Love milestones are a big deal for Korean couples. It is customary for couples to count down to the 100th day since they got together and celebrate their anniversaries every 100 days of their relationship. On the day, they exchange flowers and gifts, eat at a nice restaurant, or go on a short trip together.
Traditionally the number 100 has a deep meaning of maturity in Korea; making it past the first 100 days was a sign that you would live to see your first birthday, and making it past your first birthday was a sign that you would make it out of infancy.
Korean couples celebrate more anniversaries!
The 100th-day anniversary is one of the bigger celebrations – counting from the first day they got into an official relationship. Following the 100th-day anniversary, the 200th, 300th, 500th, and 1000th-day anniversaries are also special days to celebrate with a date out!
Interestingly, the 100th day is equally important to lovebirds in modern-day Korea. When a couple starts dating, they are obliged to count down until the 100th day since they got together. Couples usually celebrate the big day by exchanging gifts.
100 Days of Dating
To celebrate 100 days of being together, couples would prepare small gifts, go on a memorable date, take photos, and/or buy couple rings. Couple rings are worn on the fourth finger of the right hand -- this is not to be mistaken for an engagement or a wedding ring.
So when Koreans say “We are 100 days in,” it usually means their relationship entered a more serious stage. Some couples go as far as to celebrate 200th, 300th, 400th… you get the gist. (Out of those 100th is definitely considered the most important since it's the first milestone to come.)
At traditional Chinese 100 days celebrations (百日宴), prayers and food will be offered to the ancestors together with the burning of incense to wish the baby good health and protection them from bad spirits. Some families will shave the baby's head, while some have already replaced the ritual with snipping a hair lock.
So when you see the number 4, 44, or 444, it's a sign you're on the right path and are heading in a positive direction with that partner. “Trusting inner instincts is the foundation of this number when involved in moving forward in the relationship,” Berry reminds.
The 5-5-5 method is simple, according to Clarke. When a disagreement comes up, each partner will take 5 minutes to speak while the other simply listens, and then they use the final five minutes to talk it through.
“My 333 strategy is based on dating three people, at the same time, for three months, and giving them three chances if something bothers you comes up.
In South Korea, passionate kisses and lingering hugs are considered tacky and inappropriate when they occur in public. Rather, they're seen as special, romantic moments that should be shared with your partner in a private setting.
Can You Show Affection in Public? Public displays of affection (PDA) is a sin most Korean couples commit. While you should keep the steamy make-out sessions private, PDA tends to happen on the norm in Korean dating culture. Holding hands, giving a peck, or even a kiss is a usual sight.
On average, give or take between 4–5 years is the MOST desirable age gap but it is only if the man is older than the woman as culturally it is more accepted there. Anything outside this range is considered getting slightly odd or uncomfortable, and anything above a 10 year age gap starts to become taboo.
Thus, in Korea, some couples continue living in the same house, but choose to sleep in separate rooms (SSR) for a time period to avoid or resolve extant conflict; this starkly differs from marital conflict strategies in other countries that leads to separation or divorce [6-7].
It's not uncommon to go to two restaurants in one night. You may also end up singing your heart out at a noreabang (karaoke room), bar or 24-hour coffee shop. TIP: In North America, it's normal to hold hands and even kiss on the first date. In Korea, it's not normal to hold hands or kiss on a first date.
That's where she learned about the phenomenon “Couple Rings”. According to the South Korean tradition, you'll celebrate 100 days as a couple by giving each other a ring, as a sign of being in a serious relationship.
Relationship expert Dr. Laura Berman discusses the romance advice once again going viral: the 2-2-2 date rule. The guidance says committed couples should go on a date once every two weeks, spend a weekend away every two months and take a week-long vacation every two years.
Challenge yourself to spend 10 seconds each day thinking about something positive in your relationship or about your partner. This kind of positive thinking, even for 10 seconds a day, can have a huge impact on your relationship. Why? Because many times it only takes 10 seconds to remember why we love our partner.
"Half-your-age-plus-seven" rule
An often-asserted rule of thumb to determine whether an age difference is socially acceptable holds that a person should never date someone whose age is less than half their own plus seven years.
Every 7 Days go on a date. Every 7 Weeks go on an overnight getaway. And Every 7 Months go on a week vacation. This 777 Rule could change your marriage.
The 80/20 relationship theory states that you can only get about 80% of your wants and needs from a healthy relationship, while the remaining 20% you need to provide for yourself. Sounds like the perfect excuse to treat yourself to a spa day.
When you break this idea down mathematically, it goes something like this: You're going to like about 85% of the other person's personality, perspectives, characteristics, tendencies and behaviours. There will be about 15% of that person's ways of being that, if given your druthers, you would leave behind.
The Chinese belief is that hosting it on the 100th day will bless the baby with a fulfilling and prosperous life. But more than anything, it's a party to celebrate your family's newest member and introduce them to friends and family. As you can imagine, I did not feel like hosting a big celebration.
Traditional Baby 100 Days Celebration Gift: ang baos
The amount given should end with an even number while favouring the auspicious number eight. Giving new parents an ang bao with $88 or an amount with “88” in it signifies wishing double fortune and blessings.
A Chinese tradition that has been practiced for generations, the red egg and ginger party celebrates a newborn's 30th day.