The Suwon Diocese of the Catholic Church in South Korea will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its foundation on Friday.The upcoming ceremony and commemoration mass will commence at 10 a.m. at Suwon World Cup Stadium, about 45 kilometers from Seoul.Some 45,000 members of the diocese are expected to participate in the ceremony to be held under the theme “To the Land of Hope, to the Gospel.”  The ceremony will host top-ranking church individuals including current Apostolic Nuncio to Korea Archbish

PeopleOct. 2, 2013

South Korean women are more dissatisfied with their marriages than men, a study showed on Wednesday.In a survey of 956 men and women by the Planned Population Federation of Korea, only 19.4 percent of female respondents said they would marry their current spouses if they were given a chance to live a second life. For male participants, the figure was higher at 45 percent, suggesting that more women have a negative view of their spouses. On the other hand, only 18.9 percent of women answered that

Life&CultureOct. 2, 2013

Hundreds of students gathered at the University of Seoul on Saturday for the annual International Students’ Cultural and Sports Festival.The festival, organized by Korea International Students’ Support Association and Grand Korea Leisure, saw students from universities across the country compete in soccer, basketball, dodgeball and cricket.The soccer tournament was won by the Camasko Lions, competing in the festival for the second year. The team edged out former champion and last year’s runner-u

Expat LivingOct. 1, 2013

Kenyans living in South Korea gathered at the Bethany Methodist Church in Seoul on Saturday to mourn the 72 people killed in the Westgate shopping center terrorist attack in Nairobi.About three dozen people gathered at the church to honor the victims of the attack, many from countries in Europe and Asia, and to support one another here, said Christine Kathurima-Lee, vice chair of the Kenyan Community in Korea, a Seoul-based expatriate group.The KCK organized the prayer meeting. An estimated 400

Expat LivingOct. 1, 2013

From Thomas Beecham to Arturo Toscanini, Pierre Boulez, Gennady Rozhdestvensky and more, the BBC Symphony Orchestra has been home to world-class maestros showcasing their unique interpretations and leadership. From strict classical pieces to contemporary tunes, the orchestra is recognized for its attention to fine details and bringing out the most original interpretation of any masterpiece. Under the helm of conductor laureate Andrew Davis, the BBC Symphony Orchestra will perform on Oct. 8 and 9

PerformanceOct. 1, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) ― Artist Robert Indiana says love hurt him.Love, as in his world-famous LOVE image ― stacked letters with a tilted O ― that became a symbol of the “make love, not war” 1960s counterculture revolution.That one image eclipsed all his other work. But now the artist’s first major retrospective, titled “Robert Indiana: Beyond LOVE,” at the Whitney Museum of American Art that opened Thursday could change that. “It’s a dream come true, a little late,” Indiana, who turned 85 this month, sa

PerformanceOct. 1, 2013

Director Hong Sang-soo’s latest film “Our Sunhi” has drawn 50,000 viewers in 19 days, a record for the filmmaker. According to the state-run Korean Film Council, Hong’s film, which belongs to the local diversity film chart ― a chart for indie and art house films released in fewer than 100 theaters nationwide ― topped 52,359 viewers as of Tuesday. In the local film industry, the 10,000-viewer mark for indie films is generally considered equivalent to the 1 million mark for a commercial film. “Our

FilmOct. 1, 2013

LONDON (AP) ― He’s done the Bible, felines, operatic phantoms and Argentine politics. So what is Andrew Lloyd Webber’s latest musical about? Sex ― as well as politics, spying, social revolution and the Cold War. “Stephen Ward” centers on a sensational real-life scandal, the 1963 revelation that Britain’s war secretary, John Profumo, was involved with model Christine Keeler, who was also sleeping with a Soviet naval attache. If, as poet Philip Larkin once said, sex began in 1963, the “Profumo aff

PerformanceOct. 1, 2013

The fall season has not only ushered in cooler weather, but a wide variety of concerts and performances by top K-pop artists. Many artists have been taking their act abroad, demonstrating the popularity of K-pop overseas. Rain chose to make his first public appearance after being discharged from the military not in Korea but on the final episode of a popular Chinese audition program called “Kuaile Nansheng.” The episode aired on Sept. 27, showing the performer decked out in sunglasses and singin

Oct. 1, 2013

Comedian Yoon Hyung-bin has announced that he will debut as a mixed martial arts fighter for Road FC, the biggest mixed martial arts organization in Asia. Yoon is the second celebrity to become a fighter for the organization, the first being fellow comedian Lee Seung-yoon. “From the outside it looks like we’re just giving and taking punches, but from practicing to going to matches, I learned a lot from other fighters,” Yoon said in a statement. “I think, as a man, this kind of challenge is worth

Oct. 1, 2013

Actor Baek Yoon-sik’s ex-girlfriend was taken to a hospital in an ambulance on Monday after overdosing on sleeping pills. Baek recently made headlines after admitting to a romantic relationship with a woman 30 years his junior, identified as a broadcast reporter.However, the woman made a number of allegations against Baek and his sons on Saturday, which apparently resulted in the couple breaking up. In an interview, the woman revealed that while she was in a relationship with the actor for more

Oct. 1, 2013

JYJ member Kim Jaejoong will release his first full-length album this month and go on a tour around Asia to commemorate the release. Starting at COEX Mall in Samseong-dong on Nov. 2, the singer will perform in several venues in Korea and then move on to entertain crowds in other Asian countries. His agency C-JeS stated, “This first album is going to include tracks from the rock genre, so the crowd at the concerts will be able to interact with Jaejoong. The tour is going to have the atmosphere of

Oct. 1, 2013