of 2014. Korean culture itself is largely “couple-centric” with businesses big and small profiting greatly. On any given day in Seoul you’ll see pairs crowded into “couple’s-only” cafes, sporting matching outfits (from head to toe, often including underwear, too), or chatting via private apps like Between, a Korean application created especially for couples that’s gaining popularity elsewhere, too. And with the fourteenth of every month dedicated to the celebration of love, it’s easy to understand the pressure singletons face.
Photograph by Phillip Lee @ pdhlee.blogspot.com
Every January, couples exchange daily planners or calendars which are useful for recording the auspicious 100th day anniversary and the many more they hope will follow. On Valentine’s Day, women buy gifts for their significant others and men reciprocate on March fourteenth, also known as “White Day”. April fourteenth is a much welcomed break for the loveless who celebrate their lack of romance together, feasting on jjajangmyun (짜장면), or Chinese noodles in black bean sauce. Quite apropos, the day of feasting and mourning is called “Black Day”. In May, flower shops and curry restaurants delight in “Yellow Day” as couples wear yellow and exchange roses. Singles can celebrate too by eating yellow Korean curry.
Jjajangmyun noodles fried meat and rice
On the fourteenth of June you might catch a rare public display of affection. Elder Koreans readily shun public acts more intimate than hand holding, a norm reinforced by informational videos playing throughout Seoul’s extensive subway system. So if there is a day for making-out in public, “Kiss Day” is it. In July, jewelry retailers look forward to an increase in sales as couples exchange silver tokens of love and the truly serious lovers meet the parents. The fourteenth of August helps secure Soju as the world’s most consumed alcohol as Koreans celebrate “Green Day” in parks by consuming the rice-based liquor, traditionally packaged in a green bottle. Studies have concluded that South Koreans out drink every other nation. It’s also a pretty safe bet that they dominate in selfies. To celebrate picture taking, September fourteenth is “Music and Photo Day”. In the evening, couples meet up with friends to celebrate at a noraebang (노래방) or singing room. The October holiday is celebrated with wine and in November couples celebrate with a “dinner and a movie” date. They’ll also celebrate the very commercial “Peppero Day” on November eleventh (11/11) when retailers promote the thin chocolate covered cookie sticks which resemble the numerical date. And last, and least commercial of them all, December fourteenth is a celebration of hugs. But what retailers miss out on earlier in the month they will more than make up for at Christmas, very much a couple’s holiday in South Korea.