Hollywood star Tom Cruise will become an honorary citizen of Busan. Busan Metropolitan Government said Tuesday that it was scheduled to grant an honorary Busan citizenship to Cruise on Thursday when he visits the city to promote murder mystery thriller “Jack Reacher.”Rosamund Pike, Cruise’s co-star in Jack Reacher, and its director Christopher McQuarrie will also receive Busan citizenship.Cruise will pay his sixth visit to Korea, the most frequent for a foreign actor. For Pike and McQuarrie, it

Won Kyung-sun, founder of an organic farming community that inspired the establishment of Pulmuone Food Co., died of old age on Tuesday. He was 100.He was the nation’s first known organic farmer who campaigned for a community based on love for neighbors and respect for life. His life has been mentioned in school textbooks.Born in 1914 to a poor farmer in South Pyongan Province in what is now North Korea, he began a farming career at age 16 when his father died. In 1955, he developed a 3,000-squa

A Chicago church distributed $12,000 to congregation members with instructions to use the funds to help their community.The Rev. Jackson Crum ended his sermon about the city's struggles with crime and other problems Sunday at the Park Community Church by passing out envelopes containing amounts of cash between $2 and $102, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday.Crum instructed church members to put the cash toward improving their community."Isn't that why we're here as a church?" Crum said. "Aren't

BEIJING (AFP) ― Already famed for fake designer bags and pirated DVDs, imitation in China may have reached new heights with a set of towers that strongly resemble ones designed by renowned architect Zaha Hadid.A developer in the southwestern city of Chongqing is putting up buildings that share the distinctive round contours and white stripes of a 39-floor shopping and office complex conceived by the British-Iraqi designer and being built in Beijing.The magazine China Intellectual Property noted

17th-century textbook on Korean medicine to reach audience beyond Korea

MOSCOW (AFP) ― French actor Gerard Depardieu, who has threatened to forsake his homeland for Russia to avoid massive new taxes, travelled Sunday to the central region of Mordovia where he may next hang his hat.Costumed women greeted Depardieu with folk dancing on the tarmac as he arrived in the capital Salansk and was served blini, or traditional pancakes.The eccentric star, a multi-millionaire and a household name in France with nearly 170 films to his credit, was seen on Russian television sho

Hyatt Regency Incheon has appointed Paul Wright, the former hotel manager of Grand Hyatt Beijing, as its new general manager. “I am very excited to join the team at Hyatt Regency Incheon and to be working in such a passionate country as South Korea, especially Incheon, the gateway city,” he said. The Australian-born hotelier has extensive experience working at Hyatt chain hotels in Australia and Asia. Starting his career at Hyatt Hotels and Resorts at Hyatt Regency Perth, he served positions mai

Hong Myung-bo, a former manager of the national football team, has received the Royal Salute Mark of Respect award from Pernod Ricard Korea. The award ceremony was held at Grand Hyatt Seoul on Monday.Pernod Ricard Korea, a local unit of Pernod Ricard, a French seller of wine and spirits, has sponsored the annual award, which recognizes the most respected figure in the field of arts and culture in Korea. Hong is the eighth winner and also the first sportsman to receive the award.Hong was chosen a

K-pop singer Psy has been named an honorary ambassador by Rotary International.The international organization said Psy shot a poster for “This Close,” Rotary International’s global campaign aimed at eradicating polio, in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 11. The organization is 0.5 percent away from complete eradication of polio around the world, Rotary International said.Psy has a special relationship with Rotary International. Psy’s grandfather Park Gi-uk from 1992-1993 served as a chairman of Rotary I

The hotel presents the “So Lovely View” dinner at the beautiful XYSTUM HOUSE on the last day of the year. XYSTUM HOUSE is a penthouse on the 22nd floor of THE PLAZA. The dinner menu includes two kinds of canap, crab and smoked salmon marinated in herbs with ruccola, sweet pumpkin cream soup, Korean beef tenderloin steak, grilled prawns and white chocolate mousse. On the day of the event, a live jazz band will accompany eight-course dinners, as well as one glass of wine per diner selected special

Two people died of H1N1 flu in Beijing recently, but Chinese health officials said the situation is not as threatening as it was in 2009.The deaths occurred since late December after the patients contracted the virus, previously called swine flu, China Daily reported.The report quoted the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that despite its potential to cause harm, the virus is not as threatening and can be contained.The report said both the victims of influenza A, or H1N1, virus

Despite recent reports speculating on bed bugs in library books, a U.S. entomologist and bed bug experts says there is no need to skip library books.Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, a Cornell University entomologist and New York state Integrated Pest Management Program field expert, said since bed bugs are transported by humans, on belongings and clothes, it made sense borrowed books could be a method or vehicle of bed bug movement.“Bed bugs will not stay on books on the shelf for very long -- they need

With its glossy pages of pouting models and racy romance tips, Myanmar's first sex education magazine has got the usually demure nation hot under the collar as it cashes in on new-found cultural freedom. "Hyno" has sparked fevered debate since hitting Myanmar's bookstores in November, where it has become a must-read among the young and curious, just a few months after the end of direct censorship in the former junta-ruled nation.Perhaps tame by western standards, Hyno's photo spreads of semi-cla