Travel & Food

Tunisian Travels

By Jung Sung-ki Korea Times Correspondent TUNISIA ― For most South Koreans, Tunisia remains an unfamiliar country at the moment, far and distant. But after looking at what the small North African nation offers, Korean travelers will be willing to take a day-long flight to the Arab-Muslim country, which attracts about 7 million tourists each year from all over the world, mostly European countries. There are countless exotic attractions to enjoy and experience in Tunisia, a dynamic and multicultural country located at the heart of the Mediterranean basin and at the crossroads of the Arab, African and European worlds. You can't miss the 1,300 kilometers of beautiful sandy Mediterranean beaches, year-round sunshine, tall palm trees, thousands of archeological sites and treasures influenced by a host of civilizations, such as Ancient Carthage, the Roman Empire, the Byzantines, the Ottoman Empire, Spain, etc. A wide range of stylish and unique hotels offers every comfort and amenity, and you can treat yourself to a luxurious spa break at state-of-the-art Thalasso thera

Hotel Lobby

Lotte Hotel Seoul Lotte Hotel Seoul's Italian restaurant Peninsula celebrates the arrival of 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau with its L'Esprit Nouveau Party on Nov. 20. Events lined up for the evening include music by a popular DJ, a tectonic dance performance and a concert by an electric fusion band. Admission ticket is 60,000 won. For more information, call (02) 317-7121. Park Hyatt Seoul The Park Hyatt Seoul has invited Hank English as a new vocalist at The Timber House, a bar styled after an old Korean house. Hank English is a versatile performer, first starting out as a drummer playing jazz, rock & roll, blues, country, pop, soul and old standards and going on to play piano, the hotel said. He will be on stage from No. 18 to Feb. 14 from Mondays to Saturdays from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. For more information, call (02) 2016-1291. Renaissance Seoul Hotel Renaissance Seoul Hotel's Chinese Restaurant Kabin offers a winter selection called Snow and Cloud. It include an eight course set menu featuring whole abalone steak, roast Peking duck, Chinese styl

Westin Chosun Reopens Sushi Restaurant

By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter The Westin Chosun Seoul has reopened Sushi Cho, a popular upscale Japanese restaurant on the 20th floor, after months of preparation and renovation. The reopening is part of a major project by the hotel (with almost 100 years of history) to add a sense of modernity. Last summer, the hotel completed renovations and opened three new restaurants in its lower lobby. It was one of its largest-scale renovations since opening in 1914 as the first Western-style hotel in the nation. ``The underlying concept in the series of massive renovations is to keep our traditional image and at the same time add modernity to the hotel,'' Jese Kim, executive assistant manager of F&B of the hotel, said. ``The reopening of Sushi Cho is in line with this vision. We want to keep the restaurant's tradition of not only authenticity of taste and quality service but also add stylish designs and contemporary flavors.'' Sushi Cho aims to present a new standard of Japanese dining, with traditional sushi artistry prepared by master sushi chefs and contemporary ``kaiseki,

Hotel Lobby

Millennium Seoul Hilton The Millennium Seoul Hilton's Mediterranean restaurant, Cilantro, features Indian cuisine in November. For the promotion, Chef Sanjay Tyagi of the Umerkot Bangalore Restaurant in India has been invited as guest chef and will stay through Nov. 10. ``There has been quite a bit of change to Indian cuisine as tastes change but we try to bring traditional authentic flavors to our customers,'' Thyagi said. The lunch buffet is priced at 40,000 won and the dinner buffet at 44,000 won. For more information, call (02) 317-3062.

Gambling: Korean Casino Industry

By Bryan Wolff Surveillance Consultant Grand Korea Leisure, Seven Luck Casino Over the past year and a half I have had the unique opportunity to work for Seven Luck Casino as a Surveillance Consultant. Originally from New York, I moved to Las Vegas in 1994 and started my casino career in down town Las Vegas at the Union Plaza. Over the next 14 years I was able to study the casino industry at UNLV while working at several major casinos in Las Vegas before becoming the Director of Surveillance for the legendary Flamingo Hotel Casino. Although my background is surveillance, I have held several other positions within the casino industry, including being a dealer and a pit manager for the Palms and Playboy Casinos. Coming from Las Vegas, I have been extremely impressed with both the similarities and differences between casinos and the companies that run them. As a consultant, and initially believing that Seven Luck needed to exclusively follow the Las Vegas model of how to operate a casino, I found Las Vegas could also learn from Korea and in particular Seven Luck Casino. The

Care for Ox Intestine at Obaltan?

