When flowers bloom on your plate

In the month of May, flowers are given on several different occasions in Korea, often to celebrate and express gratitude. From Parents’ Day to Teacher’s Day, flower shops are busy preparing lavish bouquets and baskets throughout what is known as Family Month. What if such beautiful flowers can also be enjoyed as part of your meal? An Italian restaurant and a dessert cafe in Seoul proves that flowers can indeed be a feast for the palate, not just a feast for the eyes. Flower piz

FoodMay 21, 2022

[Weekender] Matisse is having a moment in S. Korea

When “Henri Matisse: Life and Joy” -- a retrospective exhibition of Matisse held in Seoul -- was drawing to an end in April, thousands of visitors came to see original works by the pioneering French painter and sculptor. “People continued to come to the exhibition despite the spread of the omicron variant, which began in February. Some 5,000 visitors were coming on a single day toward the end. It received a great deal of attention and love,” said director Seo Hyung-won a

Arts & DesignMay 21, 2022

[Holly’s Korean Kitchen] Dububuchim, crispy Korean pan-fried tofu

This Korean pan-fried tofu recipe is a great way to enjoy plant-based protein in a healthy and inexpensive way. No pressing is required to get the crispy texture. This is one of the best low-effort, pan-seared tofu dishes you can easily make at home. Here I present one of my favorite Korean side dish recipes. This pan-fried tofu has just the right texture: Crispy outside and chewy inside. A slightly spicy Korean soy chili sauce drizzle gives a flavor boost to the bland tofu. This fast tofu r

FoodMay 21, 2022

Train package trips to star gazing, cultural heritage spots in Gangwon Province

For travelers seeking weekend getaways, Korail and Gangwon Tourism Organization are jointly offering a set of tour packages. The Gangwon Province Byeolcheonji package consists of four main themes -- visits to areas hit by forest fires, stargazing spots, cultural heritage locations and nighttime walks. The nighttime walk package ends Oct. 31 while the others run through November. All packages depart Fridays and Saturdays, but schedule details are subject to change, according to Korail. The pa

TravelMay 21, 2022

[Scholars and their Spaces] ‘My heart smote me’

The monument built in 1672 to honor Park Paeng-nyeon (1417-1456) was all but destroyed during the Korean War. Reconstructed by his descendants in 1989, this historic site and the monument had received bad press for poor maintenance just a year before. The entrance was locked with a padlock and the information boards could not be read because of the vehicles that were parked illegally in front of them. Visitors who had come with high expectations of the historic site turned their backs upon

CultureMay 21, 2022

Controversy grows over ‘Music Bank’ scoring system

Public broadcaster KBS has come under fire over the scoring system of its music program “Music Bank” with some viewers raising the possibility of vote rigging despite explanations by the broadcaster. On May 13, hugely popular trot singer Lim Young-woong’s “If We Ever Meet Again” and rookie girl group Le Sserafim’s “Fearless” were in contention for first place on “Music Bank.” The trophy went to Le Sserafim as the band scored 7,881 poin

TelevisionMay 20, 2022

Kakao Entertainment presents ‘Thor’ webtoon

Kakao Entertainment unveiled a webtoon version of the upcoming American superhero film “Thor: Love and Thunder” Thursday. Celebrating the release of the film, the first four episodes are available free of charge. The webtoon, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same title published in 2019, revolves around the exciting journey of Thor, who seeks to solve the mystery behind Gorr the God Butcher and stop him from committing a massacre. The comic is widely recognized for Americ

FilmMay 20, 2022

Quirks of Korean dating explained (5) Always connected

They say love is universal, but when it comes to dating culture, Korea has a different love language, according to five international couples that The Korea Herald interviewed. From love ‘confessions’ to matching outfits, here are some dating norms that set Korea apart. – Ed.  Whether through phone calls or text messaging, Koreans like to stay connected with their loved ones throughout the day, asking each other where they are, what they’re doing and what they&rs

CultureMay 20, 2022

Navy SEAL-turned-YouTuber Rhee Keun plans to return from Ukraine

Former South Korean Navy special warfare officer Rhee Keun, who has reportedly been injured while leading a recent mission in Ukraine, may return home. According to a post by the International Legion of Defense of Ukraine on Thursday, Rhee, also known as Ken Rhee, was treated at a military hospital in Ukraine and will return to South Korea for rehabilitation. “He will soon resume his service and once again defend the Ukrainian people as soon as possible. We wish Ken a speedy recovery an

PeopleMay 20, 2022

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Welcome to Joseon Festival The Welcome to Joseon Festival is set to run through June 26 at Korean Folk Village in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. Visitors can enjoy concerts, theatrical performances and hands-on experiences, including making natural scented candles, key rings and more, at the spring event. In addition to the traditional programs, the serene hanok offers an amazing backdrop for Instagram photos. Tickets cost 32,000 won for adults, teenagers and 26,000 won those under 13. More inf

