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Lee Hae-rin

Korea Times K-Culture Reporter

Lee Hae-rin is a City Desk reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues, tourism and taekwondo. She is passionate about speaking up for the rights of minorities, including women, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities and animals as well as discovering the latest makgeolli trend in town. Feel free to reach her at lhr@koreatimes.co.kr.

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Society

Tablets replace heavy textbooks at universities as e-book sales quadruple

University students in Korea are increasingly swapping heavy printed textbooks for tablets and laptops, as e-book sales of course materials have more than quadrupled in the past four years, data showed Sunday. Kyobo Book Centre said e-books accounted 29.9 percent of its online and offline university textbook sales by value last year, up from just 7.1 percent in 2021. The share has climbed steadily — 8 percent in 2022, 15.2 percent in 2023 and 23.1 percent in 2024 — even though print still generates more than three times the sales of digital textbooks. Considering that e-books remain under 10 percent of overall book sales, the shift in the higher education textbook segment is particularly striking, the retailer noted. Behind the trend are the literal burdens of printed books. One top-selling e-textbook, “Electronic Engineering Experiment 1” from Kyungpook National University Press, runs 602 pages and weighs about 1.5 kilograms. Many students say it's no longer practical to carry several such “brick books” across sprawling campuses. Improved e-book platforms, which offer search

Mar 8, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Tablets replace heavy textbooks at universities as e-book sales quadruple
Travel & Food

Michelin Guide celebrates 10th anniversary in Korea

BUSAN — The Michelin Guide marked a milestone in Korea, Thursday, celebrating a decade of showcasing the country’s culinary identity through one of the world’s most influential dining authorities. This year, a total of 233 restaurants in Korea have been selected for the Michelin Guide. They include one three-star restaurant, 10 two-star restaurants, 35 one-star restaurants, 71 Bib Gourmand restaurants, 116 Suggested restaurants and four Green Star restaurants. The Michelin Guide hosted its 2026 Seoul and Busan ceremony at Signiel Busan, unveiling this year’s selections and honoring new culinary talents. The event, themed “A Decade of Journey,” highlights the evolution of Korean cuisine since the guide’s debut in 2017 and its continued expansion beyond the capital. Launched initially as the Michelin Guide Seoul, the publication broadened its scope in 2024 to include Busan, Korea’s second-largest city and a rising hub of gastronomy. The move reflected the growing diversity of Korean cuisine and the international attention local chefs have drawn with their inventive yet dee

Mar 5, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Michelin Guide celebrates 10th anniversary in Korea
Society

Korea exhibits 2nd-largest gender divide over perceived progress in equality: survey

A new global survey released Thursday found that Korea exhibits the world’s second-widest gap between men and women in their perception of sufficient progress in gender equality. The 2026 International Women’s Day survey, conducted by Ipsos and King’s College London’s Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, found that 65 percent of Korean men believe gender equality has gone far enough, compared to 42 percent of women — the second-widest gap among 29 countries represented in the survey and more than twice the global average of 11 percentage points. Overall endorsement in Korea of gender equality having “gone far enough” rose to 53 percent from 39 percent in 2019, with increases seen among both men and women. The poll, conducted online from Dec. 24, 2025, to Jan. 9, covered 23,268 adults in 29 countries. Korean men were the least likely in the survey to identify as feminists, with just 13 percent using the label, compared to 28 percent of Korean women; both figures sit well below global averages. Support for women’s leadership among Korean men was the lowest measured: On

Mar 5, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Korea exhibits 2nd-largest gender divide over perceived progress in equality: survey
Travel & Food

Inside Suwon, Korea’s football capital and home of Bluewings

SUWON, Gyeonggi Province — On a mild Saturday in late February, traffic around Suwon World Cup Stadium slowed to a crawl. Red express buses from Seoul and across Gyeonggi Province arrived brimming with supporters clad in royal blue, their chants rising in waves. Nearly 900 meters from the arena, the sound was already thunderous — audible even through the sealed windows of a city bus inching toward the stadium. Welcome to the home of Korean football. The occasion was the 2026 K League 2 season opener, pitting storied powerhouse Suwon Samsung Bluewings against Seoul E-Land FC at the 44,000-seat "Big Bird" stadium ― the wing-roofed colosseum that hosted four matches during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. A banner stretching across the concourse read "Home of Football," and the 24,071 supporters who filled the stands that afternoon made the slogan feel like an understatement, smashing the K League 2 all-time single-match attendance record. For nearly 100 minutes, the N section behind the goal — the domain of the Frente Tricolor, Suwon's organized supporters group — erupted in nonstop song

Mar 5, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Inside Suwon, Korea’s football capital and home of Bluewings
Travel & Food

Korea to prep 11 'must-see' traditional markets for global spotlight

From the aromatic alleys of Gyeongdong Market in Seoul to the seaside bustle of Haeundae Market in Busan, Korea is betting that its traditional markets are key to winning over global travelers. On Wednesday, officials unveiled a high-octane plan to "globalize" 11 iconic venues, rebranding the nation’s historic marketplaces as the ultimate frontier for authentic food and culture. The program, led by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), aims to make traditional markets a must-visit location for international travelers. The selected markets span 10 regions, including Gyeongdong and Mangwon markets in Seoul, Haeundae Market in Busan, Seomun Market in Daegu, Sinpo International Market in Incheon and Suwon Nammun Market in Gyeonggi Province. Gyeongdong Market in northeastern Seoul is known as one of the country’s largest herbal and agricultural markets, while Mangwon Market in the trendy Mangwon-dong neighborhood in the western part of the capital has grown into a hub for street food popular with younger travelers. Sinpo International Market

