The National Library of Korea, located in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul, announced the opening of an immersive literature content hall experience, Jisikui Gil, which means “Path to Knowledge” on Monday. This follows last year’s Culture Ministry initiative project, Shilgam Seojae, which successfully transformed a few of South Korea’s ancient writings and archived documents stored in the library into interactive contents using multidimensional technologies. This year’s p

Discovering unnamed foods, gathering lesser-known recipes, documenting them and, finally, presenting them to the public to learn and enjoy is what drove Ha Mi-hyun, CEO of food research and archive company Spoken Company to carry on with her work despite the pandemic. 　 Ha founded Spoken Company, also known as Ipmal Eumsik, referring to dishes prepared with recipes passed by word of mouth, in 2015. The company has so far visited more than 70 regions in Korea, and recorded over 400 spoken recipe

Amid the global popularity of Korean cultural content, an online education platform for learning traditional Korean music in German has been launched. The Korean Cultural Center in Germany has started the service to assist Germans interested in studying traditional Korean music, according to the KCCG on Thursday. The platform was built in collaboration with the Hamburg University of Music and Theater with funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of Germany, as part of the J

JW Marriott Hotel Seoul presents sakura teppanyaki Tamayura, the luxury Japanese dining destination on the second floor of JW Marriott Hotel Seoul, is showcasing an authentic teppanyaki course crafted from diverse seasonal ingredients. The main dish of the eight-course dinner menu is the hanwoo tenderloin, a cut of the highest grade of beef. Other highlights include a welcome dish of Sakizuke, hanwoo roast beef, grilled sirloin served with Tamayura’s own special sauce, live seafood Karas

The Election Broadcasting Deliberation Commission is likely to impose legal sanctions on Traffic Broadcasting System’s current affairs program “Kim Ou-joon’s News Factory.” The radio broadcaster faces possible sanctions for allowing popular left-wing journalist Kim Ou-joon, 55, who openly declared support for Democratic Party’s presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, to continue hosting the show in violation of the Election Broadcasting Code. Kim has been hosting th

Following the wildfire damage of Eodalsan Bongsudae, a coastal fire signaling beacon from the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392), on-site teams are on high alert and in full operation to save cultural assets throughout Gangwon and North Gyeongsang provinces from the fire, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration on Sunday.  “Since the beacon is built with stones, the scale of damage and the degree of cracks need to be further investigated,” the head of the emergency dispatch te

Doenjang jjigae, Korean soybean paste stew, is Koreans’ favorite hearty comfort food. The rich taste of fermented soybean paste goes well with a humble bowl of rice. Doenjang jjigae recipes range from those with assorted seafood to chadolbagi, or thin brisket slices. Decades ago, doenjang jjigae specialty restaurants were a common sight on street corners. They offered traditional doenjang jjigae, cheonggukjang and gangdoenjang, also known as ggangjang. The three dishes are all based on f

Park Hyatt Busan’s Lounge presents Citrus Bloom Afternoon Tea Park Hyatt Busan’s Lounge cafe located on the 30th floor is newly showcasing its spring tea package. The Citrus Bloom Afternoon Tea set presents combinations of a variety of citrus fruits added to tea or coffee of guests’ choice. The set is paired with traditional homemade scones, jam and clotted cream. The selection includes a sweet gold kiwi tart, an orange sand cake, a yuja mille-feuille and a hallabong cake w

The number of Hallyu, or Korean Wave, fans around the world has increased 17 fold in the last decade, proving the firm global popularity of Korean content and stars. According to a survey published by the Korea Foundation in cooperation with 152 overseas missions on Thursday, the number of Korean Wave fans recorded 156.6 million as of December last year. A total of 116 countries were surveyed for the latest report, 31 more countries than the 85 in 2012 when the first survey was conducted. The

The Daesan Foundation is accepting applications for translation of Korean literary works. Applicants can choose a Daesan Literary Award prize-winning work that has not been translated into the target language, or others that the translator wishes to work on. The foundation funded translations of 13 Korean works last year. This year, up to 15 million won ($12,400) will be given for a single translation work, depending on the language and length of the selected piece. For English, French, Germ

