Free English walking tour offered in Seoul

Student volunteer group Seoul Free Walking Tour will run guided walks around the city’s historic center of Jeong-dong and Bukchon, an area east of Gyeongbokgung Palace that is famous for its traditional houses.The Jeong-dong tour starts at Gyeongbokgung Station and visits sites around Deoksugung Palace, many of which are related to early Western involvement in the country in the late Joseon era.The Bukchon tour starts at Anguk Station, moves to the Bukchon Cultural Center and then to Gyedonggil

Expat LivingJan. 20, 2016

U.S. military portrayals of Korea examined

The Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch will host a talk by veteran expat Jacco Zwetsloot on the portrayal of Korea in U.S. military media under the U.S. Army Military Government of Korea from 1945-48. He will focus on Korea Graphic, the weekly newspaper printed by the Troop Information and Education section of the 24th Corps for troops stationed in the U.S. zone of occupation. As U.S. troops were discouraged from getting too close to the country, Korea Graphic was a key source of information fo

Expat LivingJan. 20, 2016

Seoul seeks student volunteers

Seoul Metropolitan Government is seeking student volunteers to help out with the city’s community projects.The volunteers will participate in group volunteer events, give online classes on foreign languages and culture to children living in island areas, and help with translation, cleaning and other services at Gwanghwamun Plaza Flea Market. Those who teach children from island areas at least twice a week over 10 months will be eligible for a scholarship of up to 2.5 million won from KT.Voluntee

Expat LivingJan. 20, 2016

Foreign craft fairs to open in Seoul, Busan

Two foreign cultural markets will open in Seoul and Busan this month with a selection of handicrafts from vendors based across the country.Celebrating its first anniversary, the monthly Busan Foreign Culture Market will open Saturday at Owl and Pussycat, Hq, Beached Bar & Sharkys Bar in the city’s Gwangan area, with a magical theme.The market will feature handmade accessories, stationery, soaps and scents, many of which will have touches from “Harry Potter.” Busan Abandoned Pet Sanctuary will al

Expat LivingJan. 20, 2016

China-based Taiwanese singer deletes online messages after flag row

A China-based Taiwanese singer, who sparked a row by criticizing a 16-year-old Taiwanese K-pop singer for waving a Taiwanese flag, has deleted all messages on his Weibo account, according to Hong Kong and Taiwanese media on Wednesday. The K-pop singer, Chou Tzu-yu, waved Taiwan's national flag on a South Korean entertainment TV program in November. The image of Chou, a member of the South Korean girl band TWICE, sparked a row in mainland China last week after singer Huang An reportedly accused C

EntertainmentJan. 20, 2016

Haitai Confectionery eyes IPO following honey chip craze

Haitai Confectionery & Foods Co., South Korea's second-biggest confectionery, said Wednesday it is preparing for an initial public offering this year, taking advantage of the huge success of its honey-flavored potato chips.Haitai said it has made deals with two local brokerage houses to list its shares on the Seoul bourse during the first half of this year.Launched in August 2014, Honey Butter Chip created a craze in honey-flavored products among foodies, spurring many copycats by its rivals. Th

FoodJan. 20, 2016

BigBang to make encore performance of world tour in Seoul

South Korean boy band BigBang will close its ongoing world tour in March after staging three encore performances in Seoul, its management said Wednesday.The five-member band started the world concert tour "MADE" in Seoul last April and will have the grand finale of the tour with encore performances for three days from March 4 to 6 at Seoul's Olympic Park, YG Entertainment said.For nearly 10 months so far, the band has performed some 60 concerts before 1.5 million fans in 32 cities of 13 countrie

PerformanceJan. 20, 2016

Eight out of 10 Koreans drink over one cup of coffee a day

Eight out of 10 adult Koreans drink at least two cups of coffee a day, and many of them make their own coffee at home in addition to visiting cafes, a poll showed Wednesday.According to the survey conducted on 1,076 respondents who attended a global cafe exhibition in November, 36 percent said they drink about two cups of coffee a day, while a quarter drink three cups, and 15 percent indulge in four or more cups. The Seoul International Cafe Show, the annual cafe exhibition's host, said six out

FoodJan. 20, 2016

Penthouse halts magazine after 50 years, goes digital

 NEW YORK (AFP) - Adult magazine Penthouse will end its print edition after 50 years, becoming the latest publication to go exclusively digital.　Parent company FriendFinder Networks Inc. said the magazine will henceforth be released in online-only format and that subscriptions would be converted to digital.　“This will be a new way for its readers to experience the world's best adult magazine,” said FriendFinder chief executive Jonathan Buckheit in a statement.　“Reimagined for the preferred consu

CultureJan. 20, 2016

New North Korean alcohol leaves ‘no hangover’

SEOUL (AFP) -- North Korea has created a hangover-free liquor that is between 30 and 40 percent alcohol but leaves you clear-headed in the morning, according to state media.　A recent edition of the Pyongyang Times said the drink, Koryo Liquor, used a cunning combination of six-year-old, top quality ginseng and “scorched glutinous rice.”　The resulting tipple is a subtle blend of sweet and savory that is “highly appreciated by experts and lovers as it is suave and causes no hangover,” the Times sa

FoodJan. 20, 2016

Drew Barrymore‘s sets new sights for beauty brand

NEW YORK (AP) -- Hollywood actress, director and author Drew Barrymore may soon add a new title to her resume: international retailer.Barrymore launched her Flower brand of affordable cosmetics exclusively at Wal-Mart in 2013. Now she says she’s in talks with retailers overseas to sell the cosmetics in such places as China, South America, Australia and the United Kingdom. She‘ll also be launching her own e-commerce business later this year.Last year, she started selling an eyewear collection, al

Arts & DesignJan. 20, 2016

Korea aims to attract 8 million Chinese tourists

BEIJING (Yonhap) -- Korea is exempting visa fees for Chinese group travelers and will add six new air routes between the two nations with the aim of attracting 8 million Chinese tourists this year, officials said Wednesday. 　Culture Minister Kim Jong-deok announced the plan in Beijing as he is set to host a ceremony marking “The Year of Visit to Korea” in China. 　Riding the wave of the popularity of K-pop and culture in China, Kim said his ministry will develop various tour packages specialized

TravelJan. 20, 2016

China‘s secret plan to use the force of ’Star Wars‘

GUANGZHOU (AFP) - A long time ago in country far, far away, Chinese authorities managed to obtain a copy of America‘s ultimate cultural weapon, a blockbuster movie with enough special effects to wow an entire planet. Summoned to a small theatre in the southern city of Guangzhou in 1980, artist Song Feideng was shown “Star Wars” and instructed to transform it into a traditional Chinese comic book, known as a “lianhuanhua,” to promote scientific achievement to China.Song was one of the first peopl

CultureJan. 20, 2016

Academy head ‘heartbroken’ over lack of diversity at Oscars

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Following an outcry over the all-white roster of actors nominated for this year‘s Oscars, the president of the film academy said Monday she was heartbroken by the lack of diversity and working to implement change.　“This is a difficult but important conversation, and it’s time for big changes,” Cheryl Boone Isaacs, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said in a statement.　Isaacs said that while it was important to acknowledge the work of the actors nom

FilmJan. 20, 2016