A night view of Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel (Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel)Hotel / GreenSheraton Seoul D Cube City HotelSince opening in 2011 as the third Sheraton hotel in Korea, Sheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel has provided business and leisure travelers with access to diverse activities in southwest Seoul. Located near sights, shopping, entertainment and offices in Guro-gu, Seoul, the hotel is also connected to D-Cube Department Store and D-Cube Art Center. It has served as a conveni

Museums and galleries are holding exhibitions in keeping with the festive, yet reflective mood at the end of the year. Two art exhibitions feature different representations of the symbols of Christ and reflections on our modern life, making them timely for the holiday season. Seoul Museum presents a unique painting series by the Korean artist Kim Ki-chang (1914-2001), who imaginatively portrayed the life of Christ set in the Joseon era. Some 30 major scenes from Christ’s life are on display at t

Despite the increasing number of Muslim tourists and expats in Korea, finding decent halal restaurants is a challenge for many Muslims here. The state-run Korea Tourism Organization has released a guidebook on Muslim-friendly restaurants to help Muslims here find halal cuisine more easily. The guidebook, available only in English for now, classifies 118 selected restaurants into five groups according to their degree of Muslim-friendliness. The five groups are halal-certified, self-certified, Mus

Mother & Daughter bonding event at Sheraton Grande Walkerhill Sheraton Grande Walkerhill will hold a special dinner party for mothers and daughters on Friday at the European restaurant Clock 16. The “Merry Mother’s Day” event will start with a seven-course dinner, featuring grilled shrimp and tenderloin as the main dish. The dinner will be followed by a jazz performance and a lecture by dermatologist Seo Gu-il, secretary general of the International Society for Dermatologic Surgery, with tips fo

For artist David Nash, trees are more than sources of material for his sculptures. They represent the life cycle of living beings and have certain characteristics and traits, just like humans. “Trees are like us. They have life. They grow from a seed, live and die. It took me a long time to realize that trees are not made of wood. A tree is a living being. While trees are alive, every part of trees work to make them alive,” said Nash at the press preview of his solo exhibition at Kukje Gallery o

“Crash Wily” by Yinka Shonibare. (Tiroche DeLeon Collection)A wide range of contemporary African art is being showcased for the first time in Korea. The Seoul Museum of Art has brought together foreign artists of African descent and ones based in African countries to introduce the overarching identity of African art to Korean art fans. The exhibition is also attempting to bridge the geographical and cultural gap between Africa and Korea. On Jan. 23, a discussion among art experts and culture cri

Koreans seem to be keener than ever on safety issues after witnessing a series of accidents this year, including the Sewol ferry disaster that killed more than 300 passengers and the deadly collapse of a ventilation grate at a concert venue.Adding to the safety concerns recently have been the geological problems and construction flaws affecting the Lotte World Tower in Seoul, which is expected to be the sixth-tallest building in the world when completed in 2016. Keith Griffiths, the chairman of

Damso-story, a Gangnam, Seoul-based franchisor of Korean sausage “soondae” soup, offers the popular dish with a modern twist.It attempts to break the stereotype of the dish ― strong pork smell, low quality and the usual drab interior of soondae dining places. Soondae is steamed pig intestine stuffed with a mixture of sticky rice, bean sprouts, cabbage or other vegetables seasoned with garlic, ginger, sesame oil and fermented bean paste. Damso-story specializes in soondae soup. For broth, it uses

A hand-carved ceramic vessel, an origami-inspired molded ceramic bowl and a tree-shaped vertical wooden clothes rack. The craftwork to be showcased at the ninth edition of the Craft Trend Fair on Thursday at Coex attempts to bring elegance and warmth to functional modern lifestyles. It is the biggest showcase of craftwork in Korea, and its 2014 exhibition is dealing with a theme entitled “Temperature of Craft at 36.5 degrees Celsius” to highlight the heartwarming humanism of handmade craftwork.“

A box-shaped apartment complex has been a dominant housing option for Koreans for decades. The government has encouraged the development of such complexes, considering them as the most efficient type of housing to accommodate a large number of people in the country given its limited land. The popularity of apartments has was the most profitable investment tool in Korea until the housing market bubble bust, hit by the global economic downturn in 2008.Against this backdrop, with the demand for a b

