On a small peninsula just over 100,000 square kilometers in area, Korea’s vastly extensive railways have made domestic flying a virtually unnecessary expense and hassle. 　Since 2005, the country’s railways have been dominated by Korail, which has been running competition-free over the past decade. However, all that is set to change on Dec. 9.　On Friday, travelers will find themselves with an alternative option, as Korea welcomes its newest contender to railway and bullet train travel -- SR.  An

K-Travel Bus summer promotion　Visit Korea Committee is conducting a summer promotion event for the K-Travel Bus service from July 18 to Aug. 31, offering travelers discounted rates.　Participants who reserve a trip with the K-Travel bus during that timeframe via its homepage will receive a discount coupon worth $30, as well as an additional $10 discount for international students who present a university/college or language school ID card. 　A drawing will also be held for those who post reviews o

In Korea the winter months are known to be the best time to enjoy seafood from the surrounding cold waters. However, it is in the summer when the bounty of the sea and fish “hoe” are the most desired. Fresh catches from the ocean served chilled take on many forms in Korean cuisine and become the perfect match to the warm summer season. Cool on the palate and easy on the appetite, local seafood glorifies summer eating as it should be enjoyed, and one dish that is best in-season is the raw seafood

During summer, some Koreans may think of the phrase “iyeolchiyeol” when deciding what to eat. 　Similar to the popular English idiom “fight fire with fire,” Koreans are known to tackle the scorching weather head on by “adding” even more heat. This might take the form of visiting saunas or having a bowl of piping hot soup.   　“Boyangsik,” which translates to “food that strengthens the body,” is a common go-to food during summer because it is believed that such food is made with ingredients that ca

On a scorching hot summer day, you start to feel sluggish and dizzy while perspiring heavily. Feeling dehydrated and low on energy, you instinctively grab a glass of cold water, gulp it down and look for an air-conditioned place to rest. 　There is one more place Koreans think of stopping by on such days -- a samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) eatery. On lunar days that mark the beginning, middle and end of summer, samgyetang restaurants are crowded with customers yearning for the taste of tender

An exhibition on how Korea’s forefathers refreshed themselves during long, sweltering summer days is on at the National Folk Museum in Seoul, offering modern-day tips on how to keep cool. 　 “The exhibition highlights how the summer activities of our ancestors have been passed down through generations and adapted to modern times,” said Choi Jeung-cheol, the president of KCDF, at a press conference at the museum on Tuesday. 　“Eumsik dimibang” from the late Joseon period (Korea Craft and Design Fou

South Korea extended its travel ban imposed on six countries, including Iraq and Syria, along with some parts of the Philippines in consideration of the still high threat from political instability and terrorism, the foreign ministry said Monday.   The six countries also included Yemen, Libya, Somalia and Afghanistan, where the ban will remain in place for six more months until Jan. 31 of next year, according to the ministry.    The decision was made at a meeting of relevant ministries and agenc

K-pop group GFriend (Source Music)Rookie group GFriend, one of the hottest trending K-pop acts these days, has performed well on the local music chart Gaon Chart in the first half of the year. 　GFriend’s single “Rough” ranked No. 1 on its National Digital Singles, Online Downloads and Online Streaming charts. The single was released in January as part of the group’s third EP “Snowflake.”  　Another single “Me gustas tu,” which was part of its second EP “Flowers,” hit the No. 15 spot on the Online

NCT’s Taeyong (SM Entertainment)Taeyong, a member of SM Entertainment’s newest boy band NCT, broke down in tears in an episode of “NCT Life,” apologizing for indiscretions he made before his K-pop debut. 　It was recently revealed that Taeyong was prone to scamming buyers on a local auction website before his official debut as a member of NCT. 　The K-pop idol reportedly auctioned off items under various user IDs, duping customers by not shipping off purchased items or sending defective products.

