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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

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

Hotel Lobby

Park Hyatt Seoul Park Hyatt Seoul will offer the ``Park with BMW'' package through March 31. It includes a test drive experience with BMW vehicles as well as one night's stay in a Park Suite, breakfast buffet or weekend brunch at Cornerstone. Other benefits are a cocktail class at The Timber House, free access to Park Club Fitness Studio, swimming pool and sauna. The package guests can drive a BMW 328i convertible upon check-in on both weekdays and weekends. Other models such as BMW Z4 Coupe and the four-wheel drive BMW X5 4.8i are also available during the weekends. The package prices begin from 480,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2016-1234 or (02) 2016-1100. Ritz-Carlton, Seoul The Ritz-Carlton, Seoul's Japanese restaurant, Hanazono, presents a special promotion with the most popular choices of 2007. Titled ``Thank You Promotion,'' the event offers the menu consisting of eight-course dishes until Jan. 21. The menu includes king crab with wild mushrooms, globefish salad, special sashimi, codfish and abalone steak, shrimp tempura, noodles with

Jan 10, 2008

Ambassador Group Sets New Aim With New CI

By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter The Ambassador Group Thursday unveiled its new corporate identity (CI) as part of its moves to expand its operations and upgrade customer services. The group's president said it will be an important turning point after its 53 years in the hospitality business. ``As most Hotel business is done inside the building, it has spatial limitations by nature,'' Joo Myung-geon, president of the group, said. ``To go beyond the limits, it should do its utmost to keep growing in every aspect of businesses. Otherwise, it cannot survive.'' Under the new CI, a visual identity of corporate brand, the group plans to expand the business ― opening more local chains and creating new groups of customers, Joo said. The new CI features an the image of a horse's hoof bringing sunrise and luck, which reflects the group's commitment and vision to stay atop in the industry, the group said during the CI declaration ceremony at Sofitel Ambassador Seoul. The group now runs six chain hotels ― Sofitel Ambassador Seoul, Novotel Ambassador Gangnam, Novotel Ambassado

Jan 10, 2008

Donut Wars in Myeong-dong

By Kwon Mee-yoo, Han Sang-hee Staff Reporters The chilly season makes people long for warm hot chocolate and coffee, but what is a cup of coffee without a doughnut? Myeong-dong, located in central Seoul, offers four different places at which one can enjoy these round delicacies. These four distinctive doughnut places offer slightly different flavors allowing customers to pick and choose their personal favorites. Dunkin Donuts Dunkin Donuts, launched in Korea in 1994, has become well known for their slogan ``Coffee and Donut.'' They accustomed Koreans to having doughnuts with coffee. Dunkin Donuts has around 490 doughnut shops nationwide, which is the largest number among other doughnut making companies. Now, this leading doughnut maker is trying to cater to those who care about what they eat. Both Glutinous Rice Dream (1,300 won) and 12 Grain Roll (1,000 won) are made of healthy grains including sesame, rye, brown rice, black bean and more. Glutinous Rice Dream also comes in a black rice version (1,400 won) to meet the needs of doughnut lovers who want various f

Jan 10, 2008

HK Attracts Korean Tourists

By Sunny Lee Contributing writer Hong Kong ― ``Sorry, we are fully booked,'' said a hotel clerk over the phone at the Salisbury YMCA Hotel in Hong Kong. The popular mid-priced hotel has more than 300 guest rooms, but it may not have one for you at this time of the year when Hong Kong becomes a hotly sought-out destination for tourists who descend on this winter haven from all corners of the world, including Korea. Hong Kong is not necessarily the most ideal budget travel Mecca compared with some other popular destinations such as those in Southeast Asia. The average hotel room rate in Hong Kong, according to the official Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), was 1,383 Hong Kong dollars ($177) in November. The average room occupancy rate was 93 percent in the same month. During the Christmas and New Year's Day holidays, the figure nears full capacity. Seoul is notorious for high real estate prices. Hong Kong is worse. Hotel rooms tend to be compact here. Streets are narrow and buildings are densely arranged. But this very feature has brought some unintended convenience to Korea

