How to do the basic greetings in Korean

Greeting people in their own language is a sure way to get a smile and break the ice. When you travel to South Korea, the locals will typically switch to English for some practice and to continue the conversation, but it's an essential and respectful skill to learn before your next trip to South Korea.

Greetings in Korean

As with saying hello in many other Asian languages, you show respect and acknowledge a person's age or status by using different greetings. This system of showing respect by using titles is known as honorifics, and Koreans have a very complex hierarchy of honorifics.

Greetings take into account how well you know someone; showing proper respect for age and status are essential aspects of "face" in Korean culture.

Unlike in the Malay and Indonesian languages, basic greetings in Korea are not based on the time of day (e.g., "good afternoon"), so you can use the same greeting no matter the time. Additionally, asking how someone is doing, a typical follow-up question in the West is a part of the initial greeting in Korean. Fortunately, there are some simple, default ways to say hello that won't be misconstrued as rude.

The Three Greetings of Traditional Korean Culture

The basic greeting in Korean is anyong haseyo, which is pronounced "ahn-yo ha-say-yoh." While not the most formal of greetings, anyong haseyo is widespread and still polite enough for most circumstances when interacting with people whom you know, regardless of age. The rough translation of anyong, the initiator for saying hello in Korean, is "I hope you are well" or "please be well."

To show even more respect to someone older or of higher status, use anyong hashimnikka as a formal greeting. Pronounced "ahn-yo hash-im-nee-kah," this greeting is reserved for guests of honor and is used occasionally with older family members one has not seen in a very long time.

Finally, a nice, casual anyong is usually offered among friends and people of the same age who know each other. As the most informal greeting in Korean, anyong could be compared to saying "hey" or "what's up" in English. You should avoid using anyong by itself when greeting strangers or people of higher status such as teachers and officials.

Saying Good Morning and Answering the Phone

Although some variation of anyong is the principal way to greet Korean strangers, there are a few other ways that Koreans exchange greetings including saying "good morning" and when answering the telephone.

While the basic greetings work regardless of time of day, alternatively joun achim (pronounced "joh-oon ah-chim") can be used with close friends in the mornings. In Korea, saying "good morning" is not very common so most people simply default to saying anyong or anyong haseyo.

Since knowing how to say hello in Korea greatly depends on showing proper respect, a special greeting is used when answering the phone if the age or standing of someone is unknown: yoboseyo. Pronounced "yeow-boh-say-oh," yoboseyo is polite enough to be used as a greeting when answering the phone; however, it is never used when saying hello to someone in person.

See more: 5 ideal places to go camping in South Korea

Source: Internet

Best things to do in Chongqing, China

Positioned alongside the Yangtze River, Chongqing offers plenty of attractions for travelers, including delicious cuisine, cultural museums, and even UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Here’s our guide to the top things to do and see in this booming megacity.

Eat hot pot

Chongqing is known for its boiling temperatures, but the city’s ubiquitous hot pot is even more scorching. This style of cooking has been practiced in China for centuries and has no clear origin, with stories tracing it back to various regions including Mongolia and Southwestern China. The dish is cooked like a communal stew, with diners gathering around a pot of spicy boiling broth and tossing in a variety of ingredients, from thinly sliced meat and quail eggs to vegetables and mushrooms. For the people of Chongqing, hot pot is more than just a meal; it’s an experience and a chance to connect with family and friends. There are countless delicious hot pot eateries around the city, including the renowned Xiao Tian E.

Hike in the Wulong Karst Gelogical Park

Sprawling along the Wu River Southeast of Chongqing, Wulong Karst Geological Park is a breathtaking scenic area named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The area is home to streams, caves, gorges, and karst limestone formations. Of the numerous natural wonders in this area, Three Natural Bridges, Furong Cave, and Houping Tiankeng, an eroded sinkhole, are particularly popular. The park is an excellent choice for nature lovers, as well as avid hikers. Furthermore, movie-goers may recognize it as a filming location for the movie Transformers: Age of Extinction.

Explore Ciqikou Old Town

For travelers seeking to escape the bustling energy of Chongqing’s city center, the out-of-the-way Ciqikou Old Town is an ideal solution. The quaint town is positioned in Shapingba District and dates back to the Ming and Qing Dynasties when it served as a port town and commercial center for the area. In English, the area is known as Porcelain Town, for its history as a porcelain producer. Today, visitors can still find porcelain pieces sold in the town’s shops, as well as numerous eateries selling beef soup, spicy stir fry, and various pastries. Ciqikou is also famous for being linked to Samuel CC Ting, a recipient of The Nobel Prize in Physics who studied in the small town during his childhood. The classroom where Ting studied has been preserved and is open to visitors.

