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The Dice Latte serves up adventure

The Dice Latte co-owner Joey Croner serves up drinks and snacks at his RPG and board game cafe. / Photo by Le Linh.By Jon DunbarMythical creatures such as giants, hydras and gelatinous cubes are rarely sighted in Seoul, but if you ever want to slay one, The Dice Latte in northeastern Seoul has everything you need. Opened in June 2015 near Hoegi Station, this board game cafe caters to gamers of all kinds, offering not just board games but also dice-based role-playing games (RPGs) such as Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) and card games such as “Magic: The Gathering.”“We're the only one I know of where we have RPGs,” said Joey Croner, who co-owns it with his wife. “I have about 500 games right now, games and expansions. There's still a lot of work to do on it.”Croner, originally from Idaho, worked at Sookmyung Women’s University and Korea University before opening The Dice Latte. He mostly runs it himself, with a couple part-timers to back him up during busy hours. They serve snacks and drinks, including coffee and beer. Their clientele comes from

Brewers to present unique red IPA beers

Jason Lindley, center, is one of the founders of Magpie. He moved back to America last fall. / Photo by Jon DunbarBy John RedmondFive independent Korean breweries will be pouring their unique red IPA beers at a special event at Magpie Brewshop in Gyeongnidan on Sunday.Titled “Red IPA Smackdown” and featuring the brewers Magpie, The Hand and Malt, Gorilla and a team-up between The Table and Playground, the event will see teams pour their brews from the same specialty Red X malt to create four totally different beers.The brewers themselves will be behind the bar pouring beers and answering questions.Magpie will offer its Red Magick Red Rye IPA. Gorilla has its Red IPA. The Hand and Malt will provide a Red IPA. The Table and Playground will offer a Red Double IPA.The tasting will begin with Magpie at 3 p.m. and finish with Gorilla at 6 p.m.For the growing number of people interested in beer as a career there will be a special talk on “How to Become a Brewer” at 7:30 p.m. Magpie Brewing Company was started in Seoul in fall 2011 by four friends.The group opened wit

(1738) Feminine hygiene

Yongsan Legacy '5,000-year-old culture collides with gaggle of knucklehead GIs'

By Martin LimonThe cover of Martin Limon’s latest book, “The Nine-Tailed Fox” published 2017 by Soho PressFor me, it all started on Yongsan Compound. A place where a 5,000-year-old culture collided with a gaggle of knucklehead GIs (myself included) who could barely find Korea on a map. The result was occasionally tragic, sometimes beautiful, but always provided an opportunity to become someone better.In the early 1970s, Yongsan Compound was a happening place. Korea was still emerging from the post-war era and the citizenry was buzzing over the recently completed Seoul-to-Busan highway and the high-rise buildings newly peeking above the skyline of the capital city. Meanwhile, Yongsan Compound was open _ relatively speaking _ to the world. The main gate was nothing more than a roll-back chain-link fence manned by a lone MP. At the Pedestrian Gate, a contract guard checked Korean base workers and military members and waved them through. So unlike the massive defensive structures protecting the gates today.Yongsan Compound was seen as a cornucopia of tax-free luxuries:

(1737) See the old year out and the New Year in

Ambassador to join Olympic torch relay

By John RedmondJames ChoiAustralian ambassador to Korea James Choi invites K-Aussie members and friends to a leisurely run around Gyeongbok Palace on Jan. 14.Choi will also be taking part in the PyeongChang Olympic Torch Relay after being handed the torch by Australian comedian and popular Korean TV star Sam Hammington. The group will meet at 9:45 a.m. in front of Gyeongbok Palace at Gwanghwamun gate.The three-kilometer run will take place between 10 to 10:30 a.m. from Gyeongbok Palace to Cheong Wa Dae and back. After the run, Ambassador Choi will join the participants for light refreshments.Participation is free.Visit kaussie.org for more information.

Storyteller brings show to Seoul

Storyteller Kim Seung-ahBy John RedmondKorean cultural performer Kim Seung-ah, a pioneer who introduced storytelling as an art form in Korea, brings her K-Storytelling World Tour to Art Space Banjul on Jan. 11.Titled “Happy New Year” the evening also features international performers Elaine and Mauny Muray.Inspired by the folktales her grandmother told her as a child, Kim tells Korean folk stories in a dynamic and interactive way that engages audiences of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities. Since 2007 Kim has performed Korean stories and given workshops about Korean culture and the art of storytelling, such as the narrative musical genre of pansori.Her current world tour has included Scotland, England, the U.S., Taiwan, India and Indonesia.“As a pioneer Korean professional storyteller, I have traveled across all the continents to bring Korea to the world through my stories and tales, and I have developed K-Storytelling as a new facet of Korea’s nation branding,” Kim said.The current world tour includes performances at concert venues, art spaces and

Foreign workers should file tax returns now

By Oh Young-jin Foreign workers earning income in Korea should file a tax settlement for 2017 by February 28. The year-end tax settlement is required for all foreign workers regardless of their term of stay and income generated here. If the amount of tax withheld is larger than the year-end tax, the difference will be refunded -- and vice versa. Foreign employees should submit related documents certifying deductions and returns to employers from Jan. 20 to Feb. 28. Employers then issue the tax settlement withholding receipts to the employees during the period. The employers should then complete submissions to the National Tax Service by March 12. Although foreign workers are covered by the same rules as Korean workers, they benefit from the 19 percent flat income tax rate. Some foreign engineers, who are working under a technology transfer contract, or researchers in foreign-invested firms, are entitled to a 50 percent deduction in tax for income made over the previous two years.Foreign native teachers from countries that enjoy tax benefits may receive exemptions for taxes for income

(1736) New Year's Day sunrise

Paris-based artist to exhibit in Seoul

By John RedmondAustralian artist Angelica Mesiti will present her solo exhibition “Relay League” at Art Sonje Center beginning Jan. 12.Mesiti works primarily with video and installation, incorporating performance, dance and musicality to explore ideas of community, cultural tradition and spirituality.This exhibition stemmed from a Morse code message, “Calling all, this is our final cry before our eternal silence,” transmitted by the French Navy on Jan. 31, 1997, to signal the imminent demise of this communication method, which was phased out after 130 years.The Paris-based artist was born in Sydney in 1976 and has exhibited at institutions and biennales worldwide including the 19th Biennale of Sydney, 13th Istanbul Biennial, 2nd Aichi Triennale, 5th Auckland Triennial, the Palais de Tokyo, Paris, Barbican Centre, London and the Jewish Museum in New York.In association with the exhibition, an artist talk will be held at the Art Hall in Art Sonje Center on Jan. 11 at 5 p.m.Mesiti will have a talk with Alexie Glass-Kantor, the executive director of Artspace Sydne