Global Community

Intl surfing festival due in Yangyang Nov. 6-7

By John Redmond For a sport that is commonly and mistakenly viewed as a summer activity, surfing is gaining popularity as year-round sport among locals and in the expat community. With a growing number of international competitions being held across the peninsula, from Yangyang, to Busan and also Jeju Island, international companies are stepping up to investment, giving the original Hawaiian sport a much-needed local boost. This weekend sees a rare event with the Korea Surfing Association and sponsors, Australian surf clothing brand, Quicksilver, among others, hosting the 2010 International Festival. The Festival is scheduled for No. 5-7 in Yangyang, Gangwon Province. Surfing is a very popular sport worldwide even in places not often associated with water sports ― Ireland, England and Alaska ― as well as in Hawaii, South Africa and Australia. That’s where surfing gets its summer image because of the pristine quality of beaches and an endless supply of sunshine. Waves in Korea fall into the same bracket. During typhoon season the conditions are too dangerous. The fall

Expats excited about F1 Korean GP

By Bridget Tunnicliffe Korea will host its first ever Formula One race this weekend, and as international drivers like Lewis Hamilton converge on the southern part of the country, so too will hundreds of expats looking to bask in the glamour event. The third to last round of the F1 motor sport season is being held at the Korean International Circuit (KIC) in Yeongam, under the name Korean Grand Prix. The Korean Formula One agreement is a seven-year race deal, set up by Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone and the Korea Auto Valley Operation (KAVO) and the local Cholla-Namdo regional government. Derrick Smith, a South African, who has been living in Gumi, Korea, for around 10 years, is running packaged tours to the F1. “Although we have had some international bookings, our tour aims mostly at providing affordable tours to ex-pats in Korea in an effort to promote Formula One here and to make information available in English to the international F1 public,” he said. He said it’s not easy to navigate the event as an individual, given the language barriers and the lo

Foreignline AustCham to host G20 Business dinner

AustCham to host G20 Business dinner The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Korea is hosting its annual Business Awards gala dinner in the midst of the G20 activities on Oct. 28 at the Grand Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Hotel from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. A total of 17 companies will vie for the coveted awards of Best SME, Investment of the Year, Best Services Company, Trade Excellence and Business of the Year Award. It promises to be an excellent evening to celebrate the achievements of leading companies in the business in the business community as well as network with key Australian, Korean and global company representatives. This prestigious black tie event will be attended by senior Australian and Korean business figures and community leaders. Famous a cappella group, SUADE, will fly in from Australia and perform while guests enjoy a four course menu complemented by quality Australian wines. The award trophies were hand crafted by Australian artists from Stafford studios, Western Australia. The price is 120,000 won. RSVP at www.austchamkorea.org by Oct. 22. For mor

(320) Health and Fitness (II)

(319) Health and Fitness (I)

(318) Conversations ― small talk (II)

(317) Conversations ― small talk (I)

Shutter — apertures partner-in-crime

By Aaron Raisey Last time this column looked closely at the camera’s aperture and the effect different settings can have on images ― opening up the aperture for shallow selective focus, and closing it to get a deeper focus through the image. This week is a good idea to look at the aperture’s partner-in-crime: the shutter. Just as the aperture is analogous to the iris in your eye, the shutter is a bit like a permanently closed eyelid, opening for brief durations to let light in and allowing the camera’s film or sensor to “see” and record an image. So by turning that DSLR’s dial another notch to ‘”time value” mode and explore what effect the different durations of the shutter’s journey from open to closed has on a photograph. Usually photographers want a fast shutter speed to freeze the scene and resulting in sharp, in focus, images. Many modern cameras allow shutter speeds as fast as 1/8000 ― fast enough to freeze almost any action. Fast shutter speeds are great for sports and wildlife photography, capturing moments in time that may never be presented again. In a similar

Indie band Mirror House to launch CD Zero Gravity

By John Redmond When you take some of the most hard working, dedicated, expat musicians, highly familiar with the local scene and equally fluent with Korea’s Internet usage, you have Mirror House. It’s a post-punk, indie band, determined to continue working the live scene while putting it all out there on myspace.com. The band will be launching a CD, “Zero Gravity,” at DGBD in Hongdae on Saturday with doors opening at 11 p.m. Special guests will be Korean outfit The Koxx and Damian the Band. Comprising of five members, Vadim Scott (vocals/bass), Keegan VerBurg (guitars/vocals), Nick Antolini (keyboards/vocals), Ripley Torres (drums/bass/vocals) and new member Brodie (guitar), Mirror House are known for very tight stage shows, and dynamic live energy. When asked about the style of music, not one to pigeonhole the band, Scott said it’s up to the audience to make up their minds. “We don’t like to categorize our sound. We’ve been told we sound a bit like a cross between Green Day, Muse and even Joy Division,” he said in an interview with the Korea Times. The CD features

(316) G20 ― Seoul Summit (II)