For Theresa Hyun -- a Canadian professor of Korean studies and a Korean-language poet -- straddling cultures and translating languages have come to be essential parts of her life.　For her poems, Hyun undertakes a creative process that is doubly atypical: Not only does she both write and translate her own work, she writes her poems in Korean -- the language that she learned latest in life and that is most unfamiliar to her -- and then translates them into English, her mother tongue. 　Despite, or

Move over Colonel Sanders, because KFC is starting to take on a whole new meaning -- Korean Fried Chicken. Korea’s popular pairing of fried chicken with ice-cold draft beer -- or what locals refer to as “chi-maek” -- has spun a culture of its own across the peninsula and international borders. Korean fried chicken is slowly emerging as staple food here along with the likes of kimchi and bibimbap.Scene from last year‘s annual Daegu Chicken and Beer Festival, which attracted nearly one million vis

This is a two-part travel series on a weeklong journey to the new European capital of culture, San Sebastian, Spain, and through the heart of the country’s capital, Madrid. – Ed.SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain -- Located a mere stone’s throw away from the Spain-France border in the Northern Basque country hugging the Bay of Biscay is the quaint, gastronomy mecca coastal city of San Sebastian, Spain. Well on its way to becoming one of the hottest European vacation-spot destinations of the year, San Sebastia

At Woo Hyung-joon Rice Mill, a new Korean restaurant that opened in January, the carbs are the real draw, from extra-chewy, glossy noodles strewn in chicken broth to nutty chicken porridge. The key to all those tasty carbs lies in the rice. “They say freshly milled grains are the backbone for very good rice,” said owner Woo Hyung-joon, which is why, he added, he and his team mill their grains.For the chicken porridge, Woo uses brown rice, allowing those hearty grains to add an earthy flavor to a

A city that once saw its street foods limited to greasy fried foods on a stick and traditional doughy dessert snacks, Seoul’s streets are now seeing new culinary creations and out-of-the-box dining options like never before. Like many urban cities, one of the dynamic aspects of Seoul’s city life for both tourists and locals alike is the wide-ranging options of hot-off-the-street eats. And one cannot talk about Seoul street foods without mentioning the city’s street food mecca -- Myeong-dong.Seou

Overview of food alley at BIFF plaza, Busan. (Korea Tourism Organization)Along with the spread of social media, there has been a rapid change in street food trends, from previously focusing on taste to being increasingly fixated on providing visual pleasure. People who once enjoyed the food itself are now seeking fancy or extravagant presentations to show off on Facebook or Instagram.Although Busan also has picture-worthy street foods, such as water drop mochi and skewered fruits covered with sy

Sri Lanka, crowned as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, is home to some of the finest spectacles of natural beauty known to mankind. An island considered to be en route to paradise, surrounded by both the Indian Ocean and the mystique of an enduring and diverse history -- fascinates both the eyes and soul.Arab, Portuguese, Dutch and British influences all in their own time have converged in the present day to leave a markedly distinct cultural flavor and experience; only to be found in countries wi

Kim Jun-su (C-JeS Entertainment)This is the third article in a series that explores the driving forces behind hallyu and the global rise of Korean pop culture. --Ed.Dubbed Korea’s “ticket power king” for his ability to sell out performances at the snap of a finger, K-pop and musical icon Kim Jun-su (also known as Xia) is inarguably one of the original driving forces of hallyu. Despite being entangled in a series of legal battles throughout his career, Kim has still managed to rise above all odds

Six-member rookie girl group GFriend, which debuted last year, released the new seven-track EP “Snowflake” on Monday. The much-anticipated album comes after the group snagged rookie awards with their hit songs “Glass Bead” and “Me Gustas Tu” at major music award cermonies last year, including the Melon Music Awards and SBS Gayo Daejeon last year and this year at the Golden Disk Awards. The girls returned this time keeping their signature schoolgirl uniforms and maintaining their innocent image.

Korean food and the city of Seoul are having a culinary moment. Globally Korean cuisine has reached the heights of popularity and here, in Korea, a new style enveloping local and foreign flavors has gained strong foothold. Mingles Restaurant in Gangnam, Seoul, is representative of all that is cutting edge about eating in the capital. Its chef patron, Kang Min-goo, is one of the most talked about chefs in Seoul today, taking top spots on restaurant rankings with his beautifully modern take on Kor

Christine Cho, a Korean-American expat in Seoul, has been eating and cooking her way around the world the last 16 years as a private chef. -- Ed.Winter is upon us, and what better way to begin The Palate, a new column that celebrates food culture here in Seoul and beyond, than with a warming visit to the 76-year-old gomtang restaurant Hadongkwan.One of the most iconic eateries in the capital, Hadongkwan made its name with a long-history of making one single dish: gomtang, a thinly sliced beef so