[Weekender] Korea’s biggest Instagram users

The Korean Instagram users with the most number of followers are, rather unsurprisingly, K-pop stars. The following are the top Instagram users with their accounts and the number of followers each one has.1. G-Dragon @xxxibgdrgn (Big Bang) 4.4MLeader of YG Entertainment boy band Big Bang, G-Dragon, also a solo artist, is drawing a growing number of followers with photos reflecting his fashion sense.2. Chanyeol @real__pcy (EXO) and Taeyeon @taeyeon_ss (SNSD) 4M   EXO’s Chanyeol and Girls’ Generat

TelevisionMay 29, 2015

[Weekender] Top Korean YouTuber shares secrets to his celebrity

South Korean YouTube star Na Dong-hyun ― better known by his alias “Great Library” ― says anyone can be a celebrity on the global video-sharing platform if they can stay consistent and unique. “Some beginners think they should be more outstanding or brilliant than the current hit YouTubers. What you need, however, is sustainable content and a unique character,” Na said in an interview with The Korea Herald.The 37-year-old has garnered 1 million subscribers on his YouTube channel by playing onlin

TelevisionMay 29, 2015

[Weekender] Check in to Hotel Korea

Hotels seem to be the best business in Korea to be in right now. Tourism is booming in Korea with a record number of visitors ― of which the Chinese take up nearly half. Last year’s historic milestone of 14 million foreign visitors looks set to be broken this year, as the travel-loving Chinese continue to throng Seoul streets.New hotels are rising in Seoul. Jejudo Island ― once a favorite destination for Korean newlyweds ― has turned into a giant resort development site, as Chinese vacationers s

CultureMay 22, 2015

[Weekender] Korean tradition meets Western hospitality in hanok hotels

In the heart of Jongno-gu, just east of Gyeongbokgung Palace, lies the quaint hillside neighborhood of Samcheong-dong, well-known for its abundance of chic cafes and small gift shops. From offering simple one-room hanok stays to the more sophisticated options of established hanok boutique hotels ― such as the Cheong Yeon Jae Hanok Hotel or the Haeinjung Boutique Hanok Hotel ― this area has been a magnet for tourists looking to regale in the out-of-the-box lodging experience and a taste of past-t

TravelMay 22, 2015

[Weekender] ‘VVIP’ hotel guests ― who stayed where?

When Paul McCartney was planning a visit to Korea for his first concert in Seoul on May 2, he requested his team to find a hotel with a room that comes with a balcony.In the overpopulated business district of Gangnam, a hotel room with a balcony is rare. When everyone was curious where the 72-year-old rock star stayed, his fans on a hunt to spot their star found out that McCartney was staying at the Ritz-Carlton, Seoul, located just 5 kilometers from the concert venue at Jamsil Sports Complex. L

TravelMay 22, 2015

[Weekender] Luxury hotels target local spenders with diverse events

At its core, the function of a hotel is to offer guests a place to stay the night. However, in Korea, luxury hotels are widely known for another function: hosting gatherings of various types and sizes. These events have become an important source of revenue for hotels, which are facing fierce competition from guest houses offering cheaper accommodations and rental services like AirBnB. “If you look at the sales figures, banquets such as conferences and weddings make more than rooms,” said Hannah

TravelMay 22, 2015

[Weekender] App offers cheap lodging, fast booking

Urban dwellers have, at least once, dreamed of taking a spontaneous trip with little or no planning.Kim Ka-young, cofounder of Bonbonlab, the developer of hotel booking application Hotel Now, was one of them.When Kim was in her senior year at a local university, she randomly took a train to Busan without planning what to do and where to stay. She then realized that there was no affordable accommodation available for her that night. She contacted some 20 hotels and hostels, but they demanded a su

TravelMay 22, 2015

[Weekender] ‘Love to brew’

The catchphrase, “Do what you love,” holds special significance when it comes to craft brewing, according to Brian Do, the operator of the Hand and Malt Brewing Co. “Running a craft brewery requires a great deal of passion and love for beer,” said Do, who calls himself chief beer taster. “If not, a brewer cannot produce beer with consistent taste and quality,” he stressed.Korea’s craft brewery business is still in an infant stage, with a limited number of mass produced insipid light lagers havin

