Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Jeju wrestles with slumping tourism, retail industries amid China's travel ban

The impact from China's measure to place a ban on all group tours to South Korea in response to Seoul's decision to deploy a U.S.-led missile system has remained felt by businesses on South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju, with the number of Chinese tourists ever decreasing, the Jeju provincial government said Sunday.According to the municipality, the number of Chinese tourists who visited the island from June 30 to July 6 was tallied at 9,386, about one-eighth of the 77,824 recorded in the same period last year.During the reported period, the number of other foreign tourists, including Japanese and Southeast Asian tourists, whom the local industry has tried to woo to make up for losses arising from the evaporation of Chinese tourists, came to 12,360, compared with 86,292 for the same period of last year.The tourism industry forecast that it will continue to suffer a business downturn this month, with the number of Chinese tourists to Jeju to plummet 80 to 90 percent from a year ago, contrary to its expectations that China's economic reprisal will ease with Seoul-Beijing relat

Jul 9, 2017

Jeju wrestles with slumping tourism, retail industries amid China's travel ban

Three Nepalese cyclists on an environmental crusade

Three Nepalese cyclists pose with their bikes in front of Seoul City Hall, June 27. The three, from left, Dilip Chhetri, Anish Dhakal and Nirmal Baral are on a tour to promote environmental protection and world peace. / Courtesy of Anish DhakalBy You Soo-sunThree Nepalese men set out on an environmental crusade Dec. 30, 2016, with a plan to set foot in 100 countries during their five-year journey. With just a bicycle and a backpack each, they arrived in Korea on June 18: their 14th country.What motivated their trip was a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal in April, 2015, killing up to 9,000 people. “It was the most haunting experience. We felt a big sinking ― everywhere around, people were screaming and crying,” said Anish Dhakal, 22, who initiated the trip, the “World Bicycle Tour for Environmental Protection and World Peace.”Two others joined him. Nirmal Baral, 39, is a social worker. He is also the only married man of the three and a father of two children. His wife and two little children were at first opposed to him taking off for five years,

Jul 7, 2017

Three Nepalese cyclists on an environmental crusade

Peace in the woods

A visitor takes a rest in a hammock at Vivi Ecotopia in the Jangheung Woodland. / Korea Times photo by Jung Min-hoImmerse yourself in nature at Jangheung’s Vivi EcotopiaBy Jung Min-hoJANGHEUNG, South Jeolla Province ― Travel doesn’t always have to be about exploring new cities or riding waves ― sometimes it needs to be about discovering our inner worlds.Vivi Ecotopia, which is situated inside the Jangheung Woodland, is one of the best places for what is known as “forest bathing” in Korea.The term was coined in the early 1980s in Japan when the country included forest bathing in its national health program. Simply put, it is immersion in the forest to clear your mind and open your senses to nature.A man and a woman walk on a sawdust trail in the Woodland.In the forest of hundreds of 40-year-old cypress trees, you can lie on one of the hammocks, benches or inside the huts ― and relax.Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth, trying to feel the wind on your cheek, hear the sound of the water and look deep into yourself. And before doing this

Jul 6, 2017

Korea Tourism Organization opens Mongolia office

From left, Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) honorary ambassador Gantogoo Sergelen, KTO Executive Vice President Min Min-hong, Mongolia Tourism Organization CEO Purevjav Baljinnyam, KTO's Mongolia office director Park Jung-woong and Baek Ji-won, the wife of the Korean Ambassador to Mongolia Oh Song, who is standing by her side. / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationBy Jung Min-hoThe Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) opened an office in Mongolia, Tuesday, as part of its efforts to diversify the country’s tourism market beyond neighboring China and Japan.The KTO said it held an opening ceremony at the office in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital, in which 150 government officials from both countries, local travel agents and medical officials attended to strengthen their ties.According to the KTO, the number of Mongolian visitors has increased rapidly over the past five years. In 2016, 79,165 Mongolians came to Korea, and 20 percent of them did so to get medical treatment.Gantogoo Sergelen, who became a singer after winning the Migrants’ Arirang Multicultural Festival in

