Seasoned health official says Korea will rise from coronavirus outbreak stronger, better prepared for next one

Need for anti-discrimination law is greater than ever, LGBTQ community says

Churches and temples remained on their toes Sunday, taking strict precautionary anti-virus measures, in the second week since the resumption of their public services following COVID-19 outbreaks. South Korea eased strict social distancing guidelines on May 6, allowing churches, state-run museums and libraries to resume operations. But following a recent resurgence of virus infections, traced to clubs in Seoul's nightlife district of Itaewon, reopening churches and temples remained highly vigi

The characters in Frances Cha’s debut novel, “If I Had Your Face,” at first will not surprise those who are familiar with South Korean pop culture, especially dramas and movies, or who follow news from Korea. “My book is about a group of young women in Korea -- mostly orphans who grew up in the provinces and moved to Seoul the first chance they got,” Frances Cha said. “They are hustling to stay afloat in a very fast, competitive and glamorous society, and wi

Everland Rose Garden Festival Amusement park Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, opened up its 20,000-square-meter rose garden for the annual Everland Rose Garden Festival. The rose festival, launched in 1985, opens every May featuring roses and other varieties of flowers. After enjoying the rides at the park, visitors can take a walk in the rose garden and take photographs. The festival continues until June 14. For more information in Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese, visit www.everl

COVID-19 pandemic fuels change in beauty lifestyle

The National Museum of Korea, located in Yongsan-gu, central Seoul, is home to the country’s heritage dating back 700,000 years. From the prehistory and ancient history gallery to the medieval and early modern history gallery located on the first floor, calligraphy and painting gallery and donations gallery on the second floor, sculpture and crafts gallery and world art gallery on the third floor, the building is filled with around 330,000 relics. In the main hallway stands the stone

The Cultural Heritage Administration on Thursday announced that nine forest trails inside compounds of Joseon era royal tombs will be open from Saturday to June 30. The nine trails include two tracks near “Donggureung,” also known as “East Nine Royal Tombs” in Guri, Gyeonggi Province. The CHA also emphasized that this is the first opening of the 1.4-kilometer trail between royal tombs Huireung and Wonreung. The route was originally set to open in the second half of the

Korea’s first-generation avant-garde artist Kim Ku-lim has sought 130 million won ($105,720) in compensation for his artworks that were damaged during an exhibition at Chang Ucchin Museum of Art in Yangju, just north of Seoul. The issue was first raised on April 25 when Kim posted about his two damaged artworks including “Stone,” which he created in 1981, on his social media account. One artwork was hung on the wall and the other was installed on the floor in front of the wa

The Korean Culture and Information Service announced Friday that it is hosting the “Talk Talk Korea 2020” contest from May 15 to Sept. 15 jointly with the Foreign Ministry. The contest was established in 2014. According to KOCIS, it is the largest global contents contest in Korea, with more than 30,000 foreigners participating each year. It accepts diverse content such as videos, photos, illustrations, and webtoons that can promote a positive image of Korea. “The importance

The Korea National Contemporary Dance Company’s home-training series, “Flexible Day,” kicked off with the first episode streaming Wednesday on KNCDC’s YouTube channel. “Flexible Day” is part of the online project “Dance on Air” by the KNCDC, which aims to show contemporary dance to the audience at home. Episodes of “Flexible Day” will be uploaded on YouTube and Naver TV every Wednesday and Friday for five weeks. Artistic director Nam

Bingsu returns to Novotel Seoul Dongdaemun　 Novotel Seoul Dongdaemun Hotel & Residences’ Gourmet Bar features two kinds of bingsu for the summer -- snowflake bingsu and mango bingsu. Both are served with macarons and topped with Oreo crumbles and cheesecake crumbles. Snowflake bingsu is priced at 28,000 and mango bingsu costs 35,000 won. They are available until Aug. 31. For more information or inquiries, call the Gourmet Bar at (02) 3425-8102.  Suite for Kids at Banyan Tre

The 13th Gwangju Biennale -- which was postponed to February 2021 -- will be held across Gwangju, including the town of Yangnim, a historic place that is witness to the city’s modern history, for the first time, and will feature feminism, which has emerged as one of the most important themes around the world. The art event will be held from Feb. 26 to May 9 next year with the theme, “Minds Rising, Spirits Tuning,” pushed back from September this year due to the COVID-19 pand

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) is hosting the largest print exhibition in 13 years to explore the print art, which has been relatively unknown to the public as an art genre. “The exhibition is expected to reaffirm the values of Korean prints and encourage more interest on the potential of the marginalized genre,” said Youn Bummo, director of MMCA. The exhibition, “Prints, Printmaking, Graphic Art,” at the Gwacheon venue features aroun