On September 29, the Institute for Korean Studies, along with the Bloomington Sejong Institute, IU Chinese Flagship, East Asian Studies Center, and the Chinese and Korean Language Programs, put on a cultural session for Chuseok and the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The event started with presentations on both holidays by Associate Instructor Jae Hyun Ahn and Chinese Flagship Tutor Weiya Wang. The presentation covered the basic histories of the holidays as well as culturally significant foods and activities put on during the time. Each presentation was informative and engaging, with participants actively listening to our presenters.
After the presentations, it was time for snacks. IKS handed out a variety of Korean snacks, both traditional and modern, while the Chinese flagship provided mooncakes (a staple during the Mid-Autumn Festival. With 86 people officially in attendance, there were a lot of snacks to go around.
Then it was time for the main event. Groups of up to five people teamed up to play our rigorous Kahoot, put together by Lacey Hawkes of the Chinese Flagship Program. They battled it out for a chance to win food prizes such as giant mooncakes and yakgwa. In the end, three teams stood on top as winners, but you could feel the competitive energy throughout the whole auditorium.
All and all, our joint Chuseok and Mid-Autumn Festival event was a success. We would once again like to thank our co-sponsors, Bloomington Sejong Institute, the IU Chinese Flagship, the East Asian Studies Center, and the Chinese and Korean Language Programs.
Elena Bonitz
MA in East Asian Studies (Korean Studies)
Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures
Program Assistant
Institute for Korean Studies
Indiana University Bloomington