Jul 5, 2017

Korea Tourism Organization opens Mongolia office

Chinese stay 5.4 days Japanese 3.8 days on Seoul visits

Chinese on average stay 5.4 days in Seoul, while Japanese stay 3.8 days. Visitors from around the world average 5.8 days, a recent study shows.The Seoul Institute surveyed 1,045 respondents from Asia, North America, Europe, Oceania, the Middle East and Africa.The visitors mainly came for tourism (54.7 percent), followed by shopping, vacationing, business, visiting acquaintances, experiencing hallyu and studying.The survey showed there were more individual travelers (63.2 percent) than package travelers (26.8 percent), more female visitors (53.7 percent) than males (46.3 percent). People in their 20s and 30s accounted for 65.1 percent.For 56.6 percent, it was their first visit to Seoul; for 18.8 percent their second and for 24.7 percent their third.Among Japanese respondents, 52.5 percent visited Seoul at least three times.The largest percentage of shoppers visited street shops, followed by department stores and traditional markets.Foreign visitors’ most popular purchases were cosmetics, followed by food and clothes. Among cosmetics, skin care products were most favored. For foo

Jul 2, 2017

Green and blue: new colors of Ulsan

Visitors walk on the bridge that connects impressive rocks at Daewangam Park. / Korea Times photo by Jung Min-hoHow beautiful parks turn industrial metropolis into eco-cityBy Jung Min-hoULSAN ― If you remember how Ulsan looked 20 years ago, or even just 10, you may be surprised to find so much green and blue there today.Black and dark gray used to be the colors most people would associate with the city, which has long been known as the “industrial heart of Korea.”Ulsan still is home to the main facilities of two of the country’s largest companies ― Hyundai Motor and SK Innovation ― but also to gorgeous parks that differentiate the city from its past.A forest of bamboo trees stands at Sipridae Forest.Walking through bamboo treesTaehwagang Grand Park epitomizes the dramatic transformation of Ulsan.“It was a dirty river that no one would go near,” a longtime Ulsan resident said. “Few types of fish could live in the stinking, polluted water.”But Taehwagang has been “brought back from the dead.” Since 2005, a swimming contest

Jun 29, 2017

Kimchi makers face daunting mission for globalization: removing spicy odor

Kimchi chocolate, left, and kimchi juice are some of the kimchi variations that broke the traditional image of kimchi to target broader consumers outside Korea.By Ko Dong-hwanWhile the Korean government and citizens may take pride in kimchi and wish to globalize the traditional Korean side dish, it will not happen unless its unique spicy odor is removed, according to experts.Scientists at the World Institute of Kimchi near Gwangju are trying to develop kimchi’s good bacteria (especially the lactic acid that gives kimchi its probiotic qualities) and reduce its odor, according to the Washington Post.A scientist said getting the smell out of kimchi was difficult because “the smell is linked to the flavor of the kimchi.”“Most Western people don’t like the smell of kimchi because we use of lot of garlic and ginger, and that produces a lot of sulfur compounds,” the scientist said.While the experts are working on the problem, housewives in Korea have shared tips on how to do it.Some say they use baking soda, vinegar and citric acid to remove the smel

Jun 27, 2017

Kimchi makers face daunting mission for globalization: removing spicy odor

WP "김치, 냄새만 잡으면 세계화 문제없다"

