The Korea Herald

Culture Ministry unveils drive for ‘productive’ leisure

Jul 9, 2012

The Culture Ministry will begin a nation-wide campaign to promote recreation in the second half of the year with the aim of improving citizens’ quality of life.“Most Koreans still spend their spare time passively by watching TV and playing computer games at home. To create a productive and creative leisure culture here, the ministry will encourage people to spend more time outdoors, engage in various sports and attend cultural programs,” Culture Minister Choe Kwang-shik told reporters in Seoul o
Pet hotel thrives as Koreans seek canine companions

Jul 9, 2012

SEOUL (AFP) -- Checking into one of Seoul’s newest luxury clinics just because your companion needs a shower may seem extravagant, but Cho Hang-Min said he had no other choice.“Other places won’t do it,” said Cho, a student, explaining why he and his Border Collie have stopped off at Irion.The two-storey establishment in the city‘s wealthy Gangnam district is a luxury hotel and clinic for pampered pets -- a rising trend in South Korea where dogs were once treated as guard animals or as something
Seo Hee becomes principal dancer of American Ballet Theater

Jul 7, 2012

American Ballet Theater (ABT) has promoted its Korean-born ballerina Seo Hee to the position of principal dancer, the renowned U.S. troupe announced via its website on Friday. Seo is the first Korean dancer to hold the position.Seo HeeSeo’s promotion is taking place just weeks before her “Giselle” Korean tour which is scheduled to take place from July 18-22. The 26-year-old dancer joined the ABT s
Heritage city Seville’s skyscraper irks UNESCO

Jul 5, 2012

MADRID (AFP) ― U.N. cultural body UNESCO has warned Seville not to endanger its World Heritage status by building skyscrapers in its historic centre after a controversial tower nearly stripped the Spanish city of its title.Seville managed to irritate UNESCO by constructing a 178-meter high tower, designed by architect Cesar Pelli, just a few hundred metres from the city’s Giralda, a former minaret converted to a bell tower for the cathedral ― home to the tomb of Christopher Columbus ― and its Al
16 year-old girls turn up at prom in helicopter

Jul 5, 2012

Two 16-year-old girls in the U.K. showed up Friday to their school’s end-of-year prom in a helicopter.Chloe Webb and Lauren Huggett stunned their friends by arriving at the party with a helicopter instead of a limousine as other students did. “All our friends were really shocked -- they could not believe it,” said Webb. They wanted to use a limousine, but when they tried to book it, none were available. So, Huggett’s father paid 500 pounds ($780) to rent the helicopter for his daughter and her f
‘All Eyes on Korea’ vies for London limelight

Jul 4, 2012

Korean Culture Centre UK on a 100-day journey to promote Korean culture in the Olympic host cityIt all started with K-pop. Interest in Korean pop artists has led to many young Europeans wanting to know more about Korea and its other cultural offerings such as food, traditional music, film and art. To meet the growing interest, Korean Culture Centre UK kicked off a three-month-long journey titled “All Eyes on Korea” last month to offer a wide range of creative Korean culture in various parts of L
French language takes center stage at Quebec forum

Jul 4, 2012

The first global forum on French kicked off in the Canadian province of Quebec Monday aimed at strengthening the language of Moliere in a world dominated by English.“I could tell you that the French language is doing well, that it is spoken and taught on five continents, that the number of speakers is growing and that it promises to have a brilliant future, especially in Africa,” declared Abdou Diouf, secretary general of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF), a union of French
A computer developed to compose classical music

Jul 3, 2012

A group of Spanish researchers have developed a computer that composes classical music, according to the British daily The Guardian.The computer program, called “Iamus,” was developed by a research team in Malaga University, Spain, to transform basic forms of melodies to compose music on its own.Like a “genome” which refers to a genetic structure of organisms, each musical work of Iamus has its own musical core to develop itself into a more intricate formation.The British newspaper also reported
UNESCO: Rio de Janeiro is world heritage site

Jul 2, 2012

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) ― Rio de Janeiro’s iconic landscape, marked by soaring granite facades that drop into the ocean and white-sand beaches that go on for miles, is now an official world heritage site, the UNESCO announced Sunday.The UN’s Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization gave Rio the title in recognition of the unique way its exuberant natural setting blends with the urban landscape. Rio has great waterfront open spaces, and one of the world’s largest forested areas encompassed en
‘Gugak empowers spirit, feels more like nature’

Jul 1, 2012

Most Koreans talk proudly of K-pop for having made inroads overseas where traditional music, or “gugak,” has failed. For Grammy-winner Henry Kaiser, however, gugak is much more fascinating and holds far more power to touch hearts.“Western music is all straight lines, Korean music is all curved ones. And curved lines are more like nature and feel better to me,” Kaiser said in an interview with The Korea Herald.Kaiser, 60, is among the first generation of American free improvisers to have experime
Pope confers pallium on Seoul’s new archbishop

Jul 1, 2012

Pope Benedict XVI honored 44 new archbishops from across the world including the newly appointed archbishop of Seoul Andrew Yeom Soo-jung at the Vatican Palace, Thursday, according to news reports.Archbishop Yeom received the pallium ― the woolen liturgical vestment symbolic of the authority of a metropolitan archbishop. According to Catholic tradition, the pope confers the pallium on all new metropolitan archbishops on June 29, the day of the annual feast of Saints Peter and Paul. Yeom thanked
Adult chimp kills baby chimp at LA Zoo

Jun 29, 2012

Visitors watched as an adult male chimpanzee attacked and killed a baby chimpanzee at the Los Angeles Zoo, officials said. Zoo officials said in a statement the baby chimp was killed Tuesday while in a habitat with other chimps, the Los Angeles Times reported. The zoo officials said the baby chimp had been introduced gradually to other chimps in the habitat and there had been no sign of pr
New York Times launches Chinese news website

Jun 28, 2012

NEW YORK (AFP) ― The New York Times said Wednesday it was launching a Chinese-language news website to deliver “high-quality coverage of world affairs, business and culture” to readers in China.A statement from the prestigious U.S. daily said it was “launching a beta version of a new online Chinese-language edition designed to bring New York Times journalism to China.”The site, http://cn.nytimes.com, was launched in Beijing early Thursday, or late Wednesday New York time.“The goal of the new sit
Yemen says al-Qaida land mines killed 73 this week

Jun 28, 2012

Land mines planted by al-Qaida militants before they fled key southern Yemen strongholds have killed 73 civilians over the past week, Yemeni officials said Tuesday. Engineering teams have removed some 3,000 land mines around Zinjibar and Jaar, according to the governor's office in Abyan province.Government troops captured both towns in a two-month offensive to uproot al-Qaida fighters from large s
Hanji expo to beckon New Yorkers with beauty of unique Korean paper

Jun 27, 2012

A private institute in South Korea will host an exposition on “hanji,” or traditional Korean paper, starting this week in New York to fascinate visitors with the beauty and creative potential of the material, the culture ministry said Wednesday.The “2012 Hanji Project New York” show, organized by the Hanji Development Institute in Wonju, Gangwon Province, will open Thursday and is composed of five programs showing visitors that Hanji can be used in various disciplines such as fashion, fine arts