The Korea Times

Rainbow flags fly despite opposition at Seoul's queer festival

A rainbow banner is flown during the Seoul Queer Culture Festival in Seoul, Saturday. Thousands of people gathered on Saturday to enjoy the festival amid opposition from protesters. AP-YonhapBumped from city square, Korea's LGBTQ communities keep celebrations going at downtown's EuljiroBy Lee Hae-rinThe 24th Seoul Queer Culture Festival (SQCF) was held Saturday on the hot asphalt roads in downtown Seoul's Euljiro area instead of its usual venue, the grassy Seoul Plaza in front of City Hall. Undeterred by the scorching heat and conservative opposition, tens of thousands gathered to celebrate the identity and diversity of sexual minorities.Under the slogan “Rise up Queer up,” the annual event that started in 2000 saw a turnout of around 150,000 people including those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) and their allies this year, according to the organizers. The figure is equivalent to the pre-pandemic record-high from 2019.“This is a celebration of pride for sexual minorities and it's most important to show that we are

Jul 2, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Rainbow flags fly despite opposition at Seoul's queer festival

Embassies join celebration of diversity at Seoul's pride parade

Travel & Food

Korea to extend electronic travel authorization validity to spur inbound tourism

A traveler walks past an electronic flight information board at Incheon International Airport, June 18. YonhapBy Lee Hae-rinKorea plans to simplify immigration procedures for inbound travelers by extending the electronic travel authorization validity from two to three years and exempt the young and old from applying for e-travel authorization in advance.The Ministry of Justice announced, Thursday, foreign travelers arriving from 112 countries that have an agreement with Korea on visa free entry for short visits will have their e-travel authorization validity extended from two to three years on July 3. Also, those aged under 17 or over 65 will be exempted from requiring digital authorization so they can enter the country freely.The measure aims to encourage foreign travelers to visit Korea more easily and for longer visits, which is expected to facilitate family vacations including with underage children or elderly parents.The measures came amid the government's goal to attract 30 million foreign travelers a year by 2027.Travelers aged under 17 or over 65 from the 112 countries will b

Jun 30, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Korea to extend electronic travel authorization validity to spur inbound tourism

Travel & Food

Jeonju's hidden alleys perfect place for 'gastroventures'

Grilled octopus skewers at Jeonju Hanok Village / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationHistorical city offers foodie paradise with traditional, creative cuisine By Lee Hae-rinJEONJU, North Jeolla Province ― Two hours from Seoul by KTX bullet train, Jeonju is known for its historical pedigree given that it is the hometown of the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom's founder, Yi Seong-gye. Designated as the country's first Creative City of Gastronomy by UNESCO in May 2012, however, the southwestern city is now building a new pedigree of gastronomy with a wide range of restaurants, coffee shops, bars and street food vendors that offer regional traditional specialties as well as creative cuisine.A leisurely stroll through Jeonju Hanok Village is a must for travelers. The village featuring around 700 traditional buildings is famous for its size ― the largest among hanok villages in Korea ― but also for a variety of street food and traditional dining options throughout its small alleys.Many of the street foods feature Jeonju's local specialties as ingredients. Water parsley dumpling, for example, of

Jun 29, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Jeonju's hidden alleys perfect place for 'gastroventures'

Travel & Food

Korea-China air routes to be suspended during summer vacation season

A board shows the departure time of flights to Chinese cities at Gimpo International Airport in Seoul, Sunday. YonhapBy Lee Hae-rinKorean airlines are poised to suspend some of their air routes between Korea and China due to a drop in demand over China's travel visa restriction on tour groups to Korea.According to the aviation industry, Tuesday, Korean Air, the country's largest full-service carrier, will suspend its major Korea-China route between Gimpo and Beijing from Aug. 1 to Oct. 28. The route between Incheon and Xiamen will also be halted from Aug. 9 to Oct. 28.Asiana Airlines, Korea's second-largest airline, also announced it would stop serving the Gimpo-Beijing and Incheon-Shenzhen routes in July, after having already suspended its Incheon-Xi'an route last Tuesday.The airlines' measures came as the number of travelers between the two countries remained lower than expected due to China's ban on tour group visas, according to airlines officials.Aviation statistics from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's portal show 120.63 million travelers flew between the tw

Jun 27, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Korea-China air routes to be suspended during summer vacation season

Environment & Animals

Torrential rain to hit greater Seoul area Tuesday

Pedestrians holding umbrellas cross a road in Busan, Monday, as the annual monsoon season starts. YonhapGov't enters emergency response mode as monsoon season beginsBy Lee Hae-rinSeoul and its surrounding areas are forecast to see up to 100 millimeters of heavy rain with a chance of thunderstorms for two days until Tuesday as the annual monsoon season has begun, the state weather agency said Monday.The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said the country will see heavy showers from Monday to Tuesday, with Seoul forecasted to receive 40 millimeters to 100 millimeters of rain per hour during the daytime.The national weather forecast agency issued heavy rain warnings for Jeju Island and southern provincial areas, Sunday, and expanded the forecasts to South Chungcheong Province and North Jeolla Province on Monday morning.The areas surrounding Seoul and inland areas of Gangwon, Chungcheong and North Gyeongsang provinces saw 20 millimeters to 40 millimeters of rain per hour by Monday night while rural southern regions and Jeju Island were expected to receive as much as 60 millimeters

Jun 26, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Torrential rain to hit greater Seoul area Tuesday

