Susan has mentioned over the years the fascination that Koreans have with flying kites. She informed me that winter is kite flying season in Korea (where our city of Pohang has the perfect combination of winds and blue skies.) Daniel and Robert got kites for Christmas and were anxious to try them out. Surprisingly, I hadn't seen any Koreans flying kites over the five months we've been here. I asked some students about this national past time and got quizzical looks in response. Then one remembered that their "grandparents" liked to fly kites. Mystery solved. Susan had memories from her childhood of children and adults flying kites (she left Korea when she was nine years old.) Obviously things have changed since then. Still, Daniel and Robert had a lot of fun flying their kites on the new athletic field and a number of students stopped to watch. Imagine my surprise this afternoon when I looked out our apartment window and saw in the distance dozens of kites and lots of kids running around. I walked over and saw two fields filled with school kids all running, laughing and flying kites. Apparently they had built the kites as a school project (we have an international elementary and high school on campus) and they were out enjoying them in the afternoon breeze. From all appearances, I'd say that kite flying simply skipped a generation or two.
Ken Chinn
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