The Korea Herald

How millennial nostalgia fueled the success of ‘Pokemon Go’

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- The children who once dreamed of capturing real-life Pokemon starting in the 1990s are now the nostalgic millennials helping fuel the worldwide success of “Pokemon Go.”Take Bailey Richardson. Now 26, her grandest dream was once to set out in the world and capture and train the big-eyed, shrieking creatures known as Pokemon, originally numbering 151 in all.On a recent night, she was outside playing “Pokemon Go” when someone shouted that they had found Aerodactyl, a rare, p

July 21, 2016

How millennial nostalgia fueled the success of ‘Pokemon Go’

Superheroes swoop in to a Venezuela in crisis

CARACAS (AFP) - Superheroes, wizards and Jedi Knights have descended on the Venezuelan capital.And while they may not be able to save the country from its spiraling economic crisis, fans at Caracas Comic-Con are counting on their heroes to at least help them escape their real-world problems for a while.For three weekends, through July 31, fans are paying tribute to the worlds of comic books, video games and sci-fi at the 10th Caracas Comic-Con, the local edition of the international pop culture

July 20, 2016

Treasures of Versailles to go on display in Australia

SYDNEY (AFP) - Riches from the Palace of Versailles including a harp belonging to Marie Antoinette will travel to Australia, the country‘s national gallery said Monday, as part of a display never seen outside France.More than 130 paintings, tapestries, pieces of furniture, statues and other objects from Versailles, one of France’s grand museums, will be on display in the Australian capital Canberra from December.“The Palace of Versailles has never before lent a collection like this, drawn from a

July 19, 2016

Treasures of Versailles to go on display in Australia

Iraq marshlands named UNESCO world heritage site

BAGHDAD (AFP) - UNESCO has named Iraqi marshlands once ravaged by dictator Saddam Hussein as a World Heritage Site, a bright spot for a country where jihadists have repeatedly sought to wipe out history.The area named “is made up of seven sites: three archaeological sites and four wetland marsh areas in southern Iraq,” UNESCO said.“The archaeological cities of Uruk and Ur and the Tell Eridu archaeological site form part of the remains of the Sumerian cities and settlements that developed in sout

July 19, 2016

Iraq marshlands named UNESCO world heritage site

World-class Mexican Museum being built in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - San Francisco is getting another cultural treasure -- a world-class museum to showcase the largest collection of Mexican and Latino art in the nation. A dedication ceremony is set for Tuesday for the new Mexican Museum -- the realization of a dream by Mexican-American artist Peter Rodriguez, who opened the city's first museum for Latino art in a Mission District storefront in 1975. Rodriguez started a collection that now has more than 16,000 pre-Columbian, colonial and conte

July 19, 2016

Must-visit summer festivals of 2016

For those adventure-seekers looking to combat the summer time humidity by basking in all its heat-sinking glory, look no further because the next few weeks will see some of the country’s most famed annual summer festivals. Undoubtedly high on the charts as one of Korea’s most highly anticipated summer outdoor fests, the Boryeong Mud Festival kicked off its mud-flinging-fun festivities on Friday. Attracting the largest number of international visitors of all the country’s top festivals, tens of t

July 18, 2016

Horseback library serves Indonesia's remote readers

SERANG, Indonesia (AFP) - Astride his white mare, a wide-brimmed hat shielding his eyes, Ridwan Sururi looks more cowboy than librarian as he winds towards the hilltop village, his horse Luna saddled with books.Their arrival sends ripples of excitement through Serang, a quiet hamlet fringed by rice fields and a volcano on Indonesia's main island of Java.“The horse library!” children shriek, sprinting towards the mosque where Luna is tethered. Slung over her saddle are two handmade wooden boxes f

July 18, 2016

Horseback library serves Indonesia's remote readers

UNESCO raises alarm over Malian earthen town, Uzbek monuments

ISTANBUL (AFP) - The U.N.’s cultural agency on Wednesday added Mali’s legendary earthen buildings to its heritage-in-danger list, saying a lack of security was preventing conservation of the site, and also expressed concern over the impact of tourism on monuments in Uzbekistan.Mali’s old towns of Djenne, 570 kilometers northeast of the capital Bamako, have been inhabited since 250 B.C. and are characterized by the extraordinary use of earth in their architecture.The houses, roughly 2,000 of whic

July 14, 2016

Lessons in love: Chinese university teaches seduction

TIANJIN, China (AFP) -- Chinese university tutor Xie Shu's core subject is Communist ideology, but he has diversified from the dry annals of political doctrine for a more hands-on subject: seduction.His “Theory and Practice of Romantic Relations” course at Tianjin University includes lectures on pick-up techniques, self-presentation and how to entice the opposite sex.“How should you react when you’ve been rejected?” Xie asked his young charges at one lecture, in a cafe on the campus in the north

July 14, 2016

Arlington, Holocaust Museum: Stop catching Pokemon here

The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and Arlington National Cemetery requested Tuesday that smartphone users refrain from “catching” Pokemon when they visit. Like many other landmarks, the museum and the military cemetery are featured in the popular new “Pokemon Go” game. Players can stumble upon Pokemon while wandering their grounds.The museum is a Pokestop -- a place where players can get free in-game items -- and online users say the cemetery also contains Pokestops. Museum officials are trying

