Korean 'Iyeol-chiyeol' Wisdom, Warm Summer Memories, and My Peaceful Sunset Walks in Pohang
Intro: The Magic of Korean Summers
Summer in Korea is truly special. It usually starts pretty early, around the end of May. Just before that, on Children’s Day on May 5th, the weather is perfect—the air is clean and the temperature is just right. Families fill the parks, children laugh as they run around with colorful balloons, and everyone enjoys what many Koreans consider one of the most pleasant days of the year. But after the middle of May, the whole feeling of the air changes. By mid-June, the warm breeze starts to feel really hot, and then Jangma, Korea's rainy season, begins.
Rainy season in Korea doesn't mean it rains every single day without stopping. It’s a lot like our winter pattern; it rains for a few days, the sun comes out for a bit, and then it rains again. This goes on for about a month until the end of July. After one of those heavy summer showers, the smell of wet soil rises from the ground, and the trees seem greener than ever. Ever since I was born, this is how summer has always been on the Korean peninsula.
But a few years ago, things started to change a little. Maybe because of global warming, last year in 2025, we had almost no rainy season at all. We just had to get through an incredibly hot and dry summer. Many older Koreans, including myself, felt that the seasons were no longer as predictable as they had been throughout our childhood.
Once June is over, the real heat begins. On top of that, Korea is very humid, so it feels much hotter than the actual temperature. That is why many foreign tourists who visit Korea say, "Wow, it’s way hotter than I thought!" It is often the humidity—not just the temperature—that surprises visitors the most.
I visited Vietnam a few years ago. Of course, Vietnam is a very hot country, but the heat there felt totally different from Korea. In Vietnam, if you just go into the shade, it feels cool right away. I think it’s because the air is drier there in the area I visited. The heat felt lighter on my skin, while Korean summers seem to wrap around your whole body because of the heavy moisture in the air.
I live in Pohang, and when summer comes, the hot sun completely covers the city. But Pohang has a special gift that other cities don't have: a cool sea breeze blowing from the East Sea. When the sun starts to go down, the cool breeze mixes into the hot air. In that moment, summer feels completely different. I really enjoy the special treat of living by the sea every summer. Sometimes, I simply close my eyes and let the salty breeze touch my face while listening to the gentle sound of the waves. It reminds me that even on the hottest days, nature always finds a way to comfort us.
By the way, did you know that Korea has a unique summer culture that foreigners sometimes find hard to understand? We call the hottest days of summer Chobok, Jungbok, and Malbok. These are not fixed dates like Christmas or New Year's Day. Instead, they are calculated according to the traditional East Asian calendar, so the exact dates change every year. Many Koreans still check the calendar to see when these special days will arrive.
Malbok is considered the last of these hottest days, and during this season countless Koreans eat one specific food: Samgyetang (Ginseng Chicken Soup).
So, a really funny thing happens in front of chicken soup restaurants on these days. People stand in long lines just to eat boiling hot chicken soup in the middle of summer! Usually, when it’s hot, you look for a cold drink, right? But Koreans do the exact opposite. If you see this for the first time, you will definitely ask, "Why?" But inside this tradition, there are hundreds of years of wisdom about staying healthy.
1. Conquering Heat with Heat: The Wisdom of 'Iyeol-chiyeol'
Samgyetang is made by putting sweet rice inside a whole young chicken, adding ginseng, jujubes, and garlic, and boiling it for a very long time. The soup is hot and rich, and the chicken meat is so soft that you can pull it apart easily with just a spoon. Before you even take your first bite, you can smell the comforting aroma of garlic and ginseng rising from the steaming bowl. It is a smell that instantly reminds many Koreans of midsummer.
Actually, in traditional Eastern medicine, ingredients like chicken, sweet rice, ginseng, jujubes, and garlic are all considered "hot" foods. Eating this soup heats up your body and makes you feel even warmer.
Just imagine sipping hot soup in the middle of a burning hot summer day. Just thinking about it makes you sweat, right? But the amazing thing is, after you finish eating and sweat a lot, your body suddenly feels much lighter and actually cooler.
It’s not magic; it’s simply the body's natural cooling process. When we sweat, the evaporation of that sweat helps lower our body temperature. Long before modern science explained this, our ancestors had already discovered it through experience.
There is another piece of wisdom from our ancestors here. When it gets hot, people take cold showers, drink ice water, and eat cold fruits like watermelon or melons. When we do this, our stomach and inside organs become very cold. So, even though we are sweating on the outside, our insides are freezing. This can give you a stomach ache or make you feel tired easily.