Mar 4, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Korea to prep 11 'must-see' traditional markets for global spotlight
Society

Most Koreans see poverty as matter of discipline, not predetermined

Public attitudes in Korea toward poverty remain sharply divided, with a majority of respondents attributing hardship to a lack of individual effort, while low-income families point instead to structural barriers that keep them at the margins, according to a survey released Tuesday. The 2025 Korean Welfare Panel Study, conducted jointly by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs and the Seoul National University Social Welfare Research Institute, found that 89.6 percent of 2,661 respondents cited insufficient motivation and effort as the main cause of poverty. Nearly nine out of 10 respondents, or 88.3 percent, pointed to a lack of frugality or poor household financial management, suggesting that for a majority of Koreans, economic hardship is still seen largely as a matter of personal responsibility and discipline. Because the survey allowed participants to weigh multiple contributing factors independently, the total percentages exceed 100 percent. In contrast, only 62.8 percent blamed inborn ability or talent, and just 12 percent viewed it as a “very important” factor, ind

Mar 3, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Most Koreans see poverty as matter of discipline, not predetermined
Society

At 85, Korea’s oldest college graduate this year proves it’s never too late to learn

With a navy cap perched above her permed brown hair and a shy smile, 85-year-old Kim Jeong-ja slowly made her way up to the podium at Sookmyung Women’s University Friday. Applause filled the auditorium at the university as she received her associate degree in social welfare from the school’s Future Education Institute, making her Korea’s oldest college degree recipient this year. She reached the milestone after seven years of study that began when she first picked up a pencil at age 78 to learn how to read and write Korean. “This moment exists because of everything I learned here — and because of my friends who studied and cheered alongside me,” Kim said, her voice trembling with emotion in her speech. Born in 1941 as the eldest of eight children, Kim grew up during the Korean War, when her family fled to Geoje Island to escape the conflict. “In my day, girls didn’t get to go to school. I worked until my fingernails wore off,” she recalled. She worked in households, lunch box factories and bathhouses — “anything that paid,” she said. Like for most women at the tim

Feb 27, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
At 85, Korea’s oldest college graduate this year proves it’s never too late to learn
Society

Korea's plan to lift ban on pets in restaurants sparks mixed reactions

Starting March 1, Korea will for the first time allow pet dogs and cats into ordinary restaurants and cafes — a landmark shift drawing excitement from pet owners and concern from small business owners and non-pet owners. Under revised rules of the Food Sanitation Act, general restaurants, cafes and bakeries may admit customers with vaccinated dogs and cats if they meet new hygiene and safety standards and complete an additional business registration with local authorities. Until now, pets were effectively banned from dining spaces, except for registered assistance dogs, because regulations required animal-accessible areas to be physically separated from where food is handled or consumed. Regulators cited risks of food contamination from fur and saliva. The revised rules carve out a limited exception. Restaurants that opt in and comply with the standards can allow vaccinated dogs and cats into the same dining area as their owners without building a separate pet-only space. Operators must verify that animals have received required vaccinations by checking certificates at the entrance, a

Feb 27, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Korea's plan to lift ban on pets in restaurants sparks mixed reactions
Sports

How underdog coach Lee Jung-hyo is transforming Korean football

Lee Jung-hyo, widely regarded as one of the most intriguing figures in Korean sports, added a new chapter to his unlikely ascent this week when he was named Coach of the Year at the 2025 Korea Football Association Awards — the top honor bestowed on a head coach in the K League, the country’s professional soccer system. The 51-year-old arrived at Korea Football Park in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, in his trademark black leather jacket, thanked Gwangju FC for the opportunity that set his career in motion and pledged to push Korean football in a new direction. The coaching world in Korea has long been shaped by elite university networks and establishment connections — a culture where who you know often matters more than what you know. Lee has none of those conventional credentials. As a player, he spent a decade at Busan IPark without ever earning a call-up to the national team. When he was appointed head coach of Gwangju FC in 2022 — a chronically underfunded, community-owned club then in the second division — he was largely unknown beyond a small circle in Korean footba

Feb 26, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
How underdog coach Lee Jung-hyo is transforming Korean football
Travel & Food

Gov't to grant visa-free entry to Indonesia, expand automated gates to EU nationals

Korea unveiled an ambitious package of tourism measures on Wednesday, including looser visa rules, expanded regional airport routes and a crackdown on price gouging, as part of a government effort to attract 30 million inbound visitors. The plan includes granting visa-free entry to travelers from Indonesia and expanding automated entry processing to nationals from European Union member states. The measures were announced at the 11th National Tourism Strategy Meeting, chaired by President Lee Jae Myung and attended by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, ministers from 15 government agencies, and representatives from the tourism industry. Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young characterized the global resonance of Korea’s cultural exports as a "golden time" for the domestic travel industry, unveiling an ambitious initiative titled "K-Tourism Embraces the World." The move comes as Seoul seeks to capitalize on a postpandemic recovery that, while significant, continues to be overshadowed by a record-breaking tourism boom in neighboring Japan. While Korea welcomed more than 18 million inbound visitors in

Feb 25, 2026By Lee Hae-rin
Gov't to grant visa-free entry to Indonesia, expand automated gates to EU nationals
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