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.
The cherry blossom festival of Sokcho in Gangwon Province will close 15 years after its establishment due to a lack of workers amid the aging of its residents and a declining population in the region.
Children pose in front of a giant Korean flag at Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul, Thursday, a day before March 1 Independence Movement Day. This year marks the 105th anniversary of the event, where Koreans rallied in protest against Japan's colonial occupation. Yonhap
The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s plan to add more international flights to Gimpo International Airport is prompting nearby residents to complain about increasing noise pollution and demand compensation.
Busan, Korea’s second-largest city, joined the Michelin Guide last week, taking the first step toward becoming a global gastronomic destination.
Universities in Korea are struggling to fill their classes as the number of first-year students matriculating to colleges this spring falls short of their intended class sizes amid the country's falling birthrate.
Fu Bao, the first Korea-born giant panda, chews bamboo before visitors at Everland amusement park in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, Sunday. The beloved panda will go behind closed doors a week later to undergo medical assessments and quarantine procedures before being transported to China in early April. Yonhap
Many Koreans are planning to travel to Japan during the three-day national holiday weekend starting on March 1, a holiday that marks the 1919 independence movement against Japanese colonial rule, according to the travel and tourism industry, Sunday.
BUSAN — Korea's southeastern port city became the second Korean city to join the Michelin Guide, Thursday, with 25 selected restaurants, 15 Bib Gourmand establishments and three one-starred restaurants acknowledged by the coveted culinary guide.
A gay couple urged Korea's Supreme Court to rule in favor of offering equal state benefits for same-sex couples and stop discrimination based on sexual orientation, Wednesday, on the first anniversary of the landmark appellate ruling in favor of non-heterosexual couples' eligibility to receive spousal health insurance benefits.