Our ancestors believed that a hot bowl of Samgyetang warmed the stomach, restored lost energy, and prepared the body to endure the long, humid summer. Whether you fully agree with that traditional belief or not, there is no doubt that this custom has been loved by Koreans for generations.
Of course, Samgyetang is not the only food Koreans enjoy during summer. On ordinary days, many people cool themselves with refreshing dishes such as Naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles), Kongguksu (noodles in chilled soybean soup), or a bowl of sweet Patbingsu, Korea's famous shaved ice dessert topped with red beans and fruit. Summer in Korea is actually a beautiful balance between hot traditions and cool treats.
These days, I hear that more and more people from other countries love Samgyetang, and it’s always on the list of foods you must try when you visit Korea. Whenever I see foreign visitors enjoying their very first bowl of Samgyetang, I smile to myself because I know they are experiencing a small but meaningful piece of Korean culture.
2. Sweet Summer Memories with No Air Conditioner
A family eating sweet watermelon while playing in a cool valley streamLooking back now, it's amazing how little we had. Yet somehow, those summers remain some of the happiest memories of my life. We didn't think we were missing anything because everyone around us lived the same way.
When I think about summer back then, I remember my hometown. A big river ran through our town. During the day, I used to swim there with my friends. We would spend hours in the water until our fingers became wrinkled. We never worried about the time because there were no smartphones or video games waiting for us at home. The river was our swimming pool, our playground, and our greatest source of adventure.
On the hottest afternoons, the cicadas sang so loudly from the trees that their sound seemed to fill the whole village. As children, we hardly noticed how loud they were. To us, that sound simply meant one thing—school was on vacation, and summer had finally arrived.
At night, my mom would hold my hand and take me to the river to wash up.
It wasn't just us. My mom's friends came out with their kids too. There were no streetlights back then, so it was completely dark. We could wash and splash around naked without worrying about anyone seeing us, just laughing and having fun in the cool water.
When I think about it now, it sounds almost unbelievable. Today, children grow up with swimming pools, water parks, and shower rooms. But for us, the river was enough. Those evenings by the water never felt poor. They felt free.
After cooling down our tired bodies in the river, we would go home, feel nicely tired, and fall into a deep, sweet sleep.
In the 1980s, we finally got an electric fan at home. But we didn't have one in every room. We kept it in my parents' room or out on the wooden living room floor (maru). During the day, the whole family would sit together on a cool mat on the floor. When the sun went down, we went out to the yard to get some fresh air. Back then, that one fan was the most precious thing in the house.
These days, every room has its own air conditioner, but back then one fan cooled the entire family. Looking back, I don't remember anyone complaining very much. We simply accepted summer as part of life.
Another thing I remember so clearly is watermelon. We had a big well in our yard, and my mom would put the watermelon deep inside the well to keep it cold. There were no large refrigerators like today, so the cool groundwater became nature's refrigerator.
The memory of our family sitting together and eating that cold watermelon is still so vivid today.
I can still hear the loud crack when my mother cut the watermelon in half. The bright red fruit appeared, shining with cold juice, and all us kids cheered with excitement. We always wanted the biggest slice, and we laughed as the sweet juice ran down our hands. Even now, whenever I hear that familiar cracking sound, I am reminded of those happy summer evenings with my family.
At night, my mom would start a small fire with leaves to keep the mosquitoes away.
The smoke smelled a little bitter, but none of us complained because we knew the mosquitoes would soon disappear. Looking back now, that smell has somehow become one of the smells of summer in my memory.
We would sit on the wooden platform (pyeongsang) in the yard and eat the steamed potatoes and corn she made for us. Above us, the stars filled the night sky. Since there were very few streetlights, the stars looked brighter than they do today. Sometimes a gentle evening breeze would pass through the yard, carrying the smell of grass and the sound of insects singing in the distance.
I miss those days so much.
We didn't have smartphones or air conditioners then, but families talked to each other much more. My grandmother and mom would fan themselves with pretty, handmade fans and talk about their day, while the kids played in the yard.
There were no notifications, no television in every room, and nothing constantly pulling our attention away. We simply looked at one another, listened to each other's stories, and enjoyed being together. I think that is something many of us miss today.
Life was inconvenient back then, but strangely, people felt much closer.
Looking back now, I sometimes think it wasn't the river, the fan, or even the cold watermelon that helped us get through those long, hot summers.
Maybe it was simply the warmth of being together.
3. Finding My Own Summer Peace by the Pohang Ocean
Time has passed, and life is very different now. Today, I live in Pohang. This city is famous for its steel industry, which helped Korea grow, and it sits right next to a beautiful ocean full of fresh seafood.
