Kim Rahn is the managing editor of The Korea Times. Since joining the company in 2003, she has covered various beats including the presidential office, Seoul city government, the Bank of Korea and the tourism industry. In 2014, she won the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for her coverage of the ordeals of migrant women in Korea.
Foreigners offered free Oriental medicine
By Kim Rahn
Foreigners will have a chance to consult with Oriental medicine doctors and try traditional Korean medical treatments without spending a single won.
Seoul City said Wednesday that it will offer traditional Korean Oriental medicine programs to foreign visitors at Namsangol Hanok Village, Seoul, from Thursday to Saturday every week through Nov. 17.
It is part of programs organized by the city to promote traditional Korean medicine as a new tourist attraction, a city official said.
Oriental medicine doctors will consult visitors, measure their pulse for diagnosis, prescribe treatments such as acupuncture and cupping, as well as serve medicinal teas. For those wanting to receive a full-scale treatment at an Oriental medicine hospital, they will recommend some clinics.
The city expects about 170 people to take advantage of the service each day.
“Foreigners will be able to experience Korean medicine, widely publicized through the soap opera ‘Jewel in the Palace.’ We hope Oriental medical tourism will be a new tourist trend,” the official said.