On the afternoon of Friday, just two days before Parent’s Day, a flower shop at Namdaemun Market in Jung-gu, Seoul, is crowded with people buying carnation flowers as a gift for their parents.

Parents’ Day in South Korea was established in 1973, replacing the Mother‘s Day previously marked on May 8, and includes diverse public and private celebrations.

In South Korea, Koreans seek to honor their parents by gifting them carnations.

It is a practice in Korea for students to prepare for Parents’ Day by making red carnations in art class and writing a letter of thanks to go with the carnations they made.

On the day, kids put their hand-made carnations on their parents’ chests and give them the letters.

As we get older, we have less and less time to spend with our parents. Parents’ Day provides a special opportunity to express gratitude to our parents and spend quality bonding time together.

(Photos: Yonhap)