Korea News and Observer blog includes IT,entertainment and travel posts, along with pictures and true to original translation
2014년 9월 29일 월요일
Daegwallyeong sky farm was opened to the public for the first time in 40 years.
Early september, Daegwallyeong Sky farm, once only cowboy and cattle could walk was opened to the public for the first time in 40 years.
You can taste the quality beef and also enjoy exotic landscapes there.
The ranch, which was first opened in 1974 is three times the size of Yeouido and offers various activities such as horseback riding, feeding animals and hiking trail.
On a map, you can see that the Sky Ranch is shaped like a V that wraps around Samyang Ranch. It is therefore divided into two complexes.
The first complex, to the right, is about twice the size of the second and encompasses most of the major facilities that will welcome visitors.
The second complex will be open only to those who apply for the horse-riding program.
“If you look down from Seonjaryung, on the right there is Gangneung and on the left there is part of our ranch,” said Choi Jae-don, 56, who has been overseeing the ranch since 1983.
“There are hikers who mount up to Seonjaryung [from the other side] and climb down to our ranch. But they think it is Samyang’s property.”
Admission to Sky Ranch is 5,000 won ($4.93) for adults and 4,000 won for children, but for the opening month of September, entrance will be free of charge.
The tractor experience costs 4,000 won for adults and 3,000 won for children.
2014년 9월 27일 토요일
Yoo Ji Tae made it on list 'The 30 Greatest Movie Villains Of All Time'
Actor Yoo Ji tae was recognized as one of best movie villain of all-time.
From the The 30 Greatest Movie Villains Of All Time list which was selected by movie website, taste of cinema, Yoo ji tae of movie 'old boy'(2003) has put his name to No. 16.
Taste of cinema said regarding the reason why they chose Yoo ji tae as one of best movie villians.
"The young actor Yoo ji tae handles the complex role of an avenger magnificently. The reason of his revenge may seem trivial to some viewers, but he takes it very seriously, and is prepared to go to unimaginable extremes in order to carry it out properly. He is probably one of the most patient villains you will ever see, which makes him even more menacing. On the other hand, he is far from an impersonal, cold-blooded and unfeeling killer, because his anger and vindictiveness originate from a personal tragedy.
That’s the precise reason why fulfilling of his masterful plan, which unfolds better than he could have ever imagined, ultimately doesn’t bring him satisfaction. This character is created to be hated, yet, somehow, after all, you will probably feel at least a little sympathy for him. There lies the greatness of this acting creation."
Meanwhile, the No. 1 movie villain of all time was the Joker, played by Heath Ledger in a movie 'The Dark Knight' (2008, Christopher Nolan)
Koreans travel the farthest distance for their honeymoons in the world.
According to Facebook check in information obtained by Facebook’s data collection team, Koreans travel farther for their honeymoons than newlyweds from any other country – about 4000 miles in average.
On the other hand, the distance of Japanese honeymooners was only 250 miles (about 400㎞)
Korean newlyweds moved the farthest distance for honeymoon followed by Italy, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Australia.
Only about a 100 couples traveled more than 12,000 miles (which is almost the opposite side of the planet), and that group was mostly from Spain and Peru.
Sri Lankans stay closest to home, going less than 200 miles.
Las Vegas was ranked first as most popular honeymoon destination of all followed by Lahaina and Honolulu in Hawaii.
World's most popular honeymoon places other than the United States was Playa del Carmen in Mexico followed by Mexico cancun, Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, Montego Bay in Jamaica and Antalya in Turkey.
2014년 9월 25일 목요일
Samsung released Galaxy note 4 early to combat iPhone 6 and threat from Chinese manufacturers
Samsung Electronics held ‘Galaxy Note 4 World Tour: Seoul’ on 24th to announce the commercial availability of Galaxy Note 4.
Galaxy Note 4 will be available beginning September 26th in Korea and China and it will be ready to hit the shelves in 140 countries by the end of October.
U.S. sales of the Galaxy Note 4 will start on Oct. 17.
