Going to a Korean wake
So today was the wake for one of my Korean co-worker's father-in-law. So my co-workers and I all decided to go to the wake afterward and pay our respects. I was a little curious since I had never been to a normal Korean funeral. The closest thing I got to going to a Korean funeral was when I visited a Buddhist temple and there was a death ceremony going on. I wasn't sure if it was a funeral or just some kind of memorial for the guy. It basically involved a picture of the dead guy and a lot of bowing. I found this to be a bit similar in some aspects.
Interestingly enough, Korean funeral homes are located in the hospital. In this case, it was held at Inhadae byeongwon, or Inha University Hospital. Inha Uni Hospital is a very famous place for foreigners to go since the staff there speaks excellent English. But anyway, the funeral home was in the basement. We entered a lobby where there was an information desk and a TV with a bunch of rooms and names on it. Our party was in room one, so we headed there.
The wake room is separated into four sections: a waiting room, reception hall, receiving/greeting room, and dining hall. All were part of one large room that was actually separated into different quarters.
The waiting room is basically a room with chairs and an assortment of flowered bouquets. They are similar to bouquets seen at Korean weddings and have the name of the giver on them as well as a message (I think). Our school had bought one for him and it was displayed along with the rest.
All pictures shown are pictures I found online. I didn't take any photos because I thought it would be VERY offensive and rude.
Here is the link that the last three photos come from. I think it's a more in-depth look at Korean funerals since the guy is married to a Korean woman himself: http://askakorean.blogspot.com/2008/02/dear-korean-i-just-found-out-that-my.html
Here is an example of the flowers you'd see at a Korean funeral.
We went through glass doors into the reception area. There were two women at a desk to the left of us, taking envelopes. In Korea it's customary to give money to the family of the deceased, mostly to help pay for the funeral. Some people might scoff at this, but hey, funerals are expensive! Anyway, you give the money and sign in (I was the only one who signed in, I think. >.<). Next step is removing your shoes. The floor we were standing on before that was all tile, but the floor rose up a bit and changed to wood at the entrance to the receiving room and the dining hall, and you were expected to take your shoes off before entering. There was a wooden shelf where you could place your shoes, but it was full, so we just put them on the ground. There was a man there with tongs who would move your shoes if they weren't lined up or facing the same way as everyone else's.
After that we stood in line for the receiving room. Inside the receiving room is a small shrine dedicated to the deceased. It includes a picture and an assortment of flowers.
The receiving room.
Right inside the receiving room is a large vase with flowers. You are to select a flower and put it on the white desk thing in front of the picture (see where all the flowers are? That's where you put it). Then you bow to the picture. To the right are the family members. All the Koreans were doing a three part bow, where they bow slightly, do a deeper bow, and then bow prostrate on the floor. They then bow to all the family members and leave, and that's pretty much it.
We foreigners weren't expected to do such a thing, so instead we went up and shook everyone's hands in true western fashion *rolls eyes*. I did actually bow (quite lamely) to all the members of the party, who in turn bowed back to me and thanked me for coming in English.
Afterward, we left the room and headed for the dining hall, which was basically the next room over. The tables are all set on the floor and you sit in traditional Asian style on floor mats. There is special food reserved for funerals.
The meat there is actually pork and it's quite good. Tastes like the stuff from home. You're supposed to dip in in the red stuff right above it.
The soup thing is actually pretty good, thought it's a bit too salty for my tastes. To the right of it is kimchi (can't have a meal without kimchi) and, of course, there is rice (to the left of the soup) and Gamgyul (nectarines), Korea's favorite fruit.
We stayed for about an hour, talked with everyone and spoke to the family. I was a complete moron because I didn't really know what to say. In America I've never been to weddings that weren't related to me, and even if I did, I was usually with my parents and didn't have to say anything. Nevertheless, I'm glad we went. It was an interesting experience and I'm glad I got to go and support my awesome co-worker. He deserves all the support he can get.
While we were at the funeral I realized something really weird today. I sat next to my boss at dinner and he asked if I had my plane tickets back to Korea yet. It made me realize that maybe he is feeling nervous about my leaving... Of course I have no worries since I know I'm not the type of person to skip out on going back, but all he can really do is hope I'm a person of my word. It just made me realize that he probably respects me a lot more than I think he does if he's willing to trust me enough to let me back after allowing me to go home for three months.... It's kind of a strange feeling. O.o
Speaking of which, two more weeks after this one! I am really nervous about going back to the States as this is the first time I'll be flying internationally on my own (when I left for Korea my parents basically walked me through the luggage part of my trip). I'm super stoked about spending time with my parents and seeing all my friends again. I just hope leaving again after spending all the time in the US won't be as hard as I think it will. But who knows, maybe after a year and a half of being here I'll be homesick for Korea in the States! XD
Almost finished with Arc Rise Fantasia. I'm currently at level 65 and about to fight the last boss. I wish the voice acting in this game were better because I really can't take Eesa seriously... >_< Anyway, I have nine rogress now and the ability to get more, but I'm kind of like "meh". At this point it seems kind of meaningless since all I have left to do is beat Eesa and then it's the end. I guess that's why people are so eager to get all the rogress in the beginning of the game. But to me, rogress aren't really that worth it. They take pretty much my entire turn up and it can be pretty hard to nail that off if I'm playing cautiously. And half the time you don't even get the option. You gotta work for it. I usually just save rogress for boss enemies so I don't have to waste time whacking them to death.
Anyway, hopefully I'll not be lazy and finish it before I go back to the States. Then I can focus on Vesperia PS3 and Graces F and work on the pile of PS2 games I've been neglecting.