May 15, 2015

[Weekender] More than just shopping

On a Saturday afternoon, the Coex mall in southern Seoul teemed with people. They were of different ages, different styles and sexes. But had one thing in common ― they sought a good time at the mall. They would come hand-in-hand, window shop, point at things they liked and go in, or just pass by. Some would queue in front of popular restaurants, or enjoy a cup of coffee. At the center of the mall is a plaza where rather-unknown buskers would play a tune or two, making people stop for a while an

IndustryMay 8, 2015

[Weekender] A wealth of multiplex malls to choose from

Whether it is groceries, clothing, furniture, jewelry or electronics, shopping has never been easier than in South Korea, where it is possible to buy just about anything from the comforts of one’s home using a smartphone or computer. Regardless of the convenience, thousands of Koreans today continue to head to city centers to visit shopping malls, which have evolved from singular department stores into mega “multiplex malls” ― urban hotspots offering not only shopping opportunities, but also a w

CultureMay 8, 2015

[Weekender] World’s most successful malls

What do Les Quatre Temps and Tokyo Midtown have in common? First, they are shopping malls, with the former located in the La Defense district just west of Paris, and the latter in Japan’s capital. Second, they are successful malls, even in the era of e-commerce. They have converged retail, entertainment, residences and hospitality inside one complex, allowing locals and tourists to quench their thirst for entertainment and relaxation. Jose B. Alvarez, former president and CEO of supermarket chai

IndustryMay 8, 2015

[Weekender] ‘All-around mall is future of shopping’

Herald Interview - While shopping malls have been conventionally tagged as an aggregator of shops, the future of shopping malls lies in being multipurpose public places, claimed Paco Underhill, a noted shopping-related behavior-researcher. Shopping malls will not only cover shopping and dining but also residences and workplaces, and whether Koreans will be able to embrace it all will be the key to the shopping business’ future, Underhill said in a recent telephone interview with The Korea Herald

IndustryMay 8, 2015

[Weekender] Islam in Korea, past and present

Korea and the Middle East may look like they have nothing in common.On the surface, the two regions do not seem to have crossed paths as they have totally different economies, cultures and ideals. Above all, religion may be what divides the two. While the religious heritage of Korea derives mostly from Buddhism, Confucianism and more recently Christianity, the Middle East is deeply rooted in the Islamic teachings of Prophet Muhammad. Yet, scholars say the two sides’ cross-cultural relations date

CultureApril 24, 2015

[Weekender] Islam finds way into Korean society

Stepping outside a lecture room at Kyung Hee University amid a flock of Korean students, a 28-year-old Jordanian student heads toward a Muslim prayer room set up in his university campus.Mohammad’s daily ritual in the prayer room demonstrates Korea’s efforts to understand the once-alienated religion, he noted.“These days, Koreans do not discriminate against me on the basis of me being a Muslim,” he said, adding this was not always the case.“When I came here in 2010, Koreans gave the cold shoulde

CultureApril 24, 2015

[Weekender] ‘Violence far from essence of Islam’

When Lee Haeng-lae was introduced to Islam in the 1950s, his image of the religion was like most other people during that time: the Koran in one hand, and a sword in another. But after a trip to Malaysia, he realized that Muslims were not violent people and ultimately converted to the religion in the early 1960s.Embracing Islam was not an easy task in a country where the religion has struggled for years against the perception that it is radical and violent. “My father particularly flat-out said,

CultureApril 24, 2015

[Weekender] Korea, Middle East eye stronger partnership

The economies of South Korea and the Middle East are inseparable.Korea depends on the Middle East’s abundant energy resources to fuel its manufacturing sector, while the region has counted on Korea’s construction workforce to modernize its infrastructure since the 1970s and 1980s or the “first Middle East boom” era.The two economies now seek to expand their partnership beyond energy and plant construction to health care, information technology and food as they seek a second Middle East boom in t

April 24, 2015

[Weekender] Analog’s allure in a digitized world

In this digital age, the word analog has taken on new meanings. In a highly connected society swamped by hand-held digital devices, more and more people are harking back to simpler times. Times when electronic devices were not “smart” and the word application usually meant a paper document to be submitted when seeking an academic or professional position.This sense of longing has led to all things “old” being referred to as “analog” in Korea, and has given rise to the term “analog sensibilities.

CultureApril 17, 2015