Now, attention is turning to whether Samsung can overcome sluggish recently sales of the latest Samsung electronics through new products.
However, the market situation is not easy.
Operating profit of Samsung Electronics, which had more than 10 trillion won in the third quarter last year, struck crashed due to their recent smartphone poor sales.
Its global smartphone market share has dipped to 25% from 32% in the same period in 2013.
Samsung's announcement marks the first time the South Korean company has released a flagship smartphone in China before other major overseas markets.
Apple's iPhone 6 has yet to arrive in China, the world's most populous country. But Apple Inc. still chalked up 10 million sales of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models in the first three days after the phones went on sale.
Apple's new iPhone 6 with its larger screen than previous models eliminates a key advantage for Samsung that lured buyers with the big screens of its Galaxy phones.
Samsung's early move in China comes as the South Korean company faces challenges on multiple fronts. Its profit from the crucial mobile business has flagged and local brands in India and China have dented its sales of cheap phones.
Chinese electronics company TCL surprised the world by showcasing the 110 inch curved UHD TV and the first quantum dot TV, which is called a next-gen TV, at IFA 2014, ahead of Samsung and LG. Lenovo also displayed 64-bit smartphones, which are similar to the Galaxy Note 4. Chinese smartphone makers have started to introduce products with hardware, which can be matched to that of Korean firms. Now, Chinese competitiveness in hardware is considered to go beyond the imitation level. Related to this issue, Jung Tae-myung, professor of the Department of Computer Engineering at Sungkyungkwan University, remarked, “The era where Korean companies took advantage of hardware is gone.”
The seoul station overpass will come to life as new green park
a conceptional drawing of High level road in Seoul station
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Mr Park Won Soon, Mayor of Seoul city who is visiting United States right now announced plans to turn overpass at seoul station into a green park by the end of 2016.
Mayor Park stated "I want to make the green space with safety, conveneince, and people-oriented in mind to give back to Seoul citizens while preserving the original form of old high-level road in the center of Seoul." while inspecting the New York High Line Park on Sep, 23rd.
High Line Park is a 1.45-mile-long (2.33 km) New York City linear park built on a section of a disused New York Central Railroad spur called the West Side Line. Inspired by the 3-mile (4.8-kilometer) Promenade plantée, a similar project in Paris completed in 1993, the High Line has been redesigned and planted as an aerial greenway and rails-to-trails park
New York High Line Park |
Seoul station overpass is 10.3m width, 17m height and total length 938m road which was completed in 1970 and it was in demolition decision of deteriorated buildings in the second half of this year.
2014년 9월 22일 월요일
Chinese Tourist to Korea keep Increasing while the number of Japanese tourists visiting Korea has plummeted
Up until 2012, Korea saw the most number of visitors from Japan, China and the United States, in that order. But since 2013 the order changed to China, Japan, and the United States. A survey showed that 4.32 million Chinese tourists came to Korea in 2013.
As the number of Japanese tourists has dropped sharply in the wake of the earthquake, tsunami, territorial dispute and the yen’s steep depreciation since late 2012, a cosmetics stores in Seoul's Myeongdong shopping district that would normally be thronged with Japanese tourists was noticeably replaced by Chinese tourists.
Increase in purchasing power of Chinese tourist and the current state of the deepening depreciation of the yen overlap in the last two years, the atmosphere of the Myeong dong shopping district has changed completely.
According to the Korea Tourism Organization, the number of Chinese travelers to South Korea from January to July this year was 3.36 million, an increase of 45.8% compared to last year. In contrast, around 1.33 million Japanese tourists visited Korea until july this year which fell 13.68 percent from the previous year.
