Korean Gift Exchange (Ham)

Happy couple and their matchmaker. What a happy day for the couple to get engaged but who knew what trouble brewed for the friends to get this engagement be a successful one.
A brief introduction for Korean 'Ham', known as the gift exchange, is done by groom-to-be's friends and bride-to-be's friends. The 'Ham' is the box carried by Squid masked man and it contains the gifts for the bride's family. In order for the "Ham' to be sent to the bride's family, the bride's side has to 'persuade' these stubborn men. They have to use bribery in form of money in envelopes, alcohol and snacks and womanly wiles. It can take hours and it can be easy or it can also get ugly, they all depend on how the groom's friend play it out...

1. The groom's friends had arrived and the bride's representatives (family and close friends) came to greet them. This just started and they had parked far from where the bride's family's place. To get the groomsmen to come forward, money was laid to bring them closer. Getting to know the groomsment and negotiating. Few steps forward. Cigarette break.

More enforcement came forward - bride's unmarried girlfriends and brother to bring the drinks and snacks. Pouring and feeding the Squid man. The girls were not as patient as they pulled the Squid man to come forward. Baiting Squid man with more drinks to move while Squid man stood his ground and sat again.

Using some femini wiles to get Squid man going while the men asked Squid man's rep on how much it would take for them to get going. Many onlookers watched the show while one of bride's gang took away Squid man's chair forward. The grooms gang parked themselves again at the spot and the girls asked for more enforcement.

I pretty much left the scene after witnessing 1 hour of these banterings, negotiations, pullings, laughter and fun, as I had to bring Baby J back to our accomodation to sleep. I heard the Ham took about 2.5hour for Squid man to break down and send forward the Ham.