my timesThe Korea Times
Lifestyle

Travel & Food

Seollal, Through Foreign Eyes

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Lunar New Year's Day, or Seollal, is just a few days away, but excitement is in the air. Department stores are bustling with activities, as shoppers purchase gifts for families and friends. Everyone is making plans, whether to go back to their hometown, visit relatives or take a trip abroad. Seollal, Korea's biggest holiday, falls on Feb. 7 this year. Holidays start from Feb. 6 and run through the entire weekend. The word Seol means a new day ``to be careful," or ``to be discreet in one's behavior," according to the book ``Seasonal Customs of Korea'' by David Shaffer. ``It is believed that good fortune for the entire year depended on what happened on the first day of the New Year. As such, people wished to ward off evil spirits and attract good fortune by being appropriate in thought and behavior on Seollal," Shaffer said. Korean families perform the ancestral rites of charye and seongmyo; and seibae, which involve full bowing before older family members, on Lunar New Year's Day. Family members traditionally wear a h

Jan 31, 2008

Jessica’s Kitchen Offers Home-Style Italian Buffet

By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter Craving some homey Italian food? How does an all-you-can-eat buffet sound? But don't worry; it's not as heavy-duty as it sounds. Jessica's Kitchen offers home-style cuisine in an open kitchen, where you can help yourself to a filling meal like you would at home. The cooks whip up pizzas and pastas before your eyes, and home-baked bread and cookies await you. But even those with ``carbohydrate-phobia'' can easily warm up to the place. Mr. Pizza, a local pizza chain, launched the buffet restaurant showcasing Italy's traditional ultra-thin pizzas. While you scurry back and forth with your plate, stay alert for one of the cooks ringing a bell announcing the arrival of freshly baked pizza. The restaurant's wholesome menu is reflected in the appearance of the place itself. The bright, spacious green and white interior is complete with trees planted indoors, and has ``healthy'' written all over. It's nice and cozy, but at the same time it almost feels like you're eating in a chic greenhouse ― especially with two big salad bars as a centerpiece.

Jan 24, 2008

Alternative Cinema

By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter Large multiplex movie theaters have become the norm, with wide screens and killer sound systems. But for those looking for something slightly different, there are alternatives to spice things up. Spend some time at an artsy, retro theater, combine a five-star hotel dinner with cinema, or go to a drive-in theater. Blast From Past It's far from the bright neon signs and large glossy halls of multiplex theaters. Dream Cinema, Seoul's last remaining single-screen theater, gives you a whiff of nostalgia with its run-down charm. It has been part of the Seodaemun landscape in northern Seoul for the past 45 years and is still widely known by its former name Hwayang. Once the ultimate hotspot for Hong Kong cinema in the 1980s, it now caters mostly to free movie previews. With the area's renovation plans, Seoul may soon have to bid the Dream Cinema farewell once and for all. But before being torn down, the theater is reliving its past glory in style. Hundreds of moviegoers are flocking over to the dormant theater to watch the explosively popular r

Jan 24, 2008

Lotte to Build New Hotel in Moscow

By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter The Lotte Hotel group will open a new hotel in Russia in April of 2009. ``We will open a new chain in Moscow,'' Chang Kyung-chak, president and CEO of the Lotte Hotel chain, said Tuesday during a news conference at Lotte Hotel Seoul in downtown Seoul. ``It will be 10-story building with 319 rooms, targeting high-profiled guests and ambassadors.'' He plans to appoint a foreigner as a general manager and a Korean as a vice-general manager for the new hotel. The one of the largest local hotel group currently has five chain hotels in Seoul, Busan, Ulsan and Jeju Island. Chang said he plans to complete renovation on the five chains by 2010, investing a total of 150 billion won. But the number of chains will further increase up to 10 as Chang also plans to set up three more chains in Mapo of Seoul, Gimhae in South Gyeongsang Province and near the Gimpo International Airport in Gyeonggi Province. The expansion of the five-star hotel chain also involves the construction of budget or business hotels to attract tourists from China and

Jan 24, 2008

Hotel Lobby

Westin Chosun Seoul The Westin Chosun Seoul claimed a spot on the ``Gold List'' for the world's best place to stay by Conde Nast Traveler magazine. The hotel is the only local hotel on the list. It was previously voted on the list in 2004. Readers of the magazine vote for the world's finest properties around the world and the result can be seen as a reliable source in choosing a hotels throughout the world. The list also include the Four Seasons in New York, the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, the Peninsula in Hong Kong and the Park Hyatt in Tokyo. Renaissance Seoul Hotel The Renaissance Seoul Hotel's Japanese restaurant Irodori offers table-style buffet on weekends, attracting seafood lovers during the Lunar New Year's holiday. The buffer includes fresh sushi, sashimi and tepanyaki. The hotel also sells various gift sets for the holiday. The Bakery offers sets of galbi or Korean beef, wine, cheese and whiskey. The Renaissance Gift Set is available at 250,000 won or 140,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2222-8654. Novotel Ambassador Gangnam