A rising star chef from Korea recently awarded a Michelin star for his French restaurant in London. Park Woong-chul, 38, who opened Sollip, a French restaurant with a Korean touch in the heart of London, is the first Korean chef to receive a Michelin star in the UK. There are currently 194 Michelin-starred restaurants in Britain, including 19 which were newly awarded this year. “I still remember us (my wife and I) being devastated when the UK government issued a COVID-19 lockdown just

Two leading Korean guitarists from the genres of classical and Latin jazz will meet for a live duet performance this spring. Titled as “Two Guitars,” classical guitarist Park Kyu-hee and Spanish jazz guitarist Park Ju-won will perform together at the Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul’s Songpa-gu on March 17, performance agency MusicandArtCompany announced Friday. This will be the duo’s second appearance on stage together, following their first in June last year. Park Kyu-hee

Two Korean illustrated books, by Lee Su-zy and Choi Deok-kyu, respectively, won recognition in this year’s Bologna Ragazzi Awards for children’s literature The prestigious annual international awards identify the best products in terms of graphic and editorial quality, innovation and communication with young readers. Evaluated by an international jury of experts, the categories are divided into four genres: fiction, nonfiction, opera prima (debut work) and comics. Lee Su-zy&rsquo

The number of bookstores in South Korea exceeded 2,500 at the end of last year, increasing by more than 200 from two years prior. The yearly increase in bookstores was the first recorded since 2003, when the tally began. According to the Handbook of Korean Bookstores, a biyearly publication by the Korea Federation of Bookstore Association released Thursday, the number of bookstores recorded 2,528 as of December last year. That number was a 0.9 percent increase from 2,320 in 2019. The initial fi

Kwon Jeong-hyun, 37, an office worker in Seoul, is planning a series of weekend road trips alone starting this spring with her diary as her companion. “In my early 20s, traveling was like an assignment because deciding on whom to go with and coping with their schedules was not an easy task,” said Kwon, an avid solo traveler since her late 20s. In the past decade, Kwon has traveled to major cities alone, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, New York and London. She took her first

Grand Hyatt Seoul unveils Spring Breeze in Namsan Grand Hyatt Seoul Hotel’s signature restaurant Teppan opens its new lunch and dinner menu event, Spring Breeze in Namsan. Starting with baekhap pot as an appetizer, a great variety of meat and fish dishes using ingredients fresh from Jeju Island are served at the table. This season’s hanwoo beef sirloin is a specialty created by the hotels‘ executive chef, Dallas Cuddy. The sour and saltiness of turnip and the seasonal Jeju

At the core of hotel concierge service is knowing a guest’s needs through even the subtlest gestures, and remembering them on their next visit, according to Kum Sang-jin, assistant manager of the rooms team at the Grand Walkerhill Seoul. Kum received the Les Clefs d’Or badge of two golden keys on Feb. 14, which symbolizes professional expertise as well as the best and most unique concierge services. Founded in 1929 by Pierre Quentin, head concierge of the Hotel Ambassador Paris, th

As the warm weather approaches, blue skies mark the beginning of a new school year. At this time of the year, the Cheonho Stationery and Toy Shop Street is busier than ever.  Located around Cheonho Station exit No. 1, the complex greets families looking to purchase school supplies and gifts for children at affordable prices. The complex has shops selling basic school supplies as well as the latest cartoon character toys and party goods that children love.  Packs of colored penc

Fairmont Ambassador Seoul launches ‘Luxury Wellness’ package Fairmont Ambassador Seoul presents a wellness package that offers moments of genuine relaxation and healing. The package includes a night’s stay in the Fairmont Deluxe room, and a choice of a 60-minute body message treatment or 70-minute facial at ESPA, a luxury spa located within the hotel. A buffet breakfast for two is provided at Spectrum, and two signature cocktails at M29, both located in the hotel. The pack

When planning a new hotel, incorporating the distinctive culture of its location to the guest experience is one of the top priorities for Serena Lim, vice president of hotel development for Southeast Asia and Korea at the IHG Hotels and Resorts. “Around the world where people can travel, they are travelling,” said Lim about travel in pandemic times during an interview with The Korea Herald on Tuesday at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas. Lim, who has been in the hospitality in