The Korea Herald

Cakes of the World Buffet at the Grand InterContinental

TravelDec 16, 2011

Unlimited aromatic teas and delicious desserts will be served at the Afternoon Tea Buffet of the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas, during weekends with Christmas cakes from different countries available from Dec. 23-25. The Afternoon Tea Buffet offers mini sandwiches, scones with jam and whipping cream, almond cake and cherry pie as well as Korean traditional sweets such as tteok and sujeonggwa. Customers can choose from 10 different premium teas and enjoy a relaxing tea time. In addition to
Hawaiian Airlines changes honeymoon flight schedule

TravelDec 16, 2011

Hawaiian Airlines will change its nonstop Incheon-Honolulu flight schedule starting Jan. 5 to accommodate the growing demand for travel to Hawaii from Korean honeymooners. Under the new schedule, Hawaiian Airlines’ HA460 will depart Incheon every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 10:15 p.m. and will arrive at Honolulu International Airport at 11 a.m. on the same day. The return flight bound for Incheon will depart Honolulu every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 1:15 p.m. and wil
‘2012 Korea Grand Sale’ begins

TravelDec 16, 2011

Korea Grand Sale, a shopping event for overseas visitors, is set to take place from Jan. 9 through Feb. 29. During the sale period, visitors will be able to enjoy up to 50 percent discount on shopping, dining, accommodation and entertainment in Seoul, Busan, Jeju and other major cities across the country. Approximately 21,800 shops representing 72 different firms on food, accommodation, shopping and events are taking part in the event organized by the Visit Korea Committee. Seoul City also plans
Trio trek Empty Quarter in footsteps of Thesiger

TravelDec 16, 2011

ABU DHABI (AFP) ― A British explorer and two Emiratis on Tuesday completed a 44-day trek across one of the world’s largest deserts, the Empty Quarter, in the footsteps of the late traveller Sir Wilfred Thesiger.The three men riding two camels were welcomed with a large round of applause from crowds who were waiting for them at Abu Dhabi’s corniche, marking the conclusion of their 1,600-kilometer trip.Following closely the route taken by the British explorer in the 1940s, the team began the trip
Lights, gingerbread, parades: Holiday happenings in U.S.

TravelDec 16, 2011

NEW YORK (AP) ― Elaborate gingerbread houses, boat parades, train shows and dazzling light shows that illuminate entire neighborhoods are all part of the holiday fun this year for the Christmas and New Year’s season. Here’s a selection of beautiful things to see and interesting things to do around America now through early January.In Manhattan, the Rockefeller Center tree stays lit until Jan. 7. This year it’s a 22.5-meter-tall Norway spruce illuminated by 30,000 lights. You can go skating at th
NEW BOOKS

BooksDec 16, 2011

A young Vietnamese girl’s migration to Alabama in the 1970sInside Out & Back Again By Thanhha Lai(HarperCollins)The United States prides itself on being a melting pot, but the many immigrant stories that make up our uniquely American stew aren‘t always known or published by the mainstream press. Take Thanhha Lai, who, in her recent National Book Award winner, “Inside Out & Back Again,” chronicles her family’s move to the U.S. from her native Vietnam in 1975.This novel in verse, based on Lai‘s ex
Book introduces Korean art galleries, museums

BooksDec 16, 2011

Museums & Galleries: Displaying Korea’s Past and Future(Seoul Selection)Art galleries and museums in Korea are relatively little known to the outside world ― at least when compared to the explosive popularity of K-pop. Yet many would be surprised to discover that the history of Korean museums dates back more than 100 years, and Korea now has 11 national museums nationwide ― unified by Seoul’s iconic National Museum of Korea completed in 2005.Korea Foundation and Seoul Selection’s newly released
A dark ‘Noel’: Batman meets Charles Dickens