If you look at the map of Korea, you can see a shape that curves inward—that is Yeongil Bay in Pohang. The name Yeongil means "welcoming the sun," because it’s one of the first places on Korea's east coast to greet the morning sun. Many visitors also travel to nearby Homigot, one of Korea's most famous sunrise spots, especially on New Year's Day to watch the first sunrise of the year. Even after living here for years, I still understand why so many people come. Watching the sun slowly rise over the East Sea is something you never get tired of.
Since the ocean is right in front of my house, I can go swimming whenever I want in the summer.
When I was young, I played in the river. Now, many years later, I enjoy walking beside the sea. Life has changed, but water has somehow remained a part of every summer in my life.
And now, we have air conditioners and cars, so it’s easy to drive anywhere to escape the heat.
Not too far away, there is a great mountain valley called Sangok with a cool stream. Last year, I went there with my parents. We grilled pork belly, cooked ramyun, swam in the water, and had a wonderful time. I am planning to go there again this year when my kids come down for vacation.
As I grow older, I find that I don't need expensive vacations to feel happy. A simple day with my family, good food, cool water, and plenty of laughter is more than enough.
My way of enjoying summer these days is very simple. Around 5:00 PM, when the sun goes down a bit and the heat softens, I walk on the beach barefoot. I started this barefoot walking (earthing) back in 2021, and I still do it from late spring to late autumn for my health.
Some people ask me why I enjoy walking barefoot on the sand. I always smile because it's hard to explain. When the warm sand is under my feet and the cool waves gently wash over them, my mind becomes quiet. The worries of the day seem much smaller than they did a few minutes before.
Sometimes, around sunset, I love to go for a drive.
My favorite thing to do is open the car windows, turn off the air conditioner, and let the natural breeze fill the car. Then I drive slowly along the beautiful coastal road from Pohang to Chilpo Beach.
There is no hurry.
The sound of the waves comes and goes beside the road. Fishing boats slowly return to the harbor, and the sky changes from bright blue to orange and finally to deep red. When the cool East Sea breeze enters through the window, carrying the fresh smell of the sea, all the tiredness from the day quietly disappears.
It’s also really fun to watch the tourists enjoying the beach.
Children build sandcastles while their parents laugh nearby. Young people take pictures of the sunset, and couples walk hand in hand along the shoreline. Watching them somehow makes me smile too. Even though we don't know each other, everyone seems to be enjoying the same beautiful evening.
Sometimes I simply stop the car.
I don't take out my phone.
I just sit quietly and listen to the waves.
As I get older, I've realized that silence can be one of life's greatest gifts.
You don't have to travel far to enjoy summer. Just resting in nature near you is enough to recharge.
My summers in Pohang are filled with these small, simple joys.
Conclu:Why Koreans Love the Summer Season
For Koreans, summer is not just a hot season we have to suffer through.
Eating hot Samgyetang for health, sharing watermelon with family, and resting by the ocean or in the mountains—all of this is part of our summer culture.
I'm sure you also go on trips with your family or go camping in beautiful places when summer comes.
It's the same in Korea.
Some people go to cool mountain streams, young people jump into the sea to surf under the hot sun, and older people still sit under the shade of big village trees, talking with neighbors just as they did many years ago.
These summer scenes are probably the same all over the world.
Our ways of beating the heat might be a little different, but Koreans have learned over many generations to live with nature instead of fighting against it. We have also learned that some of the best summer memories are not created by expensive vacations but by simple moments spent with people we love.
These days, I have an air conditioner, a comfortable car, and many things that my family could never have imagined when I was a child.
But if someone asked me,
"Which summer do you miss the most?"
I think I already know my answer.
It would be those evenings by the river with my mother.
The cold watermelon waiting in the well.
The smell of smoke keeping the mosquitoes away.
The sound of cicadas filling the trees.
And my family sitting together under the summer stars.
Maybe Korean summer is special not because it is hotter than anywhere else.
Maybe it is special because every summer leaves us with another memory to carry for the rest of our lives.
How are you planning to spend your summer this year?
If you ever visit Korea during the hottest days, would you try a bowl of boiling hot Samgyetang?
If you do, don't be surprised if you find yourself sweating after only a few spoonfuls.
And when you walk outside again and feel the warm summer breeze on your face, you might finally understand why Koreans have loved this tradition for hundreds of years.
I hope you have a healthy, peaceful, and happy summer.
And if you have any questions about Korea or would like me to write about another part of Korean life and culture, please leave a comment.
I'd love to share more stories with you.
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