Last year Chinese tourists generated roughly 13 billion dollars in economic effects for Korea. They left particularly extensive impacts on all tourism-related businesses, such as retail shops, lodging, and even food and beverage establishments. Thanks to the surge in Chinese tourists, Korea’s tourism industry posted record high revenue of 1.62 billion dollars in July. In anticipation of the Chinese crowd, three major department stores in Seoul have changed their Chuseok schedules and decided to remain open through the long holiday weekend, except on the day of Chuseok. Moreover, as the Incheon Asian Games has just started and China celebrates another week-long holiday in October, Korean businesses are getting ready to welcome an influx of Chinese visitors. However, the downside is that the rates of satisfaction and return visits remain low among Chinese tourists. The Korea Tourism Organization found in a survey that Chinese tourists registered 4.11 points on satisfaction, resting at 14th place among 16 countries. When asked whether they’d be willing to revisit Korea for tourism within the next three years, Chinese respondents also scored 3.95 points, among the lowest tier.
As the number of Japanese tourists has dropped sharply in the wake of the earthquake, tsunami, territorial dispute and the yen’s steep depreciation since late 2012, a cosmetics stores in Seoul's Myeongdong shopping district that would normally be thronged with Japanese tourists was noticeably replaced by Chinese tourists.
Increase in purchasing power of Chinese tourist and the current state of the deepening depreciation of the yen overlap in the last two years, the atmosphere of the Myeong dong shopping district has changed completely.
According to the Korea Tourism Organization, the number of Chinese travelers to South Korea from January to July this year was 3.36 million, an increase of 45.8% compared to last year. In contrast, around 1.33 million Japanese tourists visited Korea until july this year which fell 13.68 percent from the previous year.
Last year Chinese tourists generated roughly 13 billion dollars in economic effects for Korea. They left particularly extensive impacts on all tourism-related businesses, such as retail shops, lodging, and even food and beverage establishments. Thanks to the surge in Chinese tourists, Korea’s tourism industry posted record high revenue of 1.62 billion dollars in July. In anticipation of the Chinese crowd, three major department stores in Seoul have changed their Chuseok schedules and decided to remain open through the long holiday weekend, except on the day of Chuseok. Moreover, as the Incheon Asian Games has just started and China celebrates another week-long holiday in October, Korean businesses are getting ready to welcome an influx of Chinese visitors. However, the downside is that the rates of satisfaction and return visits remain low among Chinese tourists. The Korea Tourism Organization found in a survey that Chinese tourists registered 4.11 points on satisfaction, resting at 14th place among 16 countries. When asked whether they’d be willing to revisit Korea for tourism within the next three years, Chinese respondents also scored 3.95 points, among the lowest tier.
Lee hyori and Lee sang soon, on a romantic date in the forest
On Septemeber 19, Lee hyori posted few photos named "Forest and us" on her blog.
In the pictures, Lee hyori spent relaxing time strolling with her husband and dog in the forest at Jeju island.
Picture look comfortable and relaxing with her companion dog out for a walk in the forest trail with long line of trees.
Appearance of the couple holding the hands lovingly in the woods, in particular, drew envy.
Lee hyori and Lee sang soon have been enjoying a rustic newlywed lifestyle in Jeju island since they have married one year ago.
2014년 9월 20일 토요일
Problems of dog cafés in Korea
In Korea, dog cafes have been around for a long time but only started booming four or five years ago as Korean began having fewer children, owning more dogs instead.
People who don’t have dogs, but love them come dog cafe to play with them, and dog owners come here to let their pets play with others. So the dogs are let loose inside the café, to go wherever they wish. They could play, run, and even cuddle up in people’s arms.
However, many people often pointed out that original purpose of dog cafe 'space for animal lovers and pet' is long gone and now it has turned into means of just making money aimed at a niche market in many cases.
The biggest problem is the lack of professionalism and expertise.
Most dog cafes are run by part-timer with no knowledge of physical characteristics and habits of dogs and part-time worker often have to take care more than 20 to 30 dogs thus it can not be properly managed.
Snacks and treats for dogs sold in dog cafes also brings problem threatening the health of the dogs.
Mr.Han(27) who recently visited one of dog cafe in Seoul said, "I was surprised to see students in school uniform were not restrained at all by cafe staffs when they bought much dog snacks such as beef jerky to distribute to dogs."