(서울=코리아타임스) 우지원 인턴기자 = ‘김치 세계화의 가장 큰 걸림돌은 냄새 때문이다.’ 워싱턴포스트(WP)가 22일 보도한 내용이다. 신문은 K팝과 한국 드라마, 성형수술 등으로 무장한 한국이 성공적인 문화 수출을 거두고 있는 가운데 유독 김치만이 이러한 트렌드를 따라가지 못하고 있다고 지적했다. 신문에 따르면 최근 몇 년간 불고기가 들어간 퓨전 타코나 소주 칵테일 등이 미국의 젊은 층 사이에서 인기를 끌고 있다. 그러나 김치의 경우는 조금 다르다. 워싱턴포스트는 "한국인들조차도 냄새 때문에 김치용 냉장고를 따로 장만할 정도"라고 설명했다. 그렇다고 김치가 세계인들에게 충분히 매력적이지 못하다는 것은 아니다. 실제로 미국의 대표적인 유기농 식료품 마트인 트레이더조와 홀푸드 모두 김치를 판매하고 있다. 홀푸드의 경우 김치 관련 상품이 163개나 된다. 지난 2일에는 미국의 한 유기농 식품제조사에서 ‘김치주스’를 출시해 논란이 되기도 했다. 미국 온라인 쇼핑몰인 아마존에서 병당 2만원 가량의 가격에 판매되고 있는 이 제품은 김치의 맛을 그대로 구현했을 뿐 아니라 강한 중독성까지 지녔다는 평가를 받았다. 워싱턴포스트는 김치의 세계화를 위한 노력의 일환으로 한국의 세계김치연구소가 김치의 강력한 냄새를 없애기 위한 연구 중이라고 소개했다. 광주 김치타운에 위치한 세계김치연구소는 약 1000억원의 비용을 들여 지난 2012년 세워졌다. 매년 11월마다 김치 페스티벌을 개최하고 다양한 김치 제품을 개발하는 등의 성과를 내고 있다. 현재 이들의 연구 목표는 김치의 프로바이오틱스 유산균과 같은 유익균은 늘리고 강한 냄새와 같이 부정적인 측면은 줄이는 것이다. 미국의 아메리칸 대학교에서 음식외교를 전공하는 조한나 포맨(Johanna Forman) 교수는 "한 나라를 알면 그 나라의 문화에 호감을 가질 가능성이 매우 높다"며 닉슨 대통령의 중국 방문 이후로 미국 내에서 중국 음식에 대한 수요가 급증한 것을 사례로 제시했다. 포맨 교수는 이를 근거로 세계 시장에서 한식의 위상이 더욱 높아질 것이라고 봤다. 흥미롭게도 미국 네티즌들은 기사가 나간 뒤 댓글로 “냄새 없는 김치를 만드는 것은 포도 없이

Jun 25, 2017

Catholic abbey makes Waegwan worth a stop

Weekend visitors can stay in one of the buildings at the abbey./Courtesy of St. Benedict Waegwan AbbeyBy Kim Se-jeongFor non-Catholics, Waegwan in North Gyeongsang Province is a place with little significance. The small town near Daegu was once a town for the Japanese during the colonization (1910-1945).Since Korea’s liberation, the town has become a home to U.S. military base. It hardly made the news until last year, when the town was considered a potential destination for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense deployment.Nakdong River cuts through the town and not so far from the downtown is the Chilgok dam, one of the 16 small dams constructed for the Four Major River Restoration Project.For Catholics, Waegwan holds a huge significance.A statue of the Virgin Mary The town is home to the St. Benedict Waegwan Abbey, which was founded during the Korean War (1950-1953). It draws hundreds of Catholics from all over Korea to experience the monastic life for just weekend or for months.Yet, it also makes a good destination for non-Catholics because of its beauty, sense of tran

Jun 22, 2017

Catholic abbey makes Waegwan worth a stop

Park Hyatt Seoul's new chef tucks into Korean cuisine

Park Hyatt Seoul’s Executive Chef Federico Heinzmann with Ven. Sunjae /Courtesy of Park Hyatt SeoulBy Kim Se-jeong Park Hyatt Seoul’s new executive chef, Federico Heinzmann is doing what other chefs at international hotel chains rarely do: researching Korean cuisine and finding stories in them to tell.His first experiment was a five-day temple food promotion in May, for which he invited Ven. Sunjae to his kitchen to help him prepare temple food for guests. Ven. Sunjae and her team prepared grilled tofu, squash dumplings, seasonal greens-wrapped rice and perilla-mushroom soup, among others, and interacted with the guests.Guests were surprised by the presence of the monks, particularly Ven Sunjae who is quite well known in the temple food, said the chef who hails from Argentina. “I was surprised by how Koreans were surprised.”His next project will be about “haenyeo” food, in reference to “haenyeo” or the female divers on Jeju Island, who dive into the waters near the coast to catch fresh seafood and who are the tourist island’s