“Paul McCartney: The Life” 　By Philip Norman　Little, Brown (853 pages, $32)　Behind the double thumbs-up, impish smile and round, half-moon eyes lies a Paul McCartney more complex than public perception lends itself to.　As biographer Philip Norman writes in “Paul McCartney: The Life,” McCartney is more than just the “cute Beatle” thumping away on a left-handed violin-shaped bass or the elder statesman of rock who continues to sell out stadium concerts lasting more than three hours. McCartney is,

CAIRO (AFP) -- Egyptian Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani said on Sunday new technology is needed to determine whether Tutankhamun's tomb contains hidden chambers which a British archaeologist believes may hide Queen Nefertiti’s remains.　Anani spoke to archaeologists and reporters at a conference in Cairo dedicated to King Tutankhamun and his world-famous golden funerary mask.　The mood at Sunday’s conference was skeptical months after former minister Mamduh Damati said the secret chambers pro

Hailed as the five best chefs in the country, Choi Hyun-seok of Elbon The Table, Jang Jin-mo of A&ND, Yim Jung-sik of Restaurant Jungsik, Tony Yoo of 24 Seasons and Kang Min-goo of Mingles will participate in the upcoming KoreaNYC Dinners event in New York City next month. 　Organized by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants (W50B) association and local gourmet food magazine La Main, the culinary masters will partner with U.S.-based chefs Dan Barber and Carlo Mirarchi and take part in catering multiple

Korean novelists Cheon Myeong-gwan and Han Yu-joo will be discussing Korean society and literature in London from May 10-13.　The two writers will be participating in an event celebrating the spring issue of Asia Literary Review, a Hong Kong-based quarterly literary journal which aims to spread Asian literature in English-speaking countries.　The entire spring issue, published in April, is dedicated to introducing Korean literature, carrying translated excerpts from works by Korean novelists such

Migrant workers staged a rally in central Seoul on Sunday to call for improved working conditions.About 200 workers gathered in front of the Bosingak Bell next to Jonggak Station, demanding in particular the replacement of the Employment Permit System through which workers on E-9 visas are hired.The workers later joined hundreds of thousands of Korean workers at a larger rally in Daehangno, Seoul.Udaya Rai, president of the Seoul-Gyeonggi-Incheon Migrants’ Trade Union, said that more workers had

The number of foreign residents ended four months of decline in March, according to Justice Ministry figures, but the population is still below its peak due mainly to a reduction in the number of young migrants.Widely reported statistics released last week by the ministry showed that the headline number of foreign nationals in Korea rose past 1.9 million at the end of March, but this increase was mainly due to a rise in the number of tourists. The number of foreign residents -- split by the mini

The city of Gyeongju will provide massive discounts for tourists during the four-day weekend that starts from Thursday. The iconic town in north Gyeongsang Province, is a popular travel destination, boasting well-preserved national treasures and historic sites.  (Korea Tourism Organization)On May 5, which is Children’s Day, Gyeongju’s Yangdong Folk Village, which dates back to the Joseon Dynasty, will offer free entry to children and a 15 percent discounted entry price for family members. Shilla

The number of visitors allowed for the nighttime stroll at Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul will increase from the original 100 to 150 per session, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Wednesday. Additional 700 tickets for the increased spots in May and June will go on sale from Friday at 1 p.m. at Interpark, the online shopping mall for event tickets. (http://ticket.interpark.com/Ticket/Goods/GoodsInfo.asp?GoodsCode=16001708)Each ticket is priced 30,000 won ($26).  (Cultural Heritage Adm

A five-day outdoor beer festival took off Wednesday at Coex Mall, Gangnam, heralding the beginning of a rare long-weekend holiday in Korea. At the Great Korean Beer Festival 2016, homegrown craft beer brands introduced their own specialty brews enriched with hints of coconut, chocolate and raspberries. Beer of all types -- IPAs, lager, ale and stout -- are available at individual brewery booths for purchase. (Great Korean Beer Festival)Food that goes well with the beers -- like sausages and frie

“Zero K” 　By Don DeLillo 　Scribner (288 pages, $26)　Don DeLillo’s latest novel toggles between a remote compound in central Asia and the workaday world of New York City. In the bunker an apocalyptic cult is engaged in the cryogenic preservation of humans, whose brains and bodies are being frozen until the time when diseases have been cured and human consciousness perfected. Meanwhile, in Manhattan, an introspective young man named Jeffrey Lockhart, whose father, billionaire Ross Lockhart, is an