It is possible to provide an unlimited number of dog snacks if you buy it in store.
Kim whee yuel, Professor of veterinary medicine at Konkuk University said "Don’t let your dog get fat by giving him too many between-meal snacks; obese dogs often develop serious health problems and nutritional imbalance,"
Park So Yeon, an animal protection association representative, said "in many cases dog cafe business is not continuous and unstable, and many dogs at cafe in worse health condition often put to sleep after cafes going out of business and it is strictly speaking, none other than animal cruelty"
No specific legal standards for pet cafe in Korea is considered as a cause of flooding with unqualified pet cafes nowadays.
When managing a large number of dogs also require conditions such as mandatory veterinary contract for the prevention of disease and restriction of the number of dogs per area, it is raising criticism that the lack of related systems and managing easily led many dogs in pet cafes exposed to diseases such as viruses.
2014년 9월 17일 수요일
Why Korean love instant coffee?
Korea’s coffee market has risen incredibly sharply over the past decade.
In fact, Korea’s coffee consumption and number of coffee shops has more than doubled since 2005. The size of Korea’s coffee industry has grown more than 2.6 times in 5 years. And along with the increase of the size, the coffee franchise industry is getter bigger as well.
Large contributor to massive coffee consumption is instant coffee so called coffee mix in Korea, not brewed coffee.
South Korea is a unique market in which sales of instant coffee(1.3 trillion won) account for approximately 73% of the total sales in local market as of 2014 and sales of brewed coffee in the country is only 10.8%.
Instant coffee mix packets can be found in almost every Korean household and office building, and can be purchased in any grocery or convenience store.
“Our culture is unique because anywhere you go ― the gas station, work, convenience stores ― there’s always going to be a hot water dispenser and coffee mix,” said an official from Dongsuh Food. “In the U.S., coffee makers are everywhere but in Korea coffee mixes can be found everywhere. This has to do with how easily you can find the mix, and also how easy it is just to make one at work or anywhere. For average Koreans, brewed coffees are enjoyable items, but not part of life."
Koreans have a ppalli-ppalli (빨리빨리) culture (meaning “hurry, hurry”) which focuses on getting things done as quick as possible and this characteristics of Koreans suit well with instant coffee mix which has the advantage of being able to drink coffee if only pour hot water.
According to the coffee experts and Korea coffee manufacturers such as Dongsuh Food, Koreans prefer the taste of bittersweet fragrant. Beans that can best suit taste of these is the robusta which has bitterness stronger than Arabica, it is best coffee beans to make the instant coffee with added sugar and cream and the unit price of this bean is also inexpensive compared to arabica.
The domination of instant coffee in local coffee market creates a unique landscape: sipping a cup of espresso coffee at a nearby Starbucks coffee shop once or twice a week has become a culture for Koreans, while drinking a three-in-one instant coffee is part of their life.
In fact, Korea’s coffee consumption and number of coffee shops has more than doubled since 2005. The size of Korea’s coffee industry has grown more than 2.6 times in 5 years. And along with the increase of the size, the coffee franchise industry is getter bigger as well.
Large contributor to massive coffee consumption is instant coffee so called coffee mix in Korea, not brewed coffee.
South Korea is a unique market in which sales of instant coffee(1.3 trillion won) account for approximately 73% of the total sales in local market as of 2014 and sales of brewed coffee in the country is only 10.8%.
Instant coffee mix packets can be found in almost every Korean household and office building, and can be purchased in any grocery or convenience store.
“Our culture is unique because anywhere you go ― the gas station, work, convenience stores ― there’s always going to be a hot water dispenser and coffee mix,” said an official from Dongsuh Food. “In the U.S., coffee makers are everywhere but in Korea coffee mixes can be found everywhere. This has to do with how easily you can find the mix, and also how easy it is just to make one at work or anywhere. For average Koreans, brewed coffees are enjoyable items, but not part of life."
