The sound of rousing protest songs, impassioned speeches and slogans chanted in unison flooded my apartment complex, disturbing the tranquility of a warm, lazy morning on a Saturday morning in August. I strained to hear what was being said, but the words bounced off the building walls, becoming incomprehensible echoes by the time they reached my ears through the open window. When the shrill noise reverberated through the apartment buildings again the next Saturday, I left the book I was try

Film July 17, 2020

The novel coronavirus that began its insidious spread at the beginning of the year continues to wreak havoc around the world, claiming lives, slowing down economies and changing the way we live. South Korea, which was initially hit hard by a large cluster of COVID-19 cases in Daegu involving a cultish religious group, continues to be plagued by low-level spreads. On Thursday, the government announced 54 new cases, 44 of them local infections and 10 from abroad. Although the number of new case

Viewpoints July 3, 2020

This year was to have been my “big” travel year. The ambitious plan included two weeks in Tuscany, basking in the autumn sun and sauntering the streets of Florence. Having decided on the destination, I followed Instagram pictures of Italy in all their golden and azure glory, and had Rai Radio Tutta Italiana as background noise, the music on the Italian radio station transporting me thousands of miles away to a place that sounded full of life and joy. I served panettone on Christma

Performance June 26, 2020

The great disruptor. The COVID-19 pandemic has been raging around the world since the beginning of the year, claiming lives, crippling economies and laying bare the great inequalities that divide the world. The new coronavirus has directly or indirectly impacted our lives. For New York-based artist Kang Ik-joong, the lockdown has been a time for contemplation. “We don’t know where we are exactly,” Kang said during an interview with The Korea Herald on June 12 in Seoul. He ha

Arts & Design June 19, 2020

The 1,442nd Wednesday Rally held across the Japanese Embassy in Seoul on Wednesday proceeded as it has for 30 years, opening with a performance followed by individual citizens and group representatives coming to the microphone to express their support for former Japanese military sex slaves during World War II and call on the Japanese government to officially apologize to the victims and provide legal reparations. The rally was subdued compared to those I had seen in the past, flanked on eithe

Viewpoints June 5, 2020

Months into the COVID-19 pandemic, life seems to have settled into a humdrum rhythm. Days pass like the swing of a pendulum -- back and forth, back and forth, from home to work, work to home. Yet, such regularity as I have not experienced in years does little to offer peace of mind or comfort. Beneath the surface calm is the constant whirring of the brain. Actions have consequences and in these perilous times, we are required to constantly make decisions that could potentially impact not only

Viewpoints May 22, 2020

  It had been raining all morning, when violist Richard Yongjae O’Neill stepped into the lobby of Myongji Hospital in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday for a special performance for the hospital’s staff and patients. The acclaimed violist began the concert with the familiar “Bach’s Air on the G String” from the program, which he designed to be meditative. It was an emotional performance for the musician, for whom this was the first live performance in front

Performance May 22, 2020

Today is Parents’ Day. In any other year, the day would be celebrated with family dinners, bouquets of red carnations, presents and cash gifts. This year, however, the government is asking people to stay away from the elderly, especially the elderly in care facilities to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. The elderly were among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, their bodies already weak and with underlying health conditions that made them particularly vulnerable to the h

Viewpoints May 8, 2020

With the World Health Organization predicting that the coronavirus will not dissipate anytime soon, we are left to grapple with the stark reality of living with a highly contagious, still largely unknown virus with no known cure as of yet. The COVID-19 pandemic has infected nearly 2.6 million people and killed more than 180,000 people around the world since the first case of the acute respiratory illness was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The pandemic has forced nearly ha

Viewpoints April 24, 2020

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” So it feels today, the 10th day of voluntary self-isolation at home. Much to my relief, my younger child and husband returned home from the UK safe and in good health at the end of March, their plans disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The two are following the government’s orders for returnees to immediately go into self-isolation at home for 14 days and to be tested for the new coronavirus. Out of an abundance of caut

Viewpoints April 10, 2020

Reading the news on secret chat rooms on Telegram where videos of sexual exploitation were traded feels like wading through filth. So much so, I consciously stayed away from it as much as possible until Wednesday, when it was no longer possible. Leaving Jongno Police Station in Seoul on Wednesday, Cho Ju-bin stood in front of a photo line for the press. Without a mask or cap to cover his face, there stood the 24-year-old man who is alleged to have blackmailed dozens of women and minors into f

Viewpoints March 26, 2020

The novel coronavirus has landed at my doorsteps. Literally. Almost 60 days into the COVID-19 outbreak, my mobile phone screeched an alert with a message that two people in my neighborhood were confirmed with the respiratory illness. My mind raced, trying to retrace my steps over the past several days hoping that our paths did not cross. Following the patients’ movements posted on my district’s website, I let out a sigh of relief. It was a close call. This has become the new norm

Viewpoints March 12, 2020

  The entire country, and increasingly the world, is gripped by the fear of a possible viral pandemic. In South Korea, what seemed at first controllable is now virtually out of control, with new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infections growing by the hundreds every day and the number of deaths -- most of patients already in poor health with preexisting conditions -- climbing as well. The government has been releasing information on the infected, providing a timeline of their wherea

Viewpoints Feb. 27, 2020

Yes, I have finally found someone who understands what it is like to live with a heightened sense of smell, I thought, watching Bong Joon-ho’s “Parasite.” I felt vindicated about my irritation at being hit with the sharp, pungent smell of kimchi upon opening the fridge, the boxes of odor-absorbing baking soda apparently past their expiration date. The agitation of waking up to the acrid smell of cigarette smoke wafting in through the window, thanks to an unconscionable neigh

Viewpoints Feb. 13, 2020

In October 2005, I visited Pyongyang and Myohyangsan with a small group of South Korean travel journalists. This was the time of the Roh Moo-hyun administration when there were robust inter-Korean exchanges. A year earlier, I had traveled to the Kumgangsan resort and attended the groundbreaking ceremony for a South Korean company-invested 18-hole golf course. I also visited Singyesa Temple, where a South Korea-led project to restore the Silla-period Buddhist temple had just commenced. Writing

Viewpoints Jan. 30, 2020