July 13, 2016

Arlington, Holocaust Museum: Stop catching Pokemon here

Hidden angel mosaic at Bethlehem shrine sees the light

It was hidden for decades at the church on the site where Jesus Christ is believed to have been born until conservationists uncovered it -- an ancient mosaic of an angel.Since 2013, Italian restorationists have been working with the Palestinian government in a mammoth effort to restore the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank -- hailed by Christians as built on the site where Jesus was born.The roof and windows have been restored and mosaics that had become barely visibl

July 13, 2016

Hidden angel mosaic at Bethlehem shrine sees the light

Muslim Girls Making Change spread messages through poetry

SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vermont (AP) - Four girls from Vermont are using their voices and powerful performance poetry to get their message out about being Muslim in America, stereotypes, and other issues near to them. Five months after forming their slam poetry group, Muslim Girls Making Change is competing this week in the Brave New Voices international youth poetry slam competition in Washington, DC. "We write poems about things that we can't keep inside of us anymore, so things that we care so much

July 12, 2016

Ancient ship graveyard found off Greek island

ATHENS (AFP) -- Forty-five shipwrecks, many dating back to ancient times, have been discovered off a Greek archipelago that is one of the Mediterranean’s richest underwater archaeological sites, authorities said Monday. In addition to the wrecks found off the Fourni islands in the Aegean Sea over the last two years, researchers also spotted anchors and hundreds of ceramic objects, Greece’s Ministry of Culture said in a statement.Some 23 sunken vessels were found in 2016, with another 22 uncovere

July 12, 2016

Autry Museum acquires works of Henry Fonseca

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Los Angeles’ Autry Museum of the American West has acquired the estate of renowned Native American artist Henry Fonseca, increasing its collection by several hundred pieces, including many never seen before. Museum officials said Monday the acquisition includes 19 large-scale murals, 69 sketchbooks, a selection of prints, posters, collages and other works, and all of Fonseca’s journals. Fonseca’s works have been exhibited in museums around the country, including the Smithsoni

July 12, 2016

King Sejong Institute hosts 8th World Korean Educators Conference

The King Sejong Institute, Korea’s state-supported Korean language training organization, hosted the eighth World Korean Educators Conference on Tuesday to further promote overseas understanding of the Northeast Asian country. A total of 300 attendees are in Seoul to attend the four-day conference that runs till Friday and is designed to educate Korean teachers and improve global cooperation in Korean education, said the institute and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. In the opening c

July 12, 2016

Beer festival in Sinchon to invite Song Joong-ki

The second Sinchon Beer Festival will take place on Thursday and Friday in Sinchon’s main street, which stretches from Sinchon Station exits three and four to the front gate of Yonsei University.Hallyu star Song Joong-ki of the hit drama “Descendants of the Sun” will make an appearance at the festival opening as a face for distiller Hite-Jinro, which is sponsoring the festival. (KBS)The company had said on Facebook two weeks ago that it would set up an artificial beach at the festival and invi

July 11, 2016

Beer festival in Sinchon to invite Song Joong-ki

UNESCO meets on heritage under shadow of extremism

ISTANBUL (AFP) - The U.N.’s cultural agency met Sunday in Istanbul to consider adding over two dozen new sites to its prestigious global heritage list, and called for a strong global response to the threats posed by extremism.The meeting of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO comes less than two weeks after the main airport in Istanbul was hit by a triple suicide attack that left 47 people dead.The strike was blamed on Islamic State group jihadists who have already destroyed irreplaceable her

July 11, 2016

Israel find may help solve mystery of biblical Philistines

ASHKELON, Israel (AP) -- An archaeological discovery announced Sunday in Israel may help solve an enduring biblical mystery: Where did the ancient Philistines come from? The Philistines left behind plenty of pottery. But part of the mystery surrounding the ancient people was that very little biological trace of them had been found until 2013.That is when archaeologists excavating the site of the biblical city of Ashkelon found what they say is the first Philistine cemetery ever discovered. They

July 11, 2016

Israel find may help solve mystery of biblical Philistines

Dobong-gu to run outdoor swimming pool

Changdong Sports Culture Complex in Dobong-gu, northeastern Seoul, will open an outdoor swimming pool for a week beginning from Saturday. The opening hours of the pool will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dobong-gu outdoor swimming poolThe entrance fee is 3,000 won ($2.60). Those under the age of 3 can enter for free if proof of medical insurance or a copy of their resident registration is shown. The pool will have various facilities for children including a 40-meter water slide, sand playground and

July 11, 2016

Half of single women say marriage not necessary

More than half of single South Korean women see marriage as an option, rather than a necessity, a poll showed Sunday.According to the poll on 1,287 single women and 1,096 single men aged between 20 and 44 conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, 52.4 percent of the female respondents said marriage is not a necessity and they are fine with not being married.It compares to 60.9 percent of their male counterparts who say they would walk down the aisle one day and 18.1 percent

July 10, 2016