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter Eating ox intestines would sound strange to people from certain cultural backgrounds. But considering sausage is stuffed pork intestines (and loved worldwide), eating un-stuffed intestine should be just fine. Some people may find the smell of organs quite different, but at Obaltan in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul, not even the most delicate gourmet would smell anything. It seems that the cleaning of the organ is done properly ― something that not many eateries are capable of doing due to a lack of manpower and know how. There are two main courses for the ``large intestines'' and ``stomach walls.'' Both are marinated with spices and are sweet. Staff will bring charcoal and all one must do is grill the food, turn it over from time to time to avoid burning. The staff will then cut it into bite-size pieces. The large intestine is rather rich in flavor. Fat inside the tube-shaped organ, however, is crispy with a deep flavor. Succulent juice pops out when you bite it. It's fat and greasy but one can't help enjoying it. The stomach wall has mo

Crete, Santorini ― Blissful Islands of Contrasts

By Kim Rahn Staff Reporter GREECE ― There's the half-human, half-bull creature Minotaur, who was confined in a labyrinth of Knossos Palace. Bright white walls and blue domes. Doric order style columns of an ancient period next to a modern-style shopping district. Greece is full of contrasts. It is a country where the old and the new, the myth and the reality coexist. Two of Greece's islands, Crete and Santorini, also show very different features from each other ― Crete, the biggest island among Greece's 6,000 islands, is wild, manly and retains its natural look, while Santorini, a small archipelago, is tidy, quiet and romantic along with fairytale-like villages. Both of the contrasting islands are, however, very Greek. The country can hold everything in harmony along with good food, nightlong dancing, beautiful nature, millions of myths and the Aegean Sea, and it is not surprising at all in Greece where a human and bull can be merged into one creature. Crete: Wild but Charming The cruise ship Festos Palace operated by Minoan Lines carry travelers from Piraeus

Spring Style at Seoul Fashion Week

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Korea's top designers unveiled their fashion forecast for spring and summer 2009 during the eight-day Seoul Fashion Week, which ended Saturday. Seoul Fashion Week was once again touted by organizers as the ``evolution of Seoul becoming Asia's representative fashion city." Judging from what was seen on the catwalks, women will look forward to fresh and feminine looks, with just a hint of sexiness, for spring and summer. The romantic trend continued with bold floral prints on flowing maxis and one-piece dresses. Spring and summer fashion is always colorful, and this season is no exception with a lively pink, blue, purple and yellow color palette. Men will have to update their wardrobes with smartly cut jackets and clean sportswear. Black, white, navy, brown and beige dominated the color spectrum of men's wear designers, as well as check prints. Men's Wear As always, Seoul Fashion Week kicked off with two days of men's wear fashion shows attended by male Korean celebrities like Ji Jin-hee, Lee Dong-wook, Joo Ji-hoon and Denn

Enjoy Fresh Seafood at Seajak

By Han Sang-hee Staff Reporter Seafood buffets have both strong and weak points: they offer a variety of seafood, but the quality doesn't always match the quantity. However, visitors can enjoy as much quality food as they like at Seajak, a seafood buffet located near Hakdong Station. ``Seajak'' literally means ``royalty of the sea'' and indeed, the interior brings out the best of its name, with dark purple curtains, gold and khaki tablecloths and even a fancy gondola in front of the gate. Walking through the booths, guests find a fish tank full of crabs and fish, indicating everything on the menu is made fresh. Instead of frozen goods, Seajak's menu comes straight from the tank, with the exception of tuna. As soon as you sit down, the waiter gives the guests a couple of gold and silver coins. With the coins, visitors don't have to wait in a

Haein Temple: 1,000-Year-Old Monastery With Tripitaka Koreana