The rice cake in the picture is one of the Korean street dishes made by making bread with alcohol. It is called bread, but unlike bread, which is mainly flour or corn flour, it mixes makgeolli and yeast in it. In the manufacturing process, almost all alcohol components disappear due to heat, but the aroma of alcohol remains. Recently, it has disappeared a lot, but only 10 years ago, it was a common food in street truck stalls. 사진의 떡은 술빵으로 한국의 길거리 음식중 하나이다. 명칭은 빵이지만 밀가루, 옥수수가루가 주재료인 빵과 달리 막걸리와 그 안에 들어있는 효모를 주재료로 더 많이 섞는다. 제조 과정에서 열에 의해 알코올 성분이 대부분 날아가지만 알코올 향이 조금은 남아있다. 요즘은 많이 사라졌지만 불과 10년전만해도 길거리 트럭 노점상에서 흔히 접할 수 있는 음식이었다.

This is a picture of weaving Malaysia taken during a field trip for the Malaysia video production workshop in 2019.

The picture shows the beautiful light of the "Baekje Culture Festival" The ferryboat that used to go to Baekje "Gom-Naru" has been reproduced. "Naru" means a place where ships cross a river or underwater. The festival has been held since 1955 in Gongju and Buyeo, the second and third capitals of Baekje, to console the souls of Baekje's ruined country. Baekje is a country of the Three Kingdoms Period that developed around the Geumgang River basin, and you can experience various cultures related to Baekje at this festival. 사진은 백제문화제 축제를 수놓은 아름다운 불빛들이다. 백제의 곰나루를 다니던 나룻배들을 재현해놓았다. 나루는 강 또는 바닷목에서 배가 건너다니는 일정한 곳을 말한다. 이 축제는 1955년부터 이어져 온 행사로 백제의 2, 3번째 수도였던 한국의 공주(웅진성), 부여(사비성) 두 지역에서 개최되며 백제 망국의 원혼을 위로하는 제의에서 시작되었다. 백제는 금강 유역을 일대로 발달한 삼국시대의 한 나라로 이 축제에서 백제와 관련된 여러 문화를 체험할 수 있다.

The picture above is my first marriage (according to Newar tradition) with the Bel fruit, along with my friends which is also known as a wooden apple. I was about 5 years old and had no idea about the wedding at all. Newars possess different cycles of rituals from birth to death. Wedding of a girl in Newari community possess a deep meaning and has great importance. Their wedding practices are unique too. A daughter born in a Newari community is married thrice. But not all marriages are with men (groom). The first marriage is performed before puberty with Bel fruit (Aegle marmelos), the second marriage is with the sun, and finally, the third marriage is with a man. Ihi, one of the most important rites of the Newar community, is an entrance ritual to the life cycle ritual of the Newar girl, which gives membership to the girl within the community. Young girls from age of 5-9, before their puberty, are married with bel fruit, the symbol of the Lord Bishnu, one of the gods in Hinduism. Hence, this function is related to marriage and divorce. After this marriage, Newar girl is, therefore, never believed to be a widow, even her real husband dies, because she has already married with eternal god, Lord Bishnu the god of sustainer. No less than other weddings, I was made ready for the wedding ceremony dressed up with my hair and makeup done. In Newar culture, during special ceremonies, people must clean from head to toe. Naunis (a traditional barber and pedicurist in the Newar community) are invited for nail trimming. Naunis cut nails and put “Ala” (a red pigment), around hands and feet (like in the second picture), which is a traditional pedicure for women in Newari culture. After all preparation, we were taken to the temple of the Lord Bishnu for the wedding ceremony with the Bel. And after the ceremony, relatives came to me bringing gifts and cash. There was a feast afterward. These practices are of more than religious and cultural significance. Through these rituals and practices, young girls are taught about the change they have according to their age. They are even taught about the norm and values of the community as a member of it. Fortunately, Ihi is being practiced to the date, but the importance and meaning of Ihi are declining day by day. Rituals like this should be safeguarded and transmitted to the coming generation.

The picture above is of my family and me making Yamari (traditional typical Newari Bread) in Nepal 2019. It was midwinter, freezing cold morning. The majestic view of snowclad mountains seems refreshed after wakening up. Many trees were denuded of leaves and the lawn was covered in frost. I was wearing gloves and a woolen cap to escape from the cold, sitting in my yard drinking chiya (a traditional nepali tea) and enjoying the splendid morning view with my father. In the meanwhile, I heard my mother calling us to the kitchen. We went to the kitchen and saw my mother ready for making “Yamari”. She wanted us to give her our hands in making the “Yamari”. "Ya" means "to like'' and "mari" means "bread" in Newari language, which literally means “tasty bread”. Yamari is a steamed sweet bread made of rice flour (from the new harvest) dough, shaped like fig with ends like a fishtail and filled with chaku (a sweet made up of sugarcane, ghee, and nut, etc.) and sesame seeds. I was so excited because Yamari was one of my favorite foods which are eaten once a year, in the winter season only. I always wondered why it is made in winter only but not in other seasons. My mother explains, “Eating Yamari avoids the effects of cold winter. Our body gets weak in winter, so, to energize our body we eat chaku which is only made in winter”. However, nowadays it is becoming a popular snack and can be seen in city markets. My mother taught me how to make nice shaped Yamari. The closing part of it must be like the shape of the tail longer if possible because it is believed that the longer the tail is the longer the day will be, and night get shorter which means soon the winter will end. I followed my mother but failed several times. Some shaped round, some shaped semi triangle. After failing several times, I was able to make a beautiful Yamari (third picture). According to the Newari tradition, children including elders go to nearby houses door to door singing a special song and asking for Yamari on a full moon day known as the yamari full moon day. This event used to be real fun and memorable especially for children. However, today this tradition is gradually disappearing. Children and youngsters have no craze for Yamari like before. They are more interested in mobiles or computer games than in preserving their culture and tradition.