Interview with Song Joong-ki: 'I try to stay true to myself'

Song Joong-ki (Blossom Entertainment)This is the first in a three-part series covering a group interview Friday with actor Song Joong-ki in Seoul. -- Ed.“Descendants of the Sun” has come to an end, and so has Song Joong-ki’s time as the dashing Army Capt. Yoo Shi-jin. But this may only mark another beginning for the 30-year-old actor, whose celebrity status has rocketed to a whole new level since his appearance in the military-themed TV drama. For the first time since the show’s wrap, Song met w

TelevisionApril 15, 2016

[Around the hotels] Roundup of hotel events

Cantonese gala dinner at Millennium Seoul Hilton　Millennium Seoul Hilton’s Chinese restaurant Taipan is hosting a “Gourmet Circle” gala dinner on April 22 to showcase the restaurant’s new, Cantonese cuisine-focused menu.　The dinner will commence at 7 p.m. with Chinese traditional tea and Tsingtao beer. Appetizers will include Peking duck and suckling pig stuffed with shrimp paste. The dinner proper will feature an array of delectable dishes such as a Chinese barbecue and cold dish combination, d

TravelApril 15, 2016

[Home Cooking] Nabak kimchi (water kimchi)

Nabak kimchi is a type of water kimchi that’s made with thinly sliced radish squares and other vegetables. It’s easy to make, yet deliciously refreshing.　Nabak kimchi is commonly enjoyed in the springtime when the kimchi made in the fall gets old. It’s also a traditional holiday kimchi. Growing up, we always had nabak kimchi with tteokguk (rice cake soup). They are delicious together. Nabak kimchi (water kimchi) (Korean Bapsang)　It’s a mild, clean tasting kimchi, so nabak kimchi doesn’t call for

FoodApril 15, 2016

[Box office] Movies to see this weekend

Time Renegades　(Korea)　Opened April 13　　Thriller. Directed by Kwak Jae-yong　　The year is 1983. High school teacher Ji-hwan (Jo Jung-suk) is stabbed and loses consciousness. In 2015, police officer Geon-woo (Lee Jin-wook) is shot. After the incidents, the two gain the ability to see into each other’s lives, some 30 years apart in time. 　　Love, Lies　(Korea)　Opened April 13　　Drama. Directed by Park Heung-sik　　A beautiful female entertainer in 1930s Korea, So-yul (Han Hyo-joo) is enamored of compose

FilmApril 15, 2016

Sean Penn’s ‘The Last Face’ competing at Cannes festival

PARIS (AP) – Sean Penn’s “The Last Face” about aid workers in Africa will compete at the Cannes Film Festival this year -- along with movies about interracial marriage in 1950s America, illness and poverty in working class Britain and cannibal fashion models in Los Angeles.　The festival’s high glamour yet socially conscious lineup, announced Thursday by organizers, features 49 films harking from 28 countries, including Iran, Brazil, Egypt, Israel and South Korea. Twenty of the entries will be ru

FilmApril 15, 2016

Park Hae-jin wins best male actor award in China

South Korean actor Park Hae-jin won “Male Actor of the Year” at a Chinese award ceremony in Beijing on Wednesday, his management company said Friday. 　Park achieved the feat for his lead role in the Chinese TV series “Far Away Love.” It is his second win at the awards, organized by Chinese technology and online video company Leshi Internet Information & Technology, known as LeEco, or Letv. He last won the “Asia’s Star” award in 2012 for his role in the Chinese show roughly translated as “Chen Du

April 15, 2016

‘Descendants of the Sun’ ends with record rating

The final episode of “Descendants of the Sun” had a record viewership of 38.8 percent, an all-time high for the KBS hit drama, according to Nielsen Korea. In Seoul alone, it scored higher rating of 44.2 percent, according to the data agency. The drama had a happy ending, living up to expectations of many viewers. Dr. Kang Mo-yeon (Song Hye-kyo) reunites with Army Capt. Yoo Si-jin (Song Joong-ki), who went missing for a year during a mission overseas. Master Sergeant Seo Dae-young (Jin Goo), who

