One for all ...
So, we had a big party with 90 friends and family on the 18th floor of the Foreign Correspondents Club, overlooking City Hall and the ice rink set up for the holidays. (See picture with the view) Excellent food, wine on all the tables and even candles, brought by hand from the United States.
What was the occasion?
Anne's first birthday.
Yes, it was crazy and extravagant and maybe even a bit silly. But it was a lot of fun -- and actually pretty normal for Korea. In fact, our neighbors were appalled at the simple "hanbuk," or traditional Korean costume, that we had for Anne to wear. So they pitched in and bought the beautiful outfit that she wore. My mom (in blue) came too, flying all the way from Chicago!
A "dol" or first birthday celebration, goes back thousands of years to when the children often didn't live to be that old. When they reached "1" they were "home-free." Anyway, today the tradition lives on. There are three huge events in a person's life here: the wedding, the dol and the 60th birthday. And even the 60th birthday isn't quite what it once was.
Here are some pix: