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Korea has potential to top Singapore in MICE

  Marina Bay Sands CEOGeorge TanasijevicBy Kim Jae-kyoungSINGAPORE — South Korea has the potential to become the world’s top MICE (meeting, incentive tour, convention and exhibition) destination once it upgrades its tourism infrastructure, Marina Bay Sands (MBS) CEO George Tanasijevich said.He added that a large-scale integrated resort similar to MBS in Singapore will not only help Korea revitalize its infrastructure but also serve as a marketing tool to attract more business and leisure tourists from abroad.“Korea has a greater opportunity to lift its MICE industry even higher (than Singapore),” Tanasijevich said in an interview with The Korea Times at the MBS Hotel overlooking a panoramic view of Singapore.He pointed out that Korea has many advantages over competitors such as Singapore, because it has both rich cultural assets and advanced technology.“You have wonderful cultural, historical attractions that the tourism industry leverages very effectively. Where I think it is lacking is in more modern tourism infrastructure. The integrated res

Mar 20, 2016
Korea has potential to top Singapore in MICE

Endangered cuisine holds out in Jinan

“Aejeojjim” or steamed piglet, is still served at Jinangwan restaurant in Jinan, North Jeolla Province./ Courtesy of Paul WilsonBy Matthew C. CrawfordWe had set off on a year-end roadtrip from Seoul to Busan and were floating ideas for lunch when I remembered reading several years ago about a rare local specialty in the small town of Jinan. Located in North Jeolla Province, the heartland of Korean cuisine, Jinan had a long tradition of serving pig fetus. The question was whether the dish was still served today.Driving slowly down the main street of Jinan, we saw no signs of baby pig restaurants until we’d passed the long market strip with sacks of herbs and roots on display. We slowed down when we saw a sign with the outline of a pig on the first floor of a nondescript building. The restaurant, named Jinangwan, had an orange sign advertising “Designated Establishment for Traditional Indigenous Foods.”We stepped inside and were ushered to a table by Lee Sang-bong and Kim Geum-ju, a couple who looked to be in their 70s. Like many provincial Korean restaura

Mar 17, 2016
Endangered cuisine holds out in Jinan

Korea promotes cruises to attract tourists

Quantum of the Seas, a luxury cruise ship, arrives at Incheon with a large number of Chinese tourists on March 4. / Courtesy of KTOBy Chung Ah-youngCruises are becoming even more popular around the world, particularly among Chinese travelers and elderly people.The domestic demand for cruises is still low, so the government is rolling up its sleeves to attract foreign cruise passengers and boost the underdeveloped industry.At 7 a.m. on March 4, more than 4,000 Chinese tourists arrived via Quantum of the Seas for Royal Caribbean International, a large-capacity luxury cruise ship at Hanjin Terminal in Songdo, Incheon. The Chinese tourists traveled and shopped around Seoul before returning to Shanghai at 9 p.m. on the same day. The 167,000-ton, 6,100-passenger ship will travel to Korea from Shanghai, China, 44 more times this year.“More than 80,000 tourists visited Korea in January alone. This year, some 1.5 million cruise tourists are expected to come to Korea,” Park I-rak, director of the marine tourism division of the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), said.The number of cr

Mar 17, 2016
Korea promotes cruises to attract tourists

How to apply therapeutic tape correctly

Prof. Hong Jung-giBy Baek Byung-yeulProf. Hong Jung-gi at the College of Physical Education at Seoul’s Kookmin University said the parts of their bodies that aggravate people the most with sports injuries are the neck, shoulder and knee.He said the kinesiology taping method needs to be applied when the body’s muscles and tendons don’t fulfill their function on their own. The proper application of therapeutic taping can reduce the pressures on overused muscles and tendons and ease swelling in the tissue.For those who suffer from soreness or stiffness in their shoulders, kinesiology taping is applied starting from the shoulder blade. From the lower shoulder blade to the AC joint (acromioclavicular joint), attach the tape with an elasticity of 50 to 70 percent. Then place two layers of tape to stabilize your shoulder joint with an elasticity of 10 percent over the top and place the top layer of tape from the shoulder close to the spine to humeral head.For people with lower back pain, bend forward from the waist. Apply two vertical strips starting from either side of th

Mar 17, 2016
How to apply therapeutic tape correctly

Avoid sports injuries with taping technique

Members of a local functional training gym SENTINEL take part in a workshop introducing correct application instructions for kinesiology tape at the gym’s Samseong-dong branch (UPTOWN) in southern Seoul, March 5. / Courtesy of Emerson K PartnersBy Baek Byung-yeulWhen viewers watch Olympic Games or any big world championships, they notice once in a while that athletes are wearing tape wrapped around various parts of their bodies when they compete.The elastic therapeutic taping, also widely called Kinesiology Taping Method, is known to relieve pain and improve performance as a good taping of a joint may help reduce pressure of overstretched and overused muscles and tendons and ease swelling in the tissues.Though there have been questions about the effectiveness of taping, Prof. Hong Jung-gi at the College of Physical Education at Seoul’s Kookmin University said that taping the athlete properly can prevent possible injuries while training and alleviate pain from injuries especially over the short term.“This taping method is effective not only for high level athletes bu

Mar 17, 2016
Avoid sports injuries with taping technique

HOTEL LOBBY

   The Grand Hilton Seoul presents a Wine & Dine Buffet at the Buffet Restaurant everyTuesday.The venue offers more than 100 dishes, including Korean, Japanese, Chinese and Western cuisines. Guests can drink limitless Carmen Merlot and Carmen Sauvignon Blanc wines.The buffet costs 75,000 won, including tax and service charges. For information andreservations, call (02) 2287-8271. The Hyatt Regency Jeju has launched the Citrus Spa package. The package includes a one-night stay, citrus back treatment for two adults and access to the sauna, swimming pool and fitness center. Additional spa treatments are available at a 20-percent discount. Citrus fruit is one of the resort island’s specialties, and the back treatment uses oil made with citrus extract which is good for relieving body stress.The spa package costs 220,000 won for two adults, excluding tax and service charges. For more information or reservations, call (064)733-1234. The Sheraton Grand Incheo

Mar 10, 2016
HOTEL LOBBY

Seoul hotels provide White Day promotions for couples

By Kim Se-jeong Many hotels are offering promotions in celebration of White Day, a romantic Korean traditional day for couples, which is on March 14. Sheraton Grande WalkerhillSheraton Grande Walkerhill is offering two Yes May Love packages between March 12 and 14. The first package, White I, includes a one-night stay in a deluxe room and dinner at a campsite on the hotel property, featuring barbecue, a bottle of sweet sparkling wine and a box of cookies. The second package, White II, includes the same services, with the addition to a strawberry dessert buffet for two. The dessert buffet includes more than 40 kinds of desserts and two glasses of sparkling wine. Both packages cost 310,000 won if guests book for March 12, and 280,000 won if booked for either March 13 or 14, excluding tax and service charges. For more information and reservations, call (02) 450-6457. Sheraton Seoul D Cube City HotelLobby Bar in the lobby of Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel is offering a romantic dinner for couples between March 12 and 14, featuring scallops, mussels, abalone, clams king c

Mar 10, 2016
Seoul hotels provide White Day promotions for couples

Park Hyatt offers affordable menus

Park Hyatt Seoul’s renovated main restaurant, Cornerstone, which reopened at the end of last month, provides remarkably affordable menus. In the photo is breaded lamb chop. Courtesy of Park Hyatt SeoulPark Hyatt Seoul’s Cornerstone offers new affordable menu  Chef Massimiliano ZianoBy Kim Se-jeong In general, dining at hotel restaurants in Korea is expensive, so many people avoid them.Park Hyatt Seoul has recently taken a step to change that notion. Its renovated main restaurant, Cornerstone, which reopened at the end of last month, has remarkably affordable menus.For example, the restaurant’s lunch course costs only 46,000 won per person and includes an appetizer and an entrée. Guests can choose a dessert instead of an appetizer, which is served with a cup of coffee or tea.For the appetizers, customers can choose from grilled vegetables, fish carpaccio and bruschetta, and, for the entrée, customers can choose from pasta, baked Canadian lobster, roasted half chicken, breaded lamb chop, and grilled tenderloin, T-bone steak and strip loin,

Mar 10, 2016
Park Hyatt offers affordable menus

Michelin Guide to publish Seoul edition

By Yun Suh-youngThe French tire company Michelin Group announced Thursday that it will publish a Red Guide for Seoul next year.The Red Guide rates restaurants and hotels as opposed to the Green Guide which introduces travel destinations. A Green Guide for Seoul was published in 2011.“The Michelin Guide reveals the vitality of the country’s gourmet trends. I’m pleased we will continue our development in Korea,” said Bernard Delmas, senior vice president of Michelin Group and the representative of Michelin Travel Partner for Asia-Pacific at a press conference in Seoul, Thursday.“Korean cuisine is especially well known; from popular street food to traditional dishes. The popularity of Korean gastronomy has spread internationally with the Korean wave. We believe the Seoul guide will allow local enthusiasts, foreign visitors and business travelers to find the best restaurants and hotels in Seoul to fit their taste,” he said.The Michelin Guide, for over a century, has served as a “foodies’ bible” since it was first published in 1900. It

Mar 10, 2016
Michelin Guide to publish Seoul edition

More than a restaurant

Very Street Kitchen, an experimental lab for street foodJoon Oh CEO of Very Street KitchenBy Yun Suh-youngOn a sequestered, shabby street behind Seoul Station, at the heart of the city, there is an old stone building that stands out from its surroundings with its modern sign sporting one big four-letter word: "VERY."The sign is short for Very Street Kitchen, a cozy, six-tabled restaurant that operates only at night. The tables are different sizes and shapes, giving customers the joy of choosing where they want to sit, including a bar seat accommodating up to six people. In one corner of the restaurant is a DJ console that restaurant staff play, changing the CD every once in a while using their turntable skills.The name Very Street Kitchen comes from their concept of selling street food.But their street food is far from conventional. The dishes bear the names of cities such as Osaka, Bangkok, Taipei, Singapore, New Orleans, Canton, Barcelona, Sokcho and Tongyeong, and the dishes reflect the tastes of those cities. They are served as platters rather than as snacks and they are hygienic

Mar 10, 2016
More than a restaurant
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