- Chuseok
Chuseok, or “fall evening,” is a three-day festival celebrated in Korea the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar on a full moon. Some of the popular dishes prepared during this holiday include songpyeon (small rice cakes), bulgogi (grilled marinated beef) and japchae (sweet potato noodles). Families visit the cemetery to honor their ancestors before they share a feast and engage in other activities such as dancing, wrestling and dressing in customary outfits.
- Jour de l’Action de Grâce
Did you know that Justin Bieber, Drake and Seth Rogen were Canadian? No? Well, maybe you also didn’t know that Canada has its own Thanksgiving Day. Celebrated the second Monday of October, the Canadian Thanksgiving celebration is similar to what the U.S. does. Perhaps the biggest difference between the two celebrations might be that Canadians started this tradition back in 1578, which was 43 years before the first American Thanksgiving at Plymouth, Mass.
- Homowo
Celebrated by the Ga people of Ghana, the Homowo festival is colorful and loud. The legend says that the Gas suffered a severe famine; there was no rain and people were starving. They decided to start a massive cycle of food production that resulted in a great harvest, thus fulfilling them with joy and enabling to “hoot at hunger,” which is the actual meaning of the word homowo. During the festival, the Gas go out to the street with drums, sing and perform traditional dances like the Kpanlogo.
- Sukkot
This week, a long festival commemorates the Israelites biblical survival in the wilderness after their exodus from Egypt and marks the end of harvest. With the goal of reenacting parts of this event, some people build Sukkahs, which are temporary huts constructed based on the structures used by Israelites to seek shelter in the desert for over 40 years, according to the Bible.
- Thai Pongal
According to the Gregorian calendar, this Indian festival is celebrated from Feb. 13 to 18; however, sometimes it is celebrated from Jan. 14 to 17. This Tamil equivalent of Thanksgiving is held to honor the sun by offering it Pongal, which is a popular dish made mainly with rice and milk.