The Association of Young Architects launched the HOUSHOW initiative, a dream house-building project, in 2012. For the first project, it selected six candidates among 80 applicants and then met with them in person to discuss the design of their dream house. As a gift, the project offered them a floor plan, a perspective drawing and a model so that they could build the actual house one day. Below is the brief introduction of four such houses.01. Raon HausA couple in their early 40s with two young

British afternoon tea at Grand InterContinental Seoul ParnasGrand InterContinental Seoul Parnas presents a British afternoon tea set at the Lobby Lounge & Bar to celebrate the completion of the 10-month hotel renovation. The “Weekend High Tea Buffet” promotion offers a wide variety of dessert menus, including Earl Gray cake, brie crème brûlée, blueberry cheesecake and more prepared by the hotel’s patisserie. The selection of the dessert menu was assisted by InterContinental London Park Lane. Gue

Actor Jang Hyuk and actress Cha Ye-ryun were named the best dressed at the 2014 Herald Donga Lifestyle Awards on Tuesday. “It’s my first time receiving the best dressed award,” said Jang at the award ceremony at the Grand Hyatt Seoul. Jang gained huge popularity when he appeared in the reality entertainment show “Real Men” in which eight male celebrities experience life in the army. His comedic role in the TV drama “Fated to Love You” received praise from fans and viewers.  Cha, a former model,

Artist Po Kim was a victim of political upheavals in Korea. He was accused of being a communist and tortured by the South Korean authorities in 1950, right after he returned from a drawing trip with his students to an island in the West Sea.When the Korean War broke out shortly after, he was cleared of charges, but then arrested again, this time by the North Korean People’s Army for being a pro-American activist. “As soon as I was cleared of charges and freed from prison I walked to Gwangju. But

On display in the private office of Lee Hyun-sook on the top floor of her gallery in Seoul are items from some of the most significant contemporary exhibitions in Korea over the last couple of years. The small space overlooking Gyeongbokgung Palace is ultramodern, with a sculpture by Anish Kapoor, a painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat and a glass sculpture by Roni Horn alongside her selection of contemporary designers’ furniture. Lee’s Kukje Gallery, opened in 1982, has been the first in Korea to s

BERLIN (AP) ― German airline Lufthansa has announced plans to launch budget long-haul services at the end of next year in collaboration with SunExpress, a joint venture with Turkish Airlines.Lufthansa’s supervisory board gave the go-ahead to expand the company’s low-cost operations on Wednesday, a meeting that came amid a battle with a union representing pilots at the airline. The union, Vereinigung Cockpit, said it would hit Lufthansa’s long-haul flights on Thursday with its second strike this

Winter is the low season for travel in Korea. Day temperatures remain below freezing and snowfalls cause traffic jams, often paralyzing major cities. But it’s one of the best times of the year to enjoy the scenic winter views in the provinces. “Hanok” lodgings across the country offer true relaxation for those who wish to get away from the crowds at ski resorts or hot springs and look back on the year. The Korea Tourism Organization has recently recommended top hanok accommodation for winter tra

Korean and Chinese restaurants reopen at Sheraton Grand Walkerhill Sheraton Grande Walkerhill reopened the Korean restaurant Ondal and Chinese restaurant Geumryong after six months of renovation on Dec. 1. The Korean restaurant Ondal presents Korean royal cuisine based on the recipes of an aristocratic family of the Joseon era. Ondal also serves the head chef’s “Summit Luncheon,” which was served during the G20 Seoul Summit and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Korea. Geumryong (Golden Dra

Park Hyun-jung, CEO of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, who faces demands for her resignation from employees accusing her of sexual harassment and arbitrary personnel management, said Friday that artistic director Chung Myung-whun may have been behind the recent accusations against her.She also refused to step down and vowed to cooperate with investigations into the complaints.“I am willing to cooperate with the national auditing agency, prosecutors or anyone in investigating this case,” she sa

Eight celebrities received a Korea Best Dresser Swan Award in an annual ceremony at Grand Hyatt Seoul on Wednesday. The 29th edition of the awards recognized Korean leaders whose fashion has inspired the public in six career categories: singers, actors and actresses, politicians, businesspeople, models and athletes, according to the awards organizer, modeling agency Model Line. The eight include K-pop groups Homme and 4Minute; actress Park Si-yeon and actor Lee Su-hyuk; Kwon Gee-chan, CEO of Wea