It is undeniable that many things in life are determined by the circumstances of one’s birth -- nationality, genetics and socioeconomic class not least of all. Added to that list, it was the three-...
Fortunetelling. Is it frivolous entertainment, or a glimpse of another dimension? And is the saju any different from other fortunetelling methods I’ve tried over the years? I had a chance to find ou...
Whether you are a believer or a skeptic of divination, the following are questions you may ask a Korean “saju” reader: Is 2019 a good year to change jobs, start a business, or relocate to a new cou...
Apartments are everywhere in Korea. The country’s first apartment block was built as housing for employees of a construction materials maker in 1956. At the time, this type of building was a sight ...
The success of high-rise apartment complexes has been a unique phenomenon in Seoul. Widely spread throughout the city, dense apartment complexes have shaped Seoul, more than a third of whose residen...
When looking down at Seoul up in the sky, the capital is filled with square-shaped apartment clusters and gray sky-high office buildings. South Korea’s rapid economic development centered on Seoul ...
Apartments have long been considered a symbol of the concrete jungle. No matter which part of a Korean city you are in, the scenery is the same, with stacks of gray and ivory apartment buildings sur...
It cannot be explained scientifically in today’s hypermodern society. But for hundreds of years, Koreans have pinned high hopes on the new year by reinterpreting the symbolic significance of each of...
The Year of the Golden Pig falls once every 60 years and is associated with wealth and good fortune. So it looks like 2019 could be a lucky year. People born this year have the pig as their Chinese ...
From rapid changes in inter-Korean relations and the unprecedented US-North Korea summit to a Korean boy band becoming a global sensation, 2018 was a year full of unexpected developments.These are th...
For those who don’t enjoy skiing, annual family ski trips can be quite dull. But in recent years, ski resorts in South Korea have found an ironic yet new target group -- nonskiers. Major resorts h...
When snowflakes flutter down from the skies, out come the snowboards, the skis, the goggles and the overpriced parka you swore was worth it. The winter season is here, and it’s prime time for outdo...
As the temperature drops, it becomes harder to get out of bed. The cold is particularly taxing for sports enthusiasts because tense muscles could make them more susceptible to injuries. Don’t even m...
Winter is hitting society’s neediest the hardest. The National Weather Agency issued this year’s first “extreme cold” warning in the second weekend of December, when the lows fell below minus 10...
The freezing temperatures may make some want to climb into bed and snuggle deep under the covers, but for Koreans it is time to lay their backs on heated floors. The ideal place is a jjimjilbang, a ...
