On the afternoon of Friday, just two days before Parent’s Day, a flower shop at Namdaemun Market in Jung-gu, Seoul, is crowded with people buying carnation flowers as a gift for their parents. Parents’ Day in South Korea was established in 1973, replacing the Mother‘s Day previously marked on May 8, and includes diverse public and private celebrations. In South Korea, Koreans seek to honor their parents by gifting them carnations. It is a practice in Korea for students to pr

On the morning of Friday, two days before the anniversary of Buddha’s birth, Buddhists perfume the image of Buddha as part of a ceremony to commemorate the baby Buddha’s arrival at Jogyesa Temple in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Buddhists chant prayers under colorful lanterns. Buddhists chant prayers under colorful lanterns. Officials of Jogyesa Temple put name tags under colorful lanterns as Buddhists and their families watch. Buddhists pray as they walk around the tower. Buddhists perform

So what do you do when you can't beat them or join them? You bring in someone from them. That's what China did in short track speed skating before hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Kim Sun-tae, who coached South Korea to six medals, including three gold medals, at the 2018 Winter Games, is now the head coach for China. Kim's top assistant is the six-time Olympic champion Victor An, who was born Ahn Hyun-soo in South Korea but later became a naturalized Russian citizen. He's the mos

Asian communities all around the world welcome the Lunar New Year on Feb. 1. Lunar New Year is particularly celebrated in East Asia, influenced by the Chinese New Year and the Chinese calendar.  According to the Chinese Zodiac, there are 12 different animals that represent each year in rotation. 2022 is the Year of the Tiger.  A man cleans a statue of Buddha at a temple in Jakarta on Jan. 26. A Chinese god statue is cleaned at the Kwan In Thang Temple on the outskirts of Jakarta, Indon

Members Members of the Mexican press union staged a demonstration against violence against their colleagues, in Merida, Mexico, Jan. 25.  Thousands of journalists from all the states of the country demonstrated to demand justice for the recent murders of informants and the end of the violence against the union. A protester holds a picture of Mexican journalist Lourdes Maldonado who was killed in the northern border city of Tijuana, outside the Secretariat of the Interior in Mexico City. A g

A makeshift memorial is seen outside the New York City Police Department‘s 32nd Precinct near the scene of a shooting that occurred days earlier in the Harlem neighborhood of New York, Jan. 24, 2022. Calvin Hunt of Harlem pays his respects at the memorial, holding a photo of officer Jason Rivera, who the memorial is dedicated to. Jason Rivera was shot while responding to a domestic violence call. The incident ultimately took the life of the 22-year-old officer. New York City Poli

Italian haute couture house Maison Schiaparelli’s Spring/Summer 2022 show held on Jan. 24 in Paris displayed an artistic interpretation of this era of uncertainty.  Titled “An Age of Discipline”, Creative Director Daniel Roseberry created a collection consisting of only three colors: black, white, and the signature Maison Schiaparelli gold.  Roseberry explained that the simple use of colors connects to the current era of uncertainty and exhaustion. On the of

Aqua Planet Gwanggyo, an aquarium in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, celebrated the Lunar New Year ahead of schedule on Jan. 24. For this eye-catching ceremony, divers wearing traditional Korean clothing called “hanbok“ swam with stingrays. Stingrays are closely related to sharks, and feed on clams, shrimp, and mussels. Aside from stingrays, there are over 30,000 sea animals of 210 unique species in the aquarium. The facility also provides diverse educational programs and interactive ex

Social cooperative association Energyhaeyou established the third net-zero joint market in Beop-dong, Daejeon, following its previous establishments in Miho-dong and Gwanjeo-dong. The net-zero movement, or carbon-zero movement, aims to completely neutralize the amount of greenhouse gases produced by human activity and save the environment primarily by reducing carbon emissions.  Energyhaeyou aims to create a sustainable, safe and clean society by actively expanding its energy conversion m

A man in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, is suspected of beating his 100-day-old baby to death.Andong Police requested an arrest warrant for the 41-year-old father on Tuesday.(Yonhap)According to police, the father punched the infant multiple times on the head because he was frustrated with the baby’s crying, on Monday around 2:30 p.m.When he realized the baby was not breathing, he called 119 and rushed to a hospital, but it was too late. That evening the father reported to police that his ch