See giant pandas at the Chongqing Zoo

China has become synonymous with the giant panda, an adorable animal native to the country’s central, southern, and eastern areas. As an endangered species, there are less than 2,000 giant pandas alive in the wild. Travelers itching to catch a glimpse of these bamboo-loving creatures can pay a visit to the Chongqing Zoo. Positioned five miles from the city center, the zoo is home not only to pandas, but to elephants, leopards and kangaroos, as well a variety of sea life housed in the zoo’s aquarium. The zoo’s lush hills, waterfalls, and foliage also make it a refreshing haven from Chongqing’s crowded streets.

Wander through the Three Gorges Museum

Named after the famous Three Gorges area alongside the Yangtze River, the Three Gorges Museum is situated in Chongqing’s busting Yuzhong District. In addition to information related to the Three Gorges, the museum also serves to preserve the history of Chongqing and is home to a variety of cultural artifacts and artistic pieces. Among its vast collection, visitors will find antique porcelain, sculptures from the Han Dynasty, paintings, and calligraphy work. The museum was originally founded as the Chongqing Museum but was later reopened under its current name.

See more: Challenge yourself with top 5 Chongqing spicy dishes

Source: Internet

A guide to specialties in Cao Bang, Vietnam

With the list of top special food in Cao Bang, travelers know what local specialties and unique dishes to enjoy. It brings distinctive feeling about real Vietnamese Northern cuisine. Cao Bang is a land of the historical attractions and places of interest such as Pac Bo Cave, Ban Gioc Waterfall, Nguom Ngao Cave, etc. Besides sightseeing, it is ideal for ethnic food tour to the local traditional villages.

Banh Khao

Banh khao is one of the very famous specialties of Cao Bang. The main ingredients are glutinous rice, sugar, peanuts, and sesame. When you bite into a piece of banh khao, the sweetness of the sugar, the buttery taste of peanuts and sesame, and the soft glutinous rice cake combine to make a delicious dessert snack that will not fill you up. The final product is wrapped in colored paper in rectangular shapes.

Banh khao is usually made for Tet (Vietnamese New Year). A custom of Cao Bang says that as long as banh khao is in a local home, it is still Tet vacation. However, you can buy banh khao at any stores in Cao Bang.

Pho Chua

The unique sour noodle is the highlight of Cao Bang culinary. A bowl of Pho Chua is abundant, filled with fleshy liver meat, bacon, roasted duck, heap of peanuts and chili. In summer time, the sauce is made with a light sour taste, making it even delicious. This dish can be eaten for any meal of the day.

Banh Trung Kien

In April and May of every year, the Tay ethnic group of Cao Bang Province gathers at the forest to find the black ant-eggs which are major ingredients to make the cake. “Banh Trung Kien” is made from the glutinous rice flour, ant-eggs, and the young leaves of fig tree. The black ant-eggs in Cao Bang are high in protein. Understand that not every kind of ant-eggs can be eaten, and only the Tay people know how to sort out those of the right black ant-eggs (the ants with small body and pointed tail).

Secrets might also lie in the steps of mixing the glutinous rice flour, the flour grinding, the ant-eggs frying, etc. The completion should be steamed and then left cool to be cut into the square pieces. The cakes are soft, fragrant with the fig leaves, fatty and scrumptious thanks to the high-protein ant-eggs.

Vit Quay Bay Vi

Vit quay bay vi literally means roasted duck with seven flavors. Before roasting the duck, the cook marinates it with seven ingredients including ginger, garlic, shallots, peppers, honey, tofu, and a special ingredient which is Clausena indica, a fruit grown in Cao Bang’s forest.

After roasting, the duck is cut into small slices and put on a plate. When eating vit quay bay vi, you should chew slowly to experience the seven flavors of this dish. Try to guess the ingredients as most people do when trying this food for the first time. When travelers return home and try to cook it, they say it never has the same taste as it did in Cao Bang. The reason is the absence of Clausena indica, which only grows in Cao Bang.

Banh Coong Phu

Banh coong phu is a specialty of the Tay and Nung people. According to the Tay and Nung language, the name of this food means the floating cake. The Viet people also have a dish called banh troi nuoc, which has the same meaning and is very similar to banh coong phu in terms of recipe.

The best time to eat banh coong phu is in the winter. A vendor will put banh coong phu in boiled water and wait until the pieces float to the surface. She will then put them to a bowl and pour in the sugar water. Hot banh coong phu will warm you up and the sugar provides much-needed energy to fight against the cold of this high land.

Banh Che Lam

The list of the unique delicious Cao Bang food cannot miss, “Banh Che Lam” which is made from the roasted sticky rice, roasted peanuts, ginger, and malt. The cake brings the enjoyable eating experiences in which foodies appreciate the sticky sweet honey, the soft sticky rice, the ginger taste, and the scrumptious peanut. All makes this cake unforgettable. Served with the hot tea, this traditional cake makes guests fall in love with the green charming land. The cakes are on sales in local markets and shops.

Read more: The unique experiences in Sapa, Vietnam

Source Internet