Tae Yoon: Life from 2006-2021

it's always great to see familiar faces here in seoul.

two of my good friends from nyc just left after a five-day visit to see me, and i had a blast reuniting with them and showing the both of them around the city. i will write a proper post about their trip (with pics galore from their camera) in another update.

i've also seen some relatives from the u.s. who all came to korea for various reasons. most of them haven't been here for years but they all just happened to separately arrive for visits in october. one of those relatives is my paternal grandma who lives in alaska, and i'm grateful to be spending some time together with her. i've previously blogged about her and my deep affection for her, so having the opportunity to hold her hand and walk around together in seoul has been really special for me.

she hasn't been in korea for eight years and is basically here for vacation and to reconnect and visit with old friends. she's staying at the one of her friend's houses and i've already dropped by numerous times to spend time with her. sometimes i really wish i had a camera in korea because walking into her friend's residence to see ten korean grandmas in deep conversation and gossip is definitely a sight to see. the usual view of the room is a circle of grandmas speckled by me. from your point of view, whether you see me sitting at the 3 o'clock, 11 o'clock or whatever part of the circle, their natural camaraderie hoops even through me and while i'm more of an observer than contributor to their discussions, i can feel their strong spirit of affinity. most of the times i like to just sit there and listen to them. i also like to study their faces closely and wonder about their journeys and how their lives have been up until now. she has different visitors on a daily basis and i never realized how social and popular my grandma was. i've also luckily been able to witness firsthand the moments when she's reunited with someone and to observe their first embraces, hugs and locks of eye-contact after almost a decade apart makes me feel extremely blessed and humbled.

there are also so many little things that my grandma does which make my heart smile. she'll pull me aside to the bedroom she's staying in with her luggage and inconspicuously tell me to open my bag and then stuff it with coffee, snickers bars and soap. korea wasn't always as modern as it currently is, and for the past few decades, she's used to visiting with bags filled with american products that normally were unavailable here. of course i don't tell her that all the items she's stuffed my backpack with are things that can be found at almost any korean convenience store, but i thank her for the goodies and tell her i'll use it sparingly. there are also times when we'll walk down the street not sure of where we're going, and she'll go up to anyone doing anything in order to ask them for directions. whether they're in mid-conversation or about to take a bite of food, she will approach them. and it's funny because she'll sometimes start to walk away in the middle of their explanation and they'll look at her in bewilderment. she doesn't walk away because she's trying to be rude because she's actually one of the nicest and kindest people i know, but just because she's usually anxious to get to where we're going and is on her way as soon as she knows where to go. also every single time we ride a taxi, she'll take out a roughed-up plastic ziplock bag from her purse and give the give the driver a single piece of hard candy. they usually tell her it's not necessary, but she absolutely insists the treat until they eventually always succumb with a smile.

my grandma is leaving back for alaska on sunday, and i'm actually going to be the one taking her to the airport to see her off. i'll be sad to see her leave but am so thankful for the time we've been able to spend together in korea.