Global Community

Haebangchon festival attracts music fans

By Kim Young-jin Staff reporter Expats and locals flocked Saturday to the eclectic neighborhood of Haebangchon, Seoul for its biannual music festival, where a wide range of performances and summer-like weather were enjoyed by all. This spring's Haebangchon Music Festival (HBCFest) brought out an estimated 1,000 people, who packed into popular hangouts to catch a diverse lineup of over 50 musical acts. Some observers reckoned it was the best turnout ever for the event, described on its official website as "a day for celebration, music, life and art." "I've been around for a lot of these (HBCFests) and this is by far the most people I've seen turn out," one longtime Haebangchon resident said. The free event, which has been held every spring and fall since 2006, kicked off at noon with a spate of singer-songwriters, who regaled the crowds at venues like HBC Cafe and Jacoby's. The proceedings kicked into full gear at Phillies Downstairs, where the Merkins treated the audience to hard-hitting covers of alternative acts such as Stone Temple Pilots and the Red

Seoul Players presents hit Broadway musical

By John Redmond Contributing Writer The Seoul Players will present the hit Broadway musical "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" over the next two weeks at Roofers in Itaewon. Set in the timeless Putnam Valley Middle School, the musical comedy is a one-act piece (with a brief refreshments break) that centers around a fictional spelling bee. Six quirky kids played by adults compete in the bee, including a boy with a magic foot, a girl with two ultra conservative dads and a genius who speaks six languages. The bee is overseen by three equally eccentric adults who invite four audience members to participate at each performance. Winner of two Tony Awards, Spelling Bee is a hilarious, light-hearted musical for everyone who's lived through the pains of adolescence. Established in 2001 as a non-profit organization, Seoul Players is an English-speaking community theater company in Seoul consisting of expats and Koreans who delight in bringing English-language theater to audiences in Seoul. Spelling Bee opened on Broadway in 2005, and was nominated for six Tony

Foreignline

Pasta Sauce Cooking Contest Scrooge Pub & Dickens Lounge in Itaewon will host a Pasta Sauce Cooking Contest! All of the proceeds from the one-day event will go toward efforts of the Little Travellers to fight HIV/AIDS in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa, where over 40 percent of adults are infected with HIV. Between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. visitors will be able to choose from over 15 different types of pasta sauces to go on a bed of spaghetti. The cost for visitors is 10,000 won and includes a plate of spaghetti, two pasta sauces of your choice, two dinner rolls and a Little Traveller. Prizes will be awarded for the best recipes. Categories will include best pasta sauce, best name and most interesting combination of ingredients. Those who want to enter the competition are encouraged to register as soon as possible. Prizes from Tartine Bakery, Scrooges Pub, Tiwi, Eshe Belly Dancers, Roofers, Sujis, Zelen, Le Vert, Ho Lee Chow, Rocky Mountain Tavern and Sorrentino', with more to come. Please call 010-5898-8646 for more details. ‘The Little Dragon’ returns to Seo

KEB offers seminar for expats

Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) is offering a seminar for expatriates on a wide-range of financial topics including Korean banking regulations; products and services for expatriates in Korea such as insurance, funds, cards and loans; foreign exchange, remittance and trade finance; money management ― managing an investment portfolio by taking advantage of KEB’s products and services; and investing in Korea ― foreign direct investment procedure and related regulations. The seminar will be held at Seongbuk Multicultural Village Center from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 246, Seongbuk-dong, Seoul.

(252) DRIVERS LICENSE I

(251) RESIDENTIAL PARKING II

(250) RESIDENTIAL PARKING

(249) PUBLIC & VALET PARKING II

Haebangchon Festival due on May 29

By John Redmond Contributing writer The release of the "HBCF Live 2010" CD earlier this spring heralds the launch of the next Haebangchon Festival at multiple venues in the popular aforementioned expat neighborhood in central Seoul. The festival is considered by many as a "must do, must perform." Comprising of an array of acts, over 50, ranging from spoken word, comedy, theater sports, rock bands to folk musicians and traditional Korean artists, the festival has over the last half a decade grown to embrace both local and expat artists. This year also features international acts especially flown in for the event. Another feather in the cap for the local business community who, in a show of community spirit, has gone to great lengths to pool resources. The Haebangchon Music Festival, or HBC Fest, has been held twice a year since 2006. It now attracts live performing acts spread over 10 venues. Always expanding, the festival is a local neighborhood initiative guided by Lance Reegan-Diehl, an internationally acclaimed musician, who has been the central organizer since

Korean War lecture revisits 1951 British Stand at Imjin River

Yeol is holding a lecture on June 1, where Andrew Salmon will give a talk titled `` To the Last Round: The Epic British Stand on the Imjin River, Korea, 1951.'' This year marks the 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War, a holocaust that tore apart families and communities, marked the advent of China as a superpower, demonstrated the limits of U.S. power and left the peninsula devastated. Central to this war was its greatest attack, when, on the night of April 22, 305,000 Chinese and North Korean troops surged south. Their aim: wipe out major U.N. units and seize Seoul by May Day. At the critical breakthrough point on the Imjin River, stood the Anglo-Belgian 29th Infantry Brigade. For three nights, outnumbered 7-1, they held fast against China's 63rd Army. On April 25, the entire U.N. line moved back. In a death ride down a valley swarming with enemy, 29th Brigade fought free. But for one unit, it was too late. Surrounded three miles inside enemy territory, the survivors of the Gloucester Battalion regrouped for a last stand on a napalm-scorched hilltop.