Koreans have a ppalli-ppalli (빨리빨리) culture (meaning “hurry, hurry”) which focuses on getting things done as quick as possible and this characteristics of Koreans suit well with instant coffee mix which has the advantage of being able to drink coffee if only pour hot water.
According to the coffee experts and Korea coffee manufacturers such as Dongsuh Food, Koreans prefer the taste of bittersweet fragrant. Beans that can best suit taste of these is the robusta which has bitterness stronger than Arabica, it is best coffee beans to make the instant coffee with added sugar and cream and the unit price of this bean is also inexpensive compared to arabica.
The domination of instant coffee in local coffee market creates a unique landscape: sipping a cup of espresso coffee at a nearby Starbucks coffee shop once or twice a week has become a culture for Koreans, while drinking a three-in-one instant coffee is part of their life.
2014년 9월 12일 금요일
The 2014 Asian Food Culture Festival at Incheon Asian Games
Asia's big sports festival, The 17th Asian Games, will be held from September 19 to October 4 in Incheon city of South Korea.
The 2014 Asian Food Culture will be held simultaneously to help the games's visitor enjoy various asian foods while watching the sport competitions.
The food culture festival will showcase Korean foods and many different asian cuisine prepared by renowned chefs from 10 asian countries including Japan,China,Thailand and Indonesia.
During the Games, an Asian food festival will be held at Munhak World Cup Stadium and Main Stadium and feature Korean cooking demonstrations and competitions as well.
2014년 9월 9일 화요일
Korea ranks world's number 1 in instant ramen consumption
According to the latest report by the World Association of Ramen Manufacturers, more than 11.42 billion instant ramen noodles were sold in 2013.
And out of that, Koreans' share was 3.52 billion, that is 74.1 ramen noodles per person.
Number 1 ramen consumption rate in the world followed by indonesia(60.3 ramen per person) and vietnam(57.3 per person)
"Although instant noodle is a convenient and delicious food, there could be an increased risk for metabolic syndrome given [the food's] high sodium, unhealthy saturated fat and glycemic loads," said study co-author Hyun Shin, a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. [7 Foods Your Heart Will Hate]
And out of that, Koreans' share was 3.52 billion, that is 74.1 ramen noodles per person.
Number 1 ramen consumption rate in the world followed by indonesia(60.3 ramen per person) and vietnam(57.3 per person)
"Although instant noodle is a convenient and delicious food, there could be an increased risk for metabolic syndrome given [the food's] high sodium, unhealthy saturated fat and glycemic loads," said study co-author Hyun Shin, a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. [7 Foods Your Heart Will Hate]
Shin and his colleagues at Baylor University and Harvard analyzed the health and diet of nearly 11,000 adults in South Korea between ages 19 to 64. The participants reported what they ate, and the researchers categorized each participant's diet as centered on either traditional healthy food or fast food, as well as how many times weekly they ate instant noodles.
Women who ate instant noodles twice a week or more had a higher risk of metabolic syndrome than those who ate ramen less, or not at all, regardless of whether their diet style fell into the traditional or fast-food category. The researchers found the association even among young women who were leaner and reported doing more physical activity.
As for men, Shin and his colleagues guessed that biological differences between the genders, like the effect of sex hormones and metabolism, might account for the lack of an apparent association among males between eating instant noodles and developing metabolic syndrome.
The research focused primarily on South Korea, which has the highest per-capita number of instant noodle consumers in the world but the findings could apply to people in North American too, said Lisa Young, a nutritionist and professor at New York University who was not involved in the study. "We [in the States] don't eat it as much, but the ramen noodles are being sold, so this could apply to anywhere they're sold, and they're sold almost everywhere."
But Young said there might be ways to dampen the dangers of eating instant noodles without swearing off of them altogether. "Number one, don't eat it every day,"
"Number two, portion control," she said, and recommended that people eat a small amount of instant noodles and mix them with vegetables and other healthier, nonprocessed foods.
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