A Story From a Korean-American Childhood – Lunch on the train

I think I was 14 when one of my aunts and her husband came to visit for a family trip up the east coast. She was my mom’s older sister, so this made her my Eemo (이모).

The plan was to get on a train in DC up to New York City where the official tour began. Being someone who enjoys travel, I was excited about riding the train almost as much as touring NYC!

At least I was until something happened about 20 minutes into the train ride.

My family had settled in to our seats. Being a normal restless teenager, I decided to explore the snack car I had spotted on the way to boarding. I bought a soda and made a mental note to return for the plastic wrapped sandwich later when I got bored and hungry. Then I headed back to our car.

I was a couple of rows away from my family when it hit me…a waft of kimchi! And there were mutterings of “What’s that smell?” [Read more…]