April 15, 2016

[Travel bits] Outdoor activities for spring

Taean Tulip Festival　Scenic ride on Mungyeong Rail Bike　One scenic activity tourists will want to enjoy in the upcoming season is a ride on the Mungyeong Rail Bike, which runs along tracks winding through the pastoral landscape of Jinnam Gyoban, North Gyeongsang Province.  　The area used to be home to the country’s second largest coal mines back in the days of the coal industry’s boom.　Now, though the trains have ceased to run, the tracks have been repurposed to carry rail bikes, which carry up

TravelApril 15, 2016

[Album review] ‘I Am Sam’ is warm, folksy and youthful

Sam Kim　“I Am Sam”　(Antenna Music)　　In Sam Kim’s debut album “I Am Sam” there is an unmistakable undercurrent of American country influence, which comes through especially strong in songs like “Mama Don’t Worry” and “Your Song.” The tracks, backed mainly by acoustic guitar tunes, wouldn’t be out of place on the whitewashed porch of a quintessentially American farm.　Acoustic tracks abound in K-pop almost as much as dance tracks, but there is something distinct about Kim’s compositions, which feel

PerformanceApril 15, 2016

[Album review] Dean’s first LP is deliciously brooding

Dean　"130 Mood: TRBL"　(Joombas and Universal Music)　Dean is receiving the coveted attention of international artists such as Anderson Paak and Jeff Bernat and local hip-hop big names including Dynamic Duo, Zico and Crush, and there seems to be a legitimate reason behind the singer-songwriter’s emergence. Though his sound represents the height of trendiness, it is still deliciously brooding, full of soul. The largely electronic R&B sounds featured on this first LP are sleek and sophisticatedly la

PerformanceApril 15, 2016

Hanwoo expert uses skills to source prime beef for his restaurant

Samjung Hanu Pub CEO Han Deok-woo takes his beef very seriously, doing everything from sourcing it straight from the auction house to grilling it tableside for hungry customers. “Since I bring in the beef myself, I can check, taste and look at all the cuts, and decide which ones are optimal for eating that day,” said Han, 34, on how sourcing the beef directly enables him to keep track of his beef, from the minute it arrives at the restaurant to how it is aged or served up uber-fresh.  Samjung Ha

FoodApril 15, 2016

More real estate agencies for foreigners in Seoul　

Seoul city will increase the number of real estate agencies for foreigners to 220, the city government announced Friday. Currently there are 175 real estate agencies in Seoul that are tested and certified by the city as “Global.” Among these, 131 are speak English, 29 Japanese, eight speak both English and Japanese and five speak Chinese. (123RF)These agencies are mainly clustered around Yongsan, Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa and Mapo areas, where the city’s foreign population tends to be denser. The

Expat LivingApril 15, 2016

Brown Eyed Girls leader JeA returns with solo ‘Bad Girl’

The beauty of “Bad Girl,” a two-track mini album by Brown Eyed Girls‘ leader JeA, lies in the contrasting lyrics of the two rhythm and blues tracks."Bad Girl,” the first track of the singer’s second solo album portrays a woman estranged from her boyfriend after cheating on him with another man, while the second track, “Island of Tears,” depicts how wretched a woman feels while missing her ex-boyfriend.The acoustic number “Bad Girl” impressed the 34-year-old JeA with not only the uniquely sentime

PerformanceApril 15, 2016

Artists commemorate victims of Sewol tragedy

The intense grief and anger that gripped the country after the Sewol ferry sinking seems to have receded, two years after the tragic day. 　But the disaster remains vivid in the memories of the victims’ families who still frequently visit the Government Joint Memorial site in Hwarang Recreation Park in Ansan, a Gyeonggi Province city where Danwon High School, whose students made up the largest group of victims, is located. Of the 304 victims, 250 students and 11 teachers from the school were on a

PerformanceApril 14, 2016

BAF receives ideas for Mulmangol Bunker overhaul

The organizing committee of the Busan International Architectural Culture Festival is holding a design competition to revamp a deserted bunker from the early 1900s Japanese colonial era into a new tourist attraction in Busan. 　The Busan Metropolitan Government has allotted some 100 billion won ($86.5 million) in redeveloping the long-neglected site and its surrounding areas in the district of Yeonje-gu in the city. 　The application is open to Korean and foreign professional architects and studen

Arts & DesignApril 14, 2016