BooksDec 16, 2011

Somewhere out there, there’s a version of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” where clerk Bob Cratchit takes an axe to his employer, Scrooge, steals his cashbox and escapes to the Bahamas without his family. The story has been reinterpreted time and time again in stage, screen, animation, book and probably ancient Greek.Now Batman (aka the Dark Knight) meets Charles Dickens in “Batman: Noel” a graphic novel by artist Lee Bermejo. (For those who read comics only irregularly, a graphic novel is a
An American abroad and on a mission

BooksDec 16, 2011

Few writers are known for combining dark humor and environmentalism in their fiction; in fact, Lydia Millet may be the only member of that club. For her efforts, in the short story collection “Love in Infant Monkeys,” she was named a finalist for the 2010 Pulitzer Prize. “Ghost Lights,” her first book since then, is the middle novel of a trilogy that began with 2008’s “How the Dead Dream.”Literary trilogies may be hard to enter midstream, but Millet has made it easy for those not familiar with t
Haemul-kalguksu (Hand-style noodle soup with seafood)

Food&BeverageDec 16, 2011

Haemul-kalguksu is a soup made with hand-style noodles and seafood. “Kalguksu” refers to noodles that are kneaded by hand then shredded with a knife. The broth for kalguksu varies according to the ingredients. Anchovy broth, chicken broth and beef broth are commonly used. Ingredients ● 2 cups wheat flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 egg, 1/4 cups water ● 2 tbsp wheat flour (additional flour) ● hand rolled noodles soup: 11 cups water, 50g radish, 30g anchovies, 10g dried shrimp, 20g kelps, 1/2 tsp clear soy sa
Chinese wines beat Bordeaux in blind tasting

FashionDec 16, 2011

BEIJING (AFP) ― A remote region of northern China that began growing grapes for fine wine just a decade ago has beaten the centuries-old French wine-producing region of Bordeaux in a blind tasting held in Beijing.A group of wine experts ― five French and five Chinese ― ranked the bottles from the remote and sparsely populated Ningxia region above those from Bordeaux at the tasting, held on Wednesday in Beijing.The jury sampled five wines from each region, selecting a cabernet sauvignon from the
Wine of the Week: 2009 Meroi Sauvignon ‘Colli Orientali del Friuli’

Food&BeverageDec 16, 2011

The Colli Orientali (eastern hills) of Friuli look right down into Slovenia. The vineyards there are some of the most prized in the region. You can see why when you taste this Sauvignon Blanc from producer Paolo Meroi, who cultivates his 34-acre vineyard organically. It’s rich, racy and pure. The 2009 has a bracing minerality, bright citrus flavors and a touch of lemon grass.Splurge on a bottle to drink with lobster or Dungeness crab. It’s a great match with smoked salmon or trout too, or gravla
‘Top Chef’ champ Michael Voltaggio’s Ink features cutting-edge cuisine

Food&BeverageDec 16, 2011

LOS ANGELES ― The women ― in twos and threes and sixes _ are on a mission. Spot Michael Voltaggio, the famously tattooed winner of Season 6 of Bravo’s “Top Chef.” They linger at the door, waiting, hoping for a seat or a table.Sigh of relief. There he is, in the open kitchen of his new ― and long delayed ― restaurant Ink. No other restaurant in recent memory has set the blogosphere roiling in anticipation as much as this one. Voltaggio has some 126,000 followers on Twitter as of this writing and,
Angry Birds to get own theme parks: company

TravelDec 16, 2011

The Angry Birds are set fly from the virtual into the real world next year as the cartoonish birds from the popular smartphone game get their own theme parks, a playground company said Thursday."The idea is to to create a different concept for gaming by integrating the virtual and physical worlds ..
Malaysian acid attack victim to get new face in Korea

HealthDec 15, 2011

A group of Korean plastic surgeons will restore the face of a 19-year-old Malaysian woman who was severely scarred in an acid attack. The surgery will be part of the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Medical Korea project that provides pro bono surgery to foreign patients in need of state-of-the-art procedures. The patient, Tan Hui Linn, arrived at Seoul on Wednesday evening and had a medical consultation with JK Plastic Surgery Center in southern Seoul the next day. Based on examination results,