Books

INTERVIEW Jeju researcher transforms Ieodo folklore into modern fairy tale

Choi Mi-kyung, a researcher at the Society of Ieodo Research, holds her first book “Ieodot Halmang,” which translates into “The Old Lady Who Came from Ieodo” in Jeju dialect, in Jeju City, Jeju Island, June 16. The fairy tale is a modern recreation of folklore from Ieodo, a southernmost submerged rock that Jeju islanders once believed to be the home of the spirits of dead fishermen. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukJeju folktale gains new spotlight with creative imagination, strong Jeju female figuresBy Lee Hae-rinJEJU ISLAND ― Located off the southern coast of Jeju Island, a submerged rock known as Ieodo emerges only when the waves are high. This reef holds a significant place in the local folklore of Jeju Islanders as it is revered as a sacred place for the spirits of dead fishermen.Choi Mi-kyung, a member of the Society of Ieodo Research, has breathed new life into these tales with her book "Ieodot Halmang," which translates into Korean as “The Old Lady Who Came from Ieodo," published last October. The book combines elements of Jeju's history, culture

Jun 24, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

[INTERVIEW] Jeju researcher transforms Ieodo folklore into modern fairy tale

Travel & Food

Travel authorities to tackle overcharging at rural festivals

In this photo taken on Oct. 27, 2022, visitors try seafood green onion pancake and fish cakes in a sardine broth at a regional food festival held in Seoul's Mapo District. NewsisBy Lee Hae-rinThe Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Thursday, announced a plan to tackle overcharging at regional festivals across the country by enforcing price control measures and campaigning amid growing criticism of the issue.The culture ministry, along with the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), will monitor festival food prices in advance and work with local governments, festival organizers and local residents to control the prices of food sold in 86 cultural tourism festivals nationwide which the ministry selects and promotes as regional special tourism assets.The ministry will work with regional tourism organizations and festival organizing committees to launch the Good Price campaign next Friday.From July, prices and photos of food items sold in regional festivals will be available online on the KTO's Visit Korea website while at the same time enhancing on-site monitoring of food prices.Festiv

Jun 22, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Travel authorities to tackle overcharging at rural festivals

Travel & Food

INTERVIEW Dutch singer-songwriter recounts memories, experiences of Korea

Dutch jazz singer-songwriter Wouter Hamel poses during an interview with The Korea Times in Yeonnam-dong, Seoul, June 12. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulArtist discovers people's warm-hearted spirit beyond glitz and glamour of big cityBy Lee Hae-rinWhen Dutch jazz singer-songwriter Wouter Hamel first visited Korea 14 years ago to perform, surprisingly many Koreans were already familiar with his surname. Many thought he was a distant descendant of Hendrick Hamel, the Dutch sailor who was shipwrecked on Jeju Island in the 1600s and became the first Westerner to introduce Korea to the world.“I had been asked about this (family lineage) so many times, so I went to the Hamel house in the Netherlands and made a documentary there,” Wouter said during a recent interview with The Korea Times in Seoul, while making his 26th visit to Korea. Hendrick Hamel made the first Western account of Korea from his 13 years of captivity ― from 1653 to 1666. Korea had been unknown to the Western world until Hendrick gave a firsthand story about the country in his book “Hamel's Journal

Jun 22, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

[INTERVIEW] Dutch singer-songwriter recounts memories, experiences of Korea

Foreign Affairs

Experts discuss maintaining peace in East Asian waters amid growing sea dispute

Society of Ieodo Research President Koh Choong-suk, front row third from left, poses with participants of the 7th Ieodo International Seminar, including scholars from Korea, Taiwan and Japan, during the event at a hotel on Jeju Island, June 15. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukJeju-based think tank leads academic discourse over maritime disputes in East AsiaBy Lee Hae-rinJEJU ISLAND ― Global experts on international law and sea disputes gathered last week on Korea's southern resort island of Jeju once again, to discuss how to resolve ongoing maritime territorial conflicts in the East Asian region. During the seventh edition of the Ieodo International Seminar that took place on June 15, experts said tensions have been growing in the East Asian seas due to China's efforts to expand hegemonic power as part of its unrelenting quest to gain supremacy and analyzed related international legal cases of maritime disputes.Under the theme “Unsettled Issues in the Law of the Sea,” the annual event ― held for the first time in four years due to the COVID-19 pandemic ― brought scholars

Jun 19, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Experts discuss maintaining peace in East Asian waters amid growing sea dispute

Society

Gov't to exclude extra-hard questions from state-run college entrance exam

Education Minister Lee Ju-ho, center, speaks during a policy consultation meeting on education reform with the ruling People Power Party at the National Assembly, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Hae-rinThe government is set to make the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) easier by excluding questions at the highest level of difficulty from the state-administered college entrance exam, starting with September's mock test, to tackle the country's dependence on private education. Education Minister Lee Ju-ho said during a policy consultation meeting with the ruling People Power Party (PPP) at the National Assembly, Monday, that the government will “exclude what is not taught in the public education curriculum to make the CSAT fairer.”Also known as “killer questions,” these exam questions of the highest difficulty are based on content not taught at schools, giving an advantage to those who have better access to private education. It was an easier way to better assess the level of the students, but also a “root cause to drive students to private education cram school

Jun 19, 2023By Lee Hae-rin

Lee Hae-rin

Read more

Rainbow flags fly despite opposition at Seoul's queer festival

Korea to extend electronic travel authorization validity to spur inbound tourism

Jeonju's hidden alleys perfect place for 'gastroventures'

Korea-China air routes to be suspended during summer vacation season

Torrential rain to hit greater Seoul area Tuesday

INTERVIEW Jeju researcher transforms Ieodo folklore into modern fairy tale

Travel authorities to tackle overcharging at rural festivals

INTERVIEW Dutch singer-songwriter recounts memories, experiences of Korea

Experts discuss maintaining peace in East Asian waters amid growing sea dispute

Gov't to exclude extra-hard questions from state-run college entrance exam

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