Saturday

51. Korean Halmunis

Monday August 18, 2008

Young-Soo Lee *halmuni invited me to "Shim Toh" ("The Resting Place") in Seoul. It was a house where Young Soo Lee halmuni and Soon-Duk Lee halmuni have lived. Young-Mee Son takes care of the halmunis.

We all sat together and had a long and fruitful conversation. Young-Soo Lee halmuni is strong-willed and always the life of the party. Soon-Duk Lee halmuni sang for us, performing the Korean traditional "Changka" beautifully as she danced.

Afterwards, we went for a little walk outside in the courtyard.

* "halmunis" in Korean, or "ahmas" in Taiwanese means "grandmas". (In Asia, elders are commonly referred to as grandmother or grandfather, whether you are related to them or not, as a way of showing respect.)





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