TravelMay 20, 2022

[Well-curated] Enjoy art-fueled weekend, quiet evening at a book bar

The 2022 Paradise Art Lab Festival will kick off at Paradise City in Yeongjongdo, Incheon, on Friday, offering a wide range of cultural activities. Under the theme “Crossing: Awakening a new sense at the crossing of the present and the future,” the third annual PAL festival is presenting a series of artworks that allow the visitors to actively engage with the pieces, rather than simply viewing them. Ten selected works by emerging artists are being showcased. A massive digital artw

CultureMay 20, 2022

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

L’Escape launches ‘You be You’ package with Starbucks L’Escape Hotel, located in Seoul’s Myeong-dong, is offering a collaboration package with Starbucks. The package includes a night stay at L‘Escape’s Deluxe Room. Gifts include a Starbucks logo patch and a limited edition design patch made by L’Escape for a fashionable summer look. At Marque d’Amour, the 26th floor hotel bar, three special cocktails based on Starbucks VIA coffee is serve

FoodMay 20, 2022

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

The Roundup (Korea) Opened May 18 Crime Directed by Lee Sang-yong Cop Ma Seok-do heads to Vietnam to extradite a suspect. But soon after his arrival, he discovers murder cases and finds out that the vicious Korean killer (Son Sook-ku) has been committing crimes against Korean tourists for several years. Ma Seok-do decides to chase after the killer but it is not easy as Korean cops do not have investigative power in Vietnam.  Operation Mincemeat (US) Opened May 11 Drama Directed

FilmMay 20, 2022

International Arts Education Week to be held next week

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Arts & Culture Education Service announced that they will hold the 11th International Arts Education Week next week. Under the theme of “Culture and Arts Education in the Post-Coronavirus Era, Resilience to Transformation,” the one-week event will showcase various programs including a symposium and seminar on culture and arts education, a one-day class program, a UNESCO Expert Meeting on Culture and Arts Education and a pe

CultureMay 19, 2022

Kim Sae-ron to step down from TV drama

Actor Kim Sae-ron will step down from the upcoming SBS drama “Trolley” (translated) following a drunk driving incident involving the star earlier in the week. Kim and her agency, Gold Medalist, issued official apologies Thursday regarding the actor’s drunk driving on Wednesday morning, resulting in a power outage at some 50 shops in Cheongdam-dong, southern Seoul, after she allegedly bumped into several guardrails, street lamp posts and an electrical transformer box. “

TelevisionMay 19, 2022

‘American Song Contest’ winner AleXa eager to introduce K-pop globally

Rising K-pop artist AleXa, who won NBC’s “American Song Contest,” said the K-pop genre itself seemed like a new genre in the US music scene and that she was eager to introduce this style of music to US audiences through her performance on the show. “(Winning the competition) feels like a dream. It does not seem real,” AleXa said during a press conference held in Seoul on Thursday upon her arrival in Korea. “I received a lot of public votes. I think it was bec

PerformanceMay 19, 2022

Seoul-based Australian academic wins N.S.W. Premier’s Literary Awards

  Dan Disney, a professor at Sogang University, has received the N.S.W. Premier’s Award for Poetry for his latest poem collection “accelerations & inertias.” Disney, who has lived in South Korea for 12 years, was given the Kenneth Slessor Award, which comes with a cash prize of 30,000 Australian dollars ($21,000). Published in 2021 by Vagabond Press, the collection “dissects the psychogeography of information, knowledge and lived experience of place and tim

BooksMay 19, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘The Sound of Magic’ creator believes in magic, power of dreams

When asked about the famous line in the drama “The Sound of Magic” -- “Do you believe in magic?” -- the webtoon author and illustrator Ha Il-kwon replied with a brief answer: “I want to believe in magic.” “I think the question, which is continuously repeated throughout the webtoon, was my personal question to the readers, asking if they still have childhood innocence and dreams in their hearts,” Ha said in an email interview with The Korea Herald

CartoonMay 19, 2022

Jeju Biennale 2022 to show how humans live in symbiosis with other life forms

Jeju Biennale 2022 will take place across Jeju Island in November, addressing the message of living in harmony with all creatures and respecting nature, discourses that rose to the surface in the aftermath of the pandemic. The third edition of the biennale, helmed by artistic director Park Nam-hee, will evolve around the theme “Flowing Moon, Embracing Land,” taking place at the two main venues, Jeju Museum of Art and Jeju Museum of Contemporary Art, from Nov. 16 to Feb. 12. The

Arts & DesignMay 19, 2022

From ‘Eternals’ to ‘Roundup,’ Don Lee dons a unique identity

“Ma Dong-seok is his own genre.” Korean moviegoers often say this in reference to the Korean-American movie star, also known as Don Lee, in recognition of his unique screen presence and charisma. A recent survey by online research firm PMI on Koreans aged 20-60 asked what word comes to mind when hearing his name. The answers were in the order of: “muscular/huge,” “tough/strong,” “Mavely (a combination of “Ma” and “lovely”),&rd

FilmMay 19, 2022