Royal Visit
Queen Elizabeth II watched schoolchildren break wooden boards with well-aimed kicks Monday in a taekwondo exhibition staged on the first day of her state visit to South Korea. The British monarch also went to the national cemetery, where she laid a wreath for those killed in the Korean War. After an elaborate welcoming ceremony, the queen met with President Kim Dae-jung, who had invited her to South Korea during a trip to London last year. The queen’s four-day visit is the first to South Korea by a British head of state. The queen will celebrate her 73rd birthday on Wednesday and will be entertained at a concert of British and Korean music and dance in Seoul.