All Korean Americans, young and old, meet and bond at this event: Jang­Tuh. Jang­Tuh, similar
to the existence of the 626 Night Market, bring the world and culture of South Korea to Los Angeles and introduces the unique culture of our country to Americans. Once entering the small park located on the popular street of Western in Downtown LA and in the heart of Koreatown, people are welcomed by the loud korean music and the symbols of the korean culture, including the colors, the food, and the symbols. And although to others it may seem like an inconsequential yearly event, to our family, this events brings a small portion of Korea that we yearn for. For our family, coming to this event yearly has become a tradition. I come with my grandma and my family, and everytime I come out learning more about the unique culture that my ethnicity represents. And every second I know that although I live in America, I am a Korean and the importance of identifying myself as such brings me closer to my ancestors. Moreover to people who are not able to go to Korea for a variety of reasons, including my mom, come to this event to reminisce in their childhood through the unique things that Jang­Tuh presents.

Dancers perform traditional folk dances while wearing the traditional South Korean clothes, young dancers perform Korean Pop Music, and the people are entertained with the vast abundance of traditional and popular Korean food. It is truly an event that combines the young and the old and the past and the present. Moreover it represents a small yet important event that brings a small part of Korea to the Korean Americans who are unable to be in Korea.

As soon as I walked through the gates of the park, I am welcomed with an aroma of Korean spices and smells, including Tukbokki, Japchae, etc. All around me I see symbols of the major Korean companies that represent the productivity and development of our country. Under many small booth are small restaurants that provide authentic Korean food. Under another booth, there are 5 people pounding on a white bag in the thick heat of the afternoon. After years of attending this event, I know that these people are making Dduk also known as rice cake. Rice cake is made by putting rice, water, and salt in a bag and hammering the bag until the rice absorbs the water and the salt and become sticky and form into a rice cake. Through this I know that the culture and traditions of making food remain.

The biggest attraction of this event is at the main stage where hundreds of Koreans and Americans gather to watch performances that combine the beauty of old folk dances and the modern songs of the Korean pop culture. Performers in beautifully exquisite traditional dresses come out in the full ensemble. They wear all the colors of the rainbow and their dresses are adorned in gold details that bring life to their outfit. They have put on headpieces that represent the royal hair fashion in Korean history and they start the Fan Dance. Then the drummers come on stage with their blue and white clothes and start the Grand Drum Ensemble. The heavy beat of the drums ring through my ears but it also rings through my heart. I have always thought that once the first generation immigrants die, the faint Korean culture that exists through the persistence of the first generation immigrants will die. However I realized that day that because of Jang­Tuh, the Korean culture will always be prevalent in Koreatown. Once the traditional dancers have completed their performance, younger dancers come on stage as they perform popular Korean pop songs. And as I watched the audience react, I realized that both young and old people clapped and danced to these songs. Ultimately the introduction to Korean pop songs brought together the multiple generations present that day.

Although this event has always been a fun day for me, this year, I was able to realize the importance and effect towards the people present. To the Koreans, they were able to unconsciously fuse together into one, and to the Americans getting a taste of our culture, they were able to learn about the culture that defines who we are.
Similar to Amir in The Kite Runner, the past defines who we are and how are future will proceed. This event reminded us of our history and that our traditions are still alive and through these traditions we define ourselves as Korean­Americans. Moreover ultimately it’s important that we understand that family and the unity of our generations is important and define who we will become.