The Korea Herald

Louise Erdrich wins American Book Award

BooksNov 25, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) ― Louise Erdrich’s novel “The Round House” is among the winners this year of an American Book Award, which celebrates the diversity of the country’s literature. Others among the 34 honored at a ceremony this weekend at the Miami Book Fair International included Philip P. Choy’s “San Francisco Chinatown: A Guide to its History & Architecture” and Judy Grahn’s “A Simple Revolution: The Making of an Activist Poet.” Critic Greil Marcus won for lifetime achievement. Natalie Diaz’s poetr
[Photo News] Medical relief team for typhoon Haiyan victims

PeopleNov 25, 2013
Korean forces’ Vietnam War commander Chae dies

PeopleNov 25, 2013

Retired Lt. Gen. Chae Myung-shin, who served as first commander of the Republic of Korea forces in Vietnam (ROKFV) during the Vietnam War, died of chronic illness on Monday. He was 87.He graduated from the Korea Military Academy in 1949 and entered the Korean War in 1950 as a second lieutenant. Chae was appointed as the first ROKFV commanding officer in 1965 and led the Korean troops in the Vietnam War until 1969. He is known for adopting tough tactics against Vietnamese guerrillas.He retired as
Chung to receive AFC award

PeopleNov 25, 2013

Saenuri Party lawmaker and former FIFA vice president Chung Mong-joon left for Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia on Monday to receive the Diamond of Asia Award from the Asian Football Confederation.The confederation decided to confer the award on Chung in recognition of his key role in bringing the FIFA World Cup to Asia for the first time in 2002 and his philanthropic activities for football communities devastated by disasters.Chung is the first Korean and ninth recipient of the highest AFC accolade. Pr
China begins work on Ahn Jung-geun monument

PeopleNov 25, 2013

BEIJING (Yonhap News) ― China has started work to set up a monument honoring a revered Korean independence fighter who assassinated a prominent Japanese colonial leader in 1909, a diplomatic source said Sunday. Ahn Jung-geun shot to death the Korean Peninsula’s first Japanese governor-general, Hirobumi Ito, in Harbin, China, in October 1909. A year later, he was executed at a Japanese prison in the northern Chinese city of Ryojun, now called Lushun.South Korea and China have been working to set
Rodman tops GQ’s least influential list

PeopleNov 25, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Dennis Rodman is at the top of a list no one wants to be on at all. He’s been named GQ magazine’s No. 1 least influential celebrity of 2013.The 52-year-old former basketball player who has visited Kim Jong-un in North Korea was the top pick in the magazine’s third annual list of the least influential celebrities, which also includes twerking pop star Miley Cyrus, President Barack Obama and celebrity chef Paula Deen. GQ called Rodman a “Q-list celebrity willing to commit border
Arario Gallery becomes new owner of the Space building

CultureNov 25, 2013

Arario Gallery became the new owner of the historic Space building, according to the Space Architecture Group on Monday. The gallery paid 15 billion won ($14 million) to purchase the early modern work of architecture that is likely to be reviewed for registration as a cultural heritage site. The price was the lowest estimate for the building when it was put up for auction last week, which failed to attract bidders. The gallery bought the building on the condition that the building wasn’t damaged
Cultural heritage management to get thorough review

CultureNov 24, 2013

Inquiry will examine protection of cultural assets in the wake of revelations of mismanagement at the Cultural Heritage Administration
The Space building to be purchased by social fund

CultureNov 24, 2013

The Space building, an early modern work of architecture that was on the auction block last week after the building owner filed for bankruptcy, may be purchased by the Kim Swoo Geun Foundation, as 1 billion won ($942,000) was raised in five days via a social funding initiative. The social funding initiative was launched Nov. 18 as an attempt to save the historic building and register it as a cultural heritage site. “We plan to purchase the building through social funding and begin the process of
Home alone

PeopleNov 22, 2013

Shifting social trends see record number of single households
Me, myself and I: The freedom of traveling stag

CultureNov 22, 2013

Solo, single, alone, stag, unaccompanied, companionless: When it comes to travel, these terms may cause many to have second thoughts about going on vacation without someone by their side. But breaking free from these societal chains and taking the plunge to face the world “mano y mano” is no better realization of the phrase “carpe diem.”Waiting for the perfect travel buddy can mean many missed opportunities and precious moments wasted. With countless exhilarating adventures just a couple of mous
Internet links people with food, friendship

CultureNov 22, 2013

On Friday evening at Greek Joy, a Greek restaurant in Seoul’s Hongdae, six women and a man got together.They had never met each other before. But it didn’t take long for them to gossip, giggle and converse pleasantly.Red, white and rose wines were served with vegetable soup. Meat skewers were paired well with a strong red. They had gathered through online community Zipbob (homemade meal), which arranges social wining and dining events for those who don’t want to eat alone. Zipbob’s tagline state
Seamster to the stars

FashionNov 22, 2013

Kim Young Seok, hanbok designer to President Park Geun-hye, inspired by folkcraft and artifacts
Slopes’ changing demographics: More senior skiers

TravelNov 22, 2013

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) ― If you’ve walked into a ski lodge the past few years, likely as not you’ve seen tables filled with gray-haired skiers wearing sweaters so old they’re back in style.That’s because the number of skiers on the far side of 50 ― some on the very far side ― has been creeping up each year, according to the National Ski Areas Association.Credit advances in artificial hips and knees that make it possible for skiers to continue enjoying the sport; shaped skis, along with b
1 year down: American walking from Africa to Chile

TravelNov 22, 2013

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) ― In Paul Salopek’s first year of his trek across the globe, the reporter walked alongside his camels for days in Ethiopia without seeing glass or bricks or any other signs of modern humanity, ate a hamburger on a U.S. military base and was shadowed by minders in the Saudi desert. He has only 32,000 kilometers to go.Salopek is walking from Ethiopia to Chile, a seven-year journey that aims to reproduce man’s global migration. Beauty and difficulty filled his first year, which