South Korea's autumn harvest festival, Chuseok (추석), is often described to foreign visitors as "Korean Thanksgiving." That's a useful introduction, but if you grew up in Korea, Chuseok is remembered through much smaller and warmer moments.
For me, one of those memories is sitting with my entire family making Songpyeon (송편). As a child, I didn't care much about making the perfect shape. I was more interested in what was hiding inside: sweet sesame or beans?
I loved the warm sesame-and-sugar filling. Beans? Not so much.
Every bite felt like a tiny Chuseok lottery.
If you're new to the holiday, first read my guide to Chuseok: Korean Thanksgiving & Traditional Culture for the meaning of Chuseok, ancestral traditions, holiday foods, and cultural experiences.
Here, let's explore the more playful side of the holiday—the food, games, and traditions Korean families shared together.
Songpyeon: A Chuseok Memory You Can Taste
Songpyeon is a small rice cake and one of the foods most strongly associated with Chuseok.
It is made from rice flour and filled with ingredients such as sesame seeds and sugar, beans, red beans, or chestnuts. Traditionally, the rice cakes are steamed over fresh pine needles, which give them their distinctive fragrance.
In fact, the "song" (송 / 松) in Songpyeon refers to pine.
For many Koreans, the smell of warm rice cakes and pine needles immediately brings back memories of Chuseok.
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| Colorful songpyeon |
Making Songpyeon Together
Making Songpyeon was traditionally a family activity, especially on the eve of Chuseok.
Everyone would sit around a table with rice dough and bowls of different fillings. Adults usually made beautiful half-moon shapes while children produced some very creative versions.
There is even an old Korean saying that if you make beautiful Songpyeon, you will have a beautiful child. Some families tell a variation saying you will meet a good-looking spouse.
It was exactly the kind of story grandmothers enjoyed telling while everyone worked together.
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| A family making songpyeon |
My Childhood "Songpyeon Lottery"
My favorite filling was ground sesame mixed with sugar.
After steaming, it became warm, nutty, sweet, and almost syrupy.
But I didn't like the plain bean filling very much.
The problem was that I couldn't always tell what was inside.
I would pick one up and take a bite...
Sweet sesame? Jackpot.
Beans? Oh no.
Then I would immediately try another one.
Even today, that silly little memory is one of the first things I think about when Chuseok comes around.
That's what traditional food can do. A particular smell or taste can bring back a family memory from decades ago.
Ganggangsullae: Dancing Under the Full Moon
Ganggangsullae (강강술래) is one of Korea's most beautiful traditional folk performances.
Women traditionally joined hands beneath the bright Chuseok full moon, singing and moving together in a large circle. The tradition is particularly associated with southwestern Korea and harvest celebrations.
Ganggangsullae was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.
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| Women performing Ganggangsullae under the full moon |
What About the Admiral Yi Sun-sin Story?
Many Koreans have heard a fascinating story connecting Ganggangsullae with legendary naval commander Admiral Yi Sun-sin (이순신).
According to a popular legend, women moved around coastal hills during the Japanese invasions of Korea in the late 16th century, making enemy forces believe that Korea had far more troops than it actually did.
It's a great story—but it should be treated as legend rather than confirmed history.
Ganggangsullae has deeper connections with harvest celebrations, fertility rituals, and rural community traditions.
As a tour guide, I actually find this distinction interesting. Korean culture often contains both documented history and stories passed down through generations.
Ssireum: Korean Wrestling—and a Very Unusual Prize
Ssireum (씨름) is traditional Korean wrestling.
Two competitors enter a sand ring and grip each other's satba (샅바), a cloth belt wrapped around the waist and thigh. Using strength, balance, leverage, and technique, each wrestler tries to bring the opponent to the ground.
Wrestling traditions have existed on the Korean Peninsula for centuries, with scenes resembling Ssireum appearing in ancient Goguryeo tomb murals.
But here's the detail foreign visitors usually remember:
The champion could win an ox.
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| Ssireum |
In agricultural Korea, an ox was extremely valuable. It could work the fields and represented both wealth and agricultural abundance.
So winning an ox wasn't a funny novelty prize.
It was more like winning a championship trophy and an expensive piece of farm equipment at the same time.
In 2018, traditional Korean wrestling was jointly inscribed by South and North Korea on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list—a remarkable recognition of a tradition shared across the peninsula.
Yutnori: When a Quiet Family Game Gets Loud
If you want to actually participate in a traditional Korean game, Yutnori (윷놀이) is one of the easiest to try.
Instead of dice, players throw four wooden sticks called yut.
The way they land determines how far your game pieces can move.
| Result | Moves | Traditional Animal |
|---|
| Do (도) | 1 | Pig |
| Gae (개) | 2 | Dog |
| Geol (걸) | 3 | Sheep |
| Yut (윷) | 4 | Cow |
| Mo (모) | 5 | Horse |
Players can capture opponents, combine their own pieces, and take shortcuts.
It looks peaceful at first.
Give a competitive Korean family about five minutes.
It probably won't stay peaceful.
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| A family playing Yutnori |
Yutnori is particularly associated today with Seollal (Lunar New Year), but you can also encounter it at Chuseok cultural programs and traditional holiday events.
Its exact origin is uncertain, so claims that it was definitely invented at a specific point more than 1,500 years ago should be treated cautiously.
What we do know is that Yutnori has deep roots in Korean traditional culture—and generations of Korean families have enjoyed arguing over it.
Where Can Foreigners Experience Chuseok Traditions?
If you're visiting Korea during Chuseok, you don't have to simply watch these traditions online.
Palaces, folk villages, museums, Hanok villages, and cultural centers often organize special holiday programs where visitors can try activities such as:
Programs change each year, so always check official schedules before visiting.
And remember: Chuseok is one of Korea's busiest travel periods. Trains and express buses can sell out, highways become crowded, and some businesses close for the holiday.
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| Foreigners playing Tuho |
The Chuseok I Remember
For foreigners, Chuseok can look like a collection of unfamiliar customs: Songpyeon, ancestral rites, full moons, folk games, and family gatherings.
For Koreans, the memories are often much simpler.
A grandmother making perfect Songpyeon.
Cousins playing games.
Adults talking around a crowded table.
The smell of pine needles coming from the kitchen.
And perhaps a child staring suspiciously at a rice cake and thinking:
"Please be sesame. Please be sesame..."
Then taking a bite.
Beans.
That's Chuseok too.
If you're in Korea during the holiday, don't just learn about the traditions. Try one.
Make a Songpyeon, throw the Yut sticks, watch a Ssireum match, or join a cultural program.
You may discover that the best way to understand Korean culture isn't simply to see it.
It's to become part of it.
