Happy White Day

Seriously.

Except, I don't think I'm actually supposed to be declaring that sentiment to the general public. From what I've gathered, White Day is the counterpart to Valentine's Day in Korea and Japan. I didn't realize this back in February, but apparently girls buy guys gifts for V-Day. Then the guy returns the courtesy on March 14th, and funny enough, the tradition calls for him to spend three times the amount she spent on his gift. 

I'm often struck by the amount of couples I see when I'm out and about, and today was no exception. Even in the heavy afternoon rain, I counted dozens of couples strolling arm in arm, united in love under a shared umbrella. In this regard, Seoul could give Paris a run for its money (side note:  it's customary for the guy to carry the girl's handbag, which is sweet, I think).  

Speaking of rain... I got caught in a downpour without an umbrella. I generally don't mind being without one, and even today it didn't bother me, although I did get several strange looks. Finally, I looked in a mirror and saw what anyone around me could see:  drenched girl, with hair amiss and mascara-raccoon eyes. I was laughing inside imagining that the couples who saw me were saying to each other:  No wonder she's all alone on White Day.

Stay tuned for Black Day. No joke, it's coming up on April 14th. To my single friends in Seoul:  let's make it a good one.