Jan 10, 2008

Indulge Your Wanderlust in 2008

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia, Han Sang-hee Staff Reporters Wanderlust seems to be spreading among Koreans. Koreans are increasingly traveling abroad for summer vacations, weekends, and holidays such as Seollal (Lunar New Year) and Chuseok (Harvest Moon Festival). In 2007, around 13 million Koreans traveled abroad, and the figure is expected to continue to rise this year. New, Exotic Destinations Numerous travel Web sites, magazines and tour operators have come up with lists of top travel destinations for 2008. The New York Times last month published a list of 53 places to visit in 2008. The list includes travel recommendations to exotic locales such as Lisbon, Tunisia, Mauritius, the Maldives, Malawi, and well-known cities Munich, Tuscany, Miami and Buenos Aires. Interestingly enough, there are only a handful of Asian destinations named in the list, such as Laos (described as Indochina's next hot spot), Lombok, Indonesia (a low-key island east of Bali) and Vietnam. Lonely Planet offers its own list of new and unique travel destinations for 2008 through the

Jan 10, 2008

New Year’s Resolutions

By Lee Hyo-won, Kwon Mee-yoo Staff Reporters The New Year has dawned, and it's now time to actually carry out those New Year's resolutions. Almost every list includes working toward a healthier, more active and productive lifestyle. To start off 2008 with a healthy mind, body and soul, why not draw up a workout plan, take up a new hobby or learn a new language? Meditate For a peace of mind, visit Seon Meditation Center. Located in a beautiful hanok (traditional Korean house) in Insa-dong, central Seoul. Seon exclusively caters to foreigners. Director Roar Sheppard, a San Francisco native, has been living in Korea for over 10 years. He is trained in ``doinbeop'' ― or the principles of harmony and nature, breathing and meditation that have been practiced in Korea for thousands of years. Roar says the heart of meditation lies in emptying out your thoughts and emotions to relieve stress and achieve inner peace. Classes begin 5 a.m., 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. on weekdays and 5 a.m. and 11 a.m. on Saturdays. Free trial sessions are available on Saturdays. The cent

Jan 3, 2008

Hotel Lobby

Grand Hyatt Seoul Grand Hyatt Seoul offers a special winter package. ``Winter on the Ice Package'' includes one night's deluxe accommodation, complimentary ice rink admission and skate rentals for two persons, complimentary hot chocolate at the rink for two. It also includes free use of the gym and indoor swimming pool and a 50 percent discount on ice skating lessons from Club Olympus. The package is available from 187,000 won. For information, call (02) 799-8888 Ritz-Carlton, Seoul The Ritz-Carlton, Seoul will feature ``La Galette des Rois'' festival. In the New Year's event, a guest who finds a small china doll in the Galette pie will be the winner of the game. Galette means a big size pie in French. Ritz Deli will prepare the Galette des Rois pie until Jan. 15. The price is 30,000 won. For more information, call (02) 3451-8278. Millennium Seoul Hilton Cilantro, Millennium Seoul Hilton's Mediterranean restaurant, presents an oyster festival during this month. In addition to Cilantro's buffet, guests can experience fresh oysters. The buffet cost

Jan 3, 2008

Recipe for Best Taste: Quality Ingredients

By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter The new top chef of W Seoul-Walkerhill says he is faithful to the recipe to produce the best taste ― good ingredients speak for themselves. ``My main philosophy (in cooking) is to find the best and fresh ingredients and serve them in a simple way,'' Ciaran Hickey said during an interview with The Korea Times. Hickey was appointed as a new head chef of the hotel last October and some of the things that he first did was to go to a regional market to learn more about the ingredients that he would use. The search for quality ingredients seems to have become the chef's main concern or habit that he has gained while working for established restaurants in other countries. Such efforts have also been well recognized. When he worked for the Four Seasons Istanbul from 1999 to 2003, he successfully led it to be selected as the best restaurant in Istanbul by prestigious restaurant guide book Zagat in 2001. It is no doubt that the 43-year-old Irish chef has experienced a range of different recipes and has his own cooking style. But he says that

Jan 3, 2008
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