In the 1980s and ’90s, housewives from Korea traveling to Japan made sure to purchase a Zojirushi rice cooker, which, with its iconic elephant logo, was beloved by middle-class Korean families. Sony’s Walkman was another hot seller among youngsters and hipsters, eager to free themselves from the confines of classrooms and cubicles. These items were so popular in Korea, and such a threat to nascent domestic companies, that they were banned from being imported. The painful structural reforms that

For Korean companies looking westward to globalize their business, Serbia offers distinct advantages in economic and cultural attractiveness. Since the democratic revolution of late 2000, the enchanting Balkan country has made itself available to the world as a safe haven for investment.The Serbian government has recently stepped up its efforts to promote the country’s stable political system, strategic geographic location, low operating costs, lucrative financial incentives, and young and skill

An exhibition featuring multimedia artworks from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will offer a glimpse into the lives of Southeast Asians.The ASEAN-Korea Multimedia Exhibition at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul from Jan. 8-18 will display photographs and videos highlighting ASEAN’s vibrant cultures and lifestyles through fashion, food, handicraft, architecture and much more. The works are selected from the 2014 ASEAN-Korea Multimedia Competition in May last year, which was held under

The Paraguayan Embassy donated a traditional harp to the Multicultural Museum of Seoul on Dec. 26 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Korean immigration to Paraguay. The hand-carved harp was provided by Itaipu Binacional ― Paraguay’s renewable energy company.Paraguayan Ambassador to Korea Ceferino Valdez Peralta told the Korea Herald, “Korean immigration to Paraguay has had an enormous impact on our society, and this donation is the first step in our effort to promote multiculturalism between

Relations between Seoul and Tokyo face a rough ride yet again in 2015 as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to expedite a series of revisionist foreign and security policies while showing little signs of atoning for the country’s imperial past. The Park Geun-hye government is coming under mounting pressure, entering its third year and gearing up to reset the relationship with the old foe to mark the 50th anniversary of its normalization this year. At home, President Park faces the challen

Park Hee-kwonThere are several definitions of globalization. The commonly used globalization index encompasses four main types of cross-border flows: trade (in both goods and services), information, people (including tourists, students and migrants) and capital. Judging by this index, history shows that over the past 60 years, the trend of globalization has been on the march. After some backpedaling since the 2008 financial crisis, the trend of growing global interconnectedness resumed in 2013.

Amid the hustle and bustle of Seoul’s Itaewon district on a busy Saturday night, a group of people gathered solemnly in response to an atrocity in their faraway home country. Candles in paper cups formed a large peace sign on the sidewalk in Seoul’s largest international district on Dec. 20, where some six dozen citizens joined hands in a solemn prayer vigil for the victims of Pakistan’s Peshawar school massacre on Dec. 16, in which 145 innocent people, 132 of them children, were killed.The even

In Ukraine during the Euromaidan uprising last year, civil protests took the form of piano performances, painting and singing in front of riot police near the city square. The blue and yellow flags of Ukraine and the European Union were waved beside the smoke of burning tires and street food, with hardboiled Ukrainians bent on resetting the course of their country’s history. Chanting “Glory to Ukraine, Glory to Heroes,” throngs of nationalists congregated in Independence Square in central Kiev,

The last of this year’s embassy receptions fell on the eve of Christmas Eve, and befitting the seasonable occasion, featured red and white decorations and wine. Tables full of Georgian wine and food enriched the flavors of the annual year-end reception organized by the Georgian and Ukrainian embassies at Lotte Hotel in Seoul last Tuesday, where wine lovers sampled Georgia’s finest spirits. A variety of homey Georgian cuisines ― highlighted by vegetable and herb dishes, grilled lamb and nutty pas