Today is the Chinese or Lunar New Year or Sollal as it is called in Korean and most of the nation has shut down as hundreds of thousands of Koreans have either headed to their hometowns or are now celebrating the day with their families. It is the second biggest holiday in Korea and if you are a foreigner here without any family it can be quite lonely and depressing. Last year I was able to take a week’s vacation around Sollal and actually get in an extra two days and fly to Laos to be with On for ten days. This year though I’ve been hunkering down in my room with a steady diet of downloaded TV programs and movies (I am watching The Godfather trilogy today) to get through the holiday which lasts until Wednesday.

I’ve already stocked up on enough supplies to get me through the next few days because most shops and stores are closed here. Most shops and restaurants were open over the weekend, but not so today with many closed. I did go out for a walk and some were open. Kind of eerie and depressing at the same time to be away from your loved ones in a foreign country during this holiday that is all about being with one’s loved ones-kind of a weird irony, too.

A few years ago, when I was writing columns for the Korea Times and living in Seoul, I wrote this column about Sollal.

All those boxed gift sets of Spam that I’ve seen around the city the past few days when I have stopped in at convenient stores or supermarkets can only mean one thing: Sollal or Lunar New Year is just a few days away.

This coming weekend, the entire nation will be on holiday mode again as families gather to celebrate this very important holiday on the Lunar Calendar-second in importance only to Chusok (Harvest Moon Festival) in autumn. Although these days it seems that many young Koreans opt for skiing trips or travel abroad during the three-day holiday, countless other Koreans will take to the nation’s roads, railways, and skies for this annual and traditional-steeped pilgrimage home.

While the holiday is not all about the giving of boxed gift sets (I don’t know anyone who does), a bit of price gouging by merchants (nine Korean oranges cost me nearly 3,000 won the other day) or homebound travelers jamming the highways, the holiday is best characterized by ancestral worship ceremonies. Known as “jesa”, the preparation of food and the ancestral worship ceremony form the critical mass of Korean culture during this holiday.

For the expatriate community in Korea though, Sollal can be a much-appreciated mini-vacation, which depending on when it falls in any given year can be a reprieve from the monotony of another cold Korean winter. On the other hand, with the entire nation on holiday, some of our favorite haunts might be closed including your favorite pizza shop or watering hole.

Nonetheless, having a few days off is a great opportunity to get out and explore some of the country even in the dead of winter or maybe even have a mini vacation abroad. Unfortunately, if you haven’t made any plans for the holiday, it’s probably too late to head off anywhere around the nation or overseas.

Just the other day I was in my friendly travel agency sorting out travel arrangements for an upcoming trip, when my travel agent, Ms. Park was on the phone with a desperate customer who had waited until the last minute to make travel arrangements for the holiday, and in this case Vietnam. With the patience of a saint, Ms. Park tried her best to find some holiday destination for this travel procrastinator. One thing is for certain, if you are going to be here for any extended length of time, you learn fast to make those travel arrangements way in advance.

However, if you are one of those expats with nothing to do and nowhere to go-instead of hunkering down in your room or apartment with a few days supply of ramen and DVD’s to ride out the holiday-it’s not a bad time to get out and explore some of the nation’s cultural attractions. Aside from some of Seoul’s major attractions like Kyongbok Palace and Changdok Palace, there’s probably no better time (other than Chusok) to see some of the city or check out some of those travel destinations close to the city when you don’t have to fight the usual crowds.

To be sure, I can think of no better time to be in Seoul than these holidays. While I can’t speak for people living in cities and towns other than Seoul, I know when Sollal rolls around, it is one of the best times to be in the capital city when the streets are nearly deserted. (It’s nice traveling from one side of the city to the other without the usual traffic snarl.) Unlike Chusok, when I am usually out of the country on vacation, I always look forward to getting out (weather permitting) and explore a bit of the city’s cultural attractions or destinations close to the city like Kanghwa Island or Namhansansong Fortress during the Sollal holiday.

Over the years I have been lucky when it comes to finding something to do when the nation is on this extended holiday mode. While I have always enjoyed this mini-vacation during the winter, of all the Sollal that have come and gone in the time I have been here, one of my fondest ones was when I had the chance to go to Mt. Sorak for the first time.

I couldn’t have asked for a better vacation in Korea and a chance to experience a bit of Sorak’s majestic winter beauty. While the weather may or may not cooperate with a generous supply of snow this year, there’s no question that Korea is at its beautiful best when the hills and valleys are transformed into a winter wonderland.

Do yourself a favor and get out during the holiday. Even if you aren’t up for any traveling, there’s still plenty to see and do and without having to fight all the crowds and traffic. In the meantime, if you are going to be here for awhile you might want to start making those travel plans for the next holiday.

As for those boxed gift sets, even though I am going to be celebrating my sixteenth Sollal in Korea, I have yet to receive one (I have given a few though). Although I might take offense if someone gave me one of soap or toothpaste (might think the giver was sending me some kind of a message) I would love to get a box of Spam or green tea. Just be sure you give it to me before the holiday because there’s one thing you can count on when the whole nation is on this extended weekend-most of the stores will be closed.

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