Coastal water temperatures in Gijang, a county in northern Busan, have risen to 27 degrees amid the lingering heat wave and caused damage to local aquaculture businesses.Since July 31, when the weather agency issued heat advisories for the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, some 108,000 fish reportedly died at seven fish farms in Busan. Fish farmers reported around 128 million won ($113,000) in damages.  (Yonhap)Further damages may be ahead as water temperatures in Gijang are expected to hover

Profiting from ads on pornographic sites amounts to profiting from crime and is a punishable offense, the Changwon District Court ruled recently. The court revealed Tuesday that it had given the 32-year-old Oh a suspended sentence of eight months in prison with two years of probation for operating an illegal porn site and distributing over 300,000 obscene videos. Oh was also fined 239 million won ($211,000) for profiting from ads on the website. Oh had operated the website since 2015 without any

A policeman was found injured with a bullet wound to his head at a police substation in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, Tuesday. The 50-year-old officer was found in the changing room by a colleague at around 8:25 a.m.He is currently in critical condition in hospital.  (Yonhap)According to the local police, the officer came to work at around 8:10 a.m. and went into the changing room after receiving his .38-caliber revolver. Then two loud gunshot sounds were heard. 　Police said they are inve

A 22-year-old Marine on vacation was arrested for injuring and robbing a pedestrianAccording to the Yongsan Police Station, the Marine followed a 43-year-old pedestrian on the streets of Hannam-dong in Seoul and stole his leather clutch bag after pushing him to the ground on Tuesday around 11:50 p.m.  Image is not related to the article (Yonhap)The bag contained a cell phone and 500,000 won ($447) in cash. The pedestrian broke his nose and bruised his knees from the fall. Police tracked down and

A cat set fire to a studio apartment in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on Thursday, causing 22 residents to evacuate the building in the middle of the night. The fire broke out around 2:50 a.m. and was put out by firefighters 23 minutes later. The total damage is estimated to be 1.4 million won ($1,250).   (Yonhap)Emergency sprinklers prevented the fire from spreading and no human injuries were caused.The fire was reportedly caused by a cat who turned on the microwave while its owner was away. The cat died f

A 38-year-old woman with severe back pain died after having an allergic reaction to bee venom at a traditional Korean medicine clinic in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, police said Wednesday. According to the Bucheon Ojeong Police Station, she went into anaphylactic shock during an acupuncture procedure on May 15. (AP)An emergency medical team rushed her to a university hospital in Seoul, but the victim passed away in early June amid recovery. The National Forensic Service’s autopsy report confirmed

An unidentified man died from being hit by a city subway train at Dohwa Station in Incheon, Tuesday evening. The man reportedly died on the spot before emergency workers arrived. The body was handed over to police.  (Yonhap)Police are investigating with thorough analysis of security camera footage of the platform where the train entered.Police said they have received witness reports that the man was walking on the tracks prior to the accident.By Park Jin-won (jpark13@heraldcorp.com)

A dog hotel operator was booked without physical detention for allegedly violating animal protection laws, police said. Authorities received a report from a dog owner who claimed her pet died in the care of the business owner on July 30 in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province.  Image is not related to the article (Yonhap)Dispatched police officers reportedly found 10 dead dogs in the hotel among the 23 dogs temporarily staying at the facility. Examiners attempted to determine causes of death throug

Girl group Mamamoo’s Moonbyul is actively promoting K-pop to Vietnamese audiences as a video jockey on a music chart show in the Southeast Asian country.  (RBW Entertainment)Moonbyul already meets with Vietnamese fans every Thursday through Vietnam’s only chart program, “V Heartbeat,” which airs via Naver’s V app. Now Moonbyul is joining “V Heartbeat” as a VJ to introduce K-pop news and music. Mamamoo’s songs have ranked highly on Vietnam’s iTunes chart, and the Vietnamese audiences have been qu

As Korea experiences one of the hottest summers in its history, different cities have held squid festivals to fight the scorching heat. At the festivals, visitors can jump into the water and catch fresh squid with their bare hands. Many people flocked to beaches in Gangwon Province and Ulleungdo to cool off and enjoy the rare experience. At the blow of the whistle, children and adults dive into the water to catch as many squids as they can. Those in luck also catch massive amberjack fish. Photos