Jan 24, 2008

Chusan: Pearl of Ulleung Island

By Oleg Kiriyanov Contributing writer You have probably read a few stories about Ulleung Island which is widely known under its unofficial name, ``the mystery island.'' Let us just remind ourselves that this is probably one of the most beautiful places in Korea. The island ― thanks to the absence of big plants and factories as well as due to its relative remoteness (to get there you have to travel about three hours by ship) ― has managed to preserve the unique beauty of nature which has not been changed much by humans. Situated almost on the seashore near Chusan village in the northern part of the island are at least four interesting places, every one of which is regarded as a kind of ``name card'' for Ulleung Island. They are: Mount Songgot, Seongbul Temple, Chusanilga Hotel and Elephant Rock. Mount Songgot draws your attention as soon as its shape starts to be recognizable on the horizon. The mountain itself is not that high, less than 500 meters, but it goes upward steeply from the road running along the seashore. As a result, when you pass the mountain, it look

Jan 24, 2008

Hotel Lobby

Grand Hyatt Seoul Grand Hyatt Seoul offers ``In the Spa Package II ― Lifting'' until Feb. 29. It features a specially formulated anti-aging spa and offers guests relaxation through its comfortable accommodation and spa treatments. The Spa will demonstrate Cle de peau's ``Healthy-Aging Course'' treatment, focusing on facial moisturizing and lifting for the dry winter season. Guests may either a 60-minute Cle de peau signature facial massage or a Swedish body massage using sweet organic almond oil. After the treatment, a complimentary tea and cookie will be served and each guest will receive a Cle de peau cosmetic gift set as a souvenir. Prices range from 283,000 won to 379,000 won. For more information, call (02) 799-8888. Grand Hilton Seoul The buffet restaurant at the Grand Hilton Seoul features a British cuisine promotion in January, offering U.K.-style appetizers, salads, soups, mains and desserts. Menus include ``Roll Mops'' (marinated herring with onions), ``Scotch Eggs'' (boiled eggs coated in ground meat), and veal and ham pie. The classic star

Jan 17, 2008

`Basics Make Cooking Special’

Ritz-Carlton’s Executive Chef Picky About Promotional Events By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter The executive chef at the Ritz-Carlton, Seoul says that restaurants in top local hotels hold too many promotional events to the point where they are failing to have much impact on customers. ``Everybody in the city does a promotion but at the end of the year, what do you remember?'' Eric Costille said during an interview with The Korea Times. ``Too many specials can become just common and not truly special anymore.'' Special events should be held when a restaurant makes the best of everything on the regular menus and wants to offer something as the regular menus become boring to customers, he said. So the chef is directing the hotel to only have highly selective promotions such as two recent ones put on by chocolate and cheese masters, which were well received by customers. He also emphasizes the importance of the basics in cooking rather than trying to offer something extraordinary. ``The food industry is changing so fast. And it is quite challenging to create somethi

Jan 17, 2008

Winter Outings, Icy Festivals

By Chung Ah-young Staff Reporter How do you defeat a mid-winter cold snap? Do you just hibernate indoors and hang on until warm weather returns in the spring? Sometimes, it is better to embrace the season as it is and revel outdoors in the cold. Let's confront the winter chill with freezing tastes. Various ice events are awaiting tourists, especially families from cities, who want to enjoy the pinnacle of winter in rural icy areas. Sancheoneo Ice Festival The cream of the crop of winter outdoor events will be ice fishing ― catching fish with lines and hooks through an opening in the ice on a frozen river, lake or stream. Hwacheon, Gangwon Province is emerging as a tourist winter hot spot with the 6th Sancheoneo Ice Festival. The festival will continue through Jan. 27. The festival features ice fishing to catch ``sancheoneo'' among other activities and events. ``Sancheoneo'' is a cherry salmon living in fresh, cold and clean streams with temperatures of 20 degrees Celsius or below. The fish is rare but not an endangered species. The unique patterns on its ba

Jan 17, 2008

Ocean Park, Destination for ``Edu-tainment

By Kim Rahn Staff Reporter Hong Kong's water attraction Ocean Park is making efforts to attract more Korean visitors with its programs that combine education and entertainment. Executives of Ocean Park visited Korea Monday for their first promotion here. The park, comprised of aquarium, zoo, theaters and rides such as roller coasters, has become a must-see destination in Hong Kong, drawing a growing number of visitors. Among them, Koreans take a considerable portion, the officials said. They said Korea is the largest Asian market for Hong Kong, accounting for 67 percent of the total Asian travelers to the region, excluding mainland China. ``The number of Korean visitors to Hong Kong sustained double-digit growth year-on-year since 2004. About 800,000 Koreans came to Hong Kong in 2007, and 200,000 among them visited Ocean Park,'' Paul Pei, Ocean Park's sales and marketing executive director, said in a media briefing in central Seoul. As part of its effort to reinforce its outreach in the Korean market, the park signed a joint promotion with Kookmin Bank, offering a

Jan 17, 2008
previous page
367368369370371
next page

Most Read in Lifestyle