TourKorea365: Uncover the Real Korea

Kimjang Kimjang means Korean culture of making kimchi in late fall for the winter. It has been listed as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2013. Just before winter Koreans would make large amounts of kimchi and store it underground for fermentation. On kimjang days which is making kimchi, all the neighborhood people come together to prepare an immense amount of kimchi that will last through the winter and share it amongst each other.  Why do we make kimchi a lot?  We make kimchi a lot since enough has to be made for the entire family to eat every meal during the winter. Kimchi enjoyed year-round on Korean tables. In the past, the only side dish people had to eat for 8 to 9 months was kimchi. That's why people used to spend 3-4 months of wages to make that much kimchi.  Nowadays, it's difficult to do kimjang in the city. it's easier and cheaper to just buy kimchi.  How to store the kimchi longer.  In the past, Koreans preserved their kimchi in earthen jars b...

  In Korea, Ahead of the presidential election, candidates are making several campaign pledges. Among them, a promise to change the Korean age system into an international standard is attracting people's attention.  The Korean age system is a little bit different from the international age system that calculates how many years and months a person has lived since his or her birthday.  Korea has a unique way of counting babies as being age 1 from birth. That means everyone in Korea already becomes a year old at birth. This is the idea that time in a mother's womb is also considered a part of life.  People already treat their baby in the womb as a human. So Koreans give their baby a name during pregnancy to call the unborn baby before the baby is born. (=Taemyeong) It is also the unique culture of Korea to give an unborn child a name and call that name from the time she is in the womb.  However,  the Korean age system got a problem during the Covid-19 period. ...

There have been many ups and downs in 2021. The year 2021 was the year of the white cow which is an animal that symbolizes honesty faithfulness and patience and 2022 in Korea is the year of the black tiger.  Tigers are nowadays the most endangered animals but five Siberian tigers (=Quintuplet tiger cubs) was born at Yong In Zoo (Inside the Everland amusement park). This is a really rare case, tigers usually produce a litter of 2~3 cubs. In celebration of 2022 New year, they were introduced to the public for the first time after their birth and many people visited the zoo to get feel tiger's spirit or energy. Symbol of Korea.  The tiger symbolizes bravery and strength and was considered as a mountain guardian for the Korean people from ancient times. Therefore, people would have paintings or talismans of tigers to defeat misfortune or drive evil spirits away.  The tiger of Korea has long been with Koreans from the very beginning. A tiger also appears in the founding myth o...

Is there an election in Korea?   Yes, North Korea also has elections. In North Korea,  Voting is mandatory for anyone above the age of 17 or over regardless of their gender or occupation. The turnout of the North Korean election is always almost 99.9% and votes were 100% in favor of the ruling party.    North Korea ballot.  Why is turnout 100%?  Here's a funny thing. Each voter has been given a ballot paper with a single name on it which they then place in a ballot box located out in the open. No marking no choice in candidates.  Voters cast their ballots publicly and election wins are always landslides.  While there are private voting booths, few people use them crossing out a candidate's name. A nybody who crossed out a candidate's name and abstaining are both considered acts of treason.   Who will North Koreans vote for?  The election for d eputies to the supreme people's Assembly and  provincial governors, mayors, and other ...

Recently as the Korean zombie dramas gains explosive popularity on Netflix (2019), the hats worn by actors in the drama aroused great interest from foreigners. This interest has led to people purchasing and collecting Korean Gat offline.  In Korea, There are various forms of Gat in Joseon period. If you look at the hats worn by the greats in the South Korean banknotes, they are all wearing different hats.  The Scholar Yi Hwang who represented the Joseon Dynasty is wearing a bokgeon, Yi I , a disciple of Yi Hwang is wearing the Jeongjagwan worn by nobles at home. King Sejong the Great, who created Hangeul, Korean alphabet is wearing the ikseongwan, a hat used while performing his king's duties.  Depending on what kind of hat you are wearing, you can see his or her identity and what he or she does. Commoners wore hats but those who could not afford it, they just exposed topknots.  In case of women, there are many women who wear sseugaechima used to cover a woman's...

  Yellow sail boat (황포 돛배  Hwang-po sailing boat )  When you watch Korean historical dramas , you can often see these ships as a means of transportation when people see off someone who is leaving for a long distance, or in a scene where a man and a woman saying farewell leave each other.    Hwangpo means yellow cloth, and it is a sail dyed with red clay water.  The material of the boat is made of pine tree.  It was also a representative symbol of the history of the Han River.  During the Joseon Dynasty, Ships were used to transport regional specialties such as food, firewood, rice and salt to pay taxes along with people.  The characteristic of the boat is flat-bottomed ship. At the time, Koreans traveled on the southern and western seas where the tidal changes are so severe that the mudflats were exposed during low tide.  These flat-bottomed boats were much safer as they were less likely to capsize.  In addition, it played an import...

  World Cup Stadium  Location : 240, World Cup-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea.  The Seoul World Cup Stadium was constructed in 2001 for 2002 FIFA World Cup and is the largest stadium in Asia. The stadium hosted the opening match between France and Senegal (0:1) and match between Germany and South Korea(1:0) which is the semi-finals Korea made for the first time. During the semifinals, Korea's cheering squid the Red Devil played the card section that said dreams come true but South Korea lost the game against Germany. The stadium is currently used as the home base for FC Seoul.  About the Stadium Design  The exterior of the stadium has a special shape. It was designed like Bangpae Kite(=shaped like shield) and the cable structure is shaped like the sail of a Hwang po sailboat which was a means of transportation in Joseon Dynasty. It was designed with many traditional aesthetics and the shape of the roof attracts attention from afar.  How to go  It...

  Types of Taxis  There are 5 types of taxis in Seoul, South Korea which is 3 types of regular taxi and 2 types international taxi.  Regular taxi Regular (up to 4 passengers) : This is the cheapest and taxi color is orange, white and gray.   Deluxe( up to 4 passengers) : This is usually larger and more luxurious than regular. Taxi color is black and more expensive.  Jumbo( up to 8 passengers) International taxi Regular ( up to 4 passengers)  Jumbo ( up to 4 passengers)  Riding Taxis at the Airport.  There is an airport-designated taxi stand in Incheon International Airport.  Check it out to go to an airport-designated taxi stand to wait in line for your taxi.  *Incheon International Airport Taxi Stand: Outside the Passenger Terminal Arrivals Level gates 4D-8C(1st floor)  *Gimpo International Airport Taxi Stand: For international arrivals, in front of gates 2 and 3. For domestic arrivals, in front of gate 5.  One thing to b...

Hollywood stars who love cupping.  Recently, a photo of Hollywood star Dwayne Johnson undergoing cupping therapy for the first time in his life, was released on SNS and received great attention. Unlike the appearance of his health, he had several major surgeries for a herniated disc, muscle rupture, Achilles tendon rupture, etc.,and many fans were sorry for revealing that his body had been completely damaged after that. He announced that he got cupping therapy for the first time for the treatment of the back and back muscles. Also, Michael Phelps, who participated in the Olympics after receiving cupping therapy at the last Rio Olympics, became a hot topic. This is because there were many people around the world who wondered what the purple mark on his body was.  This mark on the body is a cupping mark, which is very familiar to Asians, but it seems that it was not to other people. This is a treatment he has been receiving for years to help relax his muscles and ease soreness. ...