Global Community

Get Connected with LinkedSeoul

By Agnes Yu Once a month on a Wednesday various professionals gather at usually a new venue each time to “wine down.” Organized by Devin Rupert, as an event that stems from his website, LinkedSeoul, the evening offers an opportunity to meet new people and network in a casual setting. LinkedSeoul is a one-stop website that lists networking events and employment postings for its members. Membership is free and only requires one to make a profile by filling in a short questionnaire. After roughly 15 months since launching, there are currently over 1,060 members. What began as a personal project with zero capital, Rupert started LinkedSeoul to share information about strictly chamber of commerce and professional events. Other websites were too broad or general and are rather geared for people new to living in Seoul. Rupert aims to offer a comprehensive listing of mainly networking events, targeting a specific niche. Arriving in 2008 as a consultant for a U.S. company, this is Rupert’s first time living abroad as an expat. He said, ``Networking in the States is usually for

Bands do battle

By John Redmond For the next four weeks Rocky Mountain Tavern (RMT) a Canadian bar in Itaewon will host another one of its popular Battle of the Bands series beginning Nov. 25. Now in its sixth year of hosting these events ― first beginning with the Acoustic Showdown ― this free evening of rock music has become a popular stop on the live music circuit in Seoul. Each evening’s entertainment will begin at 9:30 p.m. and feature an electric set from the LRD Band, followed by the start of the bands heats from 10:30 p.m. till late. Each band will be given a one-hour set with only one band going through to the finals. There will also be one “Wild Card” band that will advance to the next round. This band will be determined by points. A Battle of the Bands is a contest in which many bands compete for the title of "best band." The winner is determined by a panel of judges, the general response of the audience, or a combination of both. LRD frontman Lance Reegan-Diehl will also work as a sound engineer for the events. Speaking on what to expect he said: “Often there

(534) Phone plans

(533) How often?

(532) Absentee ballot (II)

(531) Absentee ballot (I)

KOTRi’s Munsusan Mountain Project to host event in Ulsan

By Claire Keet With the aim of developing and improving Korea's climbing environment, Korea On The Rocks initiatives (KOTRi) set into motion the Munsusan Mountain Project in May this year. Kicking off in Ulsan on Nov. 19-20, the KOTRi team aims to replace all the climbing hardware on the mountain over the course of the next two years. Under the experienced guidance of Choi Byeong-ho of Ulsan's Climbing Gym, Choi Jeong-ho of Daegu's Challenger Gym and Bryan Hylenski, founder of KOTRi, the weekend promises to be a great opportunity for both local and foreign climbers to get involved in a hugely worthwhile project. The Munsusan Mountain Project commences with a mixer and social climbing, followed by hardware replacement the next day. Volunteers will be involved in the removal of current hardware, the addition of new hardware, the maintenance of belay areas as well as a crag cleanup. All old hardware will be recycled and any funds generated will be used to purchase new materials for the project. One of KOTRi's primary missions is to protect the natural Korean landscape

AustCham hosts gala dinner

By John Redmond The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AustCham) held its second annual Business Awards gala dinner, the social event of the year for the Korean and Australian business communities, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on Nov. 11. The high-profile event was attended by over 260 VIPs from the Korean and expatriate business communities to celebrate the strong Australia-Korea business partnership. After praising AustCham for its hard work and initiative in hosting the event and noting that 2011 marks the 50th year of diplomatic relations between Australia and Korea, in his welcoming remarks H.E. Sam Gerovich, Australian ambassador to Korea, said, “Tonight’s business awards demonstrate the strong and vibrant economic relationship between Australia and Korea,” which has reached over AUS$30 billion a year in two-way trade. In all, three competitive and three special awards were presented to companies for their significant contribution to strengthening the commercial ties between Korea and Australia. “Nine very well-qualified companies were finalists for the three comp

Tell me a story and tell the truth

By Agnes Yu It was after dark on Sept. 25 and the restaurant/lounge Berlin was full to capacity. Everyone in the room was rapt. Their attention was focused on the engaging and entertaining storytellers who bravely stood up and spoke for about five minutes each on the central theme, ‘What am I doing here?’ Without using notes, six individuals from various backgrounds in turn told a story about an incident at some point in their lives during which they came to ask themselves the very question. From a yurt in Mongolia, to the shores of the Caribbean, to an English classroom in Seoul, highlights included cat hair, career changes and finding same-sex love. The anecdotes described how the person ended up in an uncertain place or predicament and what happened afterwards. The event was the first in a live storytelling series called Axis. Preparing to repeat the evening at the same venue is the organizer Richard Scott-Ashe, the man behind the monologues. Here in Seoul as a broadcaster slash freelance writer, Scott-Ashe is currently a news anchor for KBS World TV and a live ra

A new Day dawns for K-pop

Canadian rapper sings Korean lyrics By Kelly Frances Last October, Canadian rapper Jesse Day spit-fired the Korean lyrics of “외톨이” (Alone) alongside speed rapper Outsider, on SBS's "Star King," a show which features performers with unique abilities. It was a breathtaking spectacle, requiring months of rigorous practice. Day's fast-paced performance earned the praise of several of his idols, including 2pm member Nick Hun, and Outsider himself. "San Chu of the rap group Mighty Mouth said he was amazed that I did what I did, because it is incredibly difficult for Korean rappers to do the song,” said Day. "That was an important moment for me. Moments like that help me stay positive." These days, Day is gearing up for SBS’s K-pop Star, a survival style competition program where he will face his greatest challenge yet. He was chosen from tens of thousands of contestants worldwide to appear in front of such luminary judges as Park Jin-young, the CEO of YG entertainment, and his long-time idol BoA. The show is set to air in January. Despite Day’s success thus far, the