At 7:30 a.m., most restaurants in the neighborhood were still closed. The only one open was a modest, old-school diner with a teal awning and an unmistakable name printed in red and blue: Bogwang Gisa Sikdang. A row of yellow plastic jugs and orange cones lined the front — a simple but effective way to…
Where literature isn’t just remembered. It’s folded into daily life. Located on Korea’s eastern shore, Gangneung is a midsize coastal city in Gangwon Province, home to just over 200,000 residents. Nestled between the Taebaek Mountains and the East Sea, the city feels suspended between ridgelines and waves. As a sub-host city of the 2018 PyeongChang…
Before idols ruled the charts, Korean music hit its creative peak. Today, K-pop commands a global fanbase, captivating audiences across continents with synchronized performances and high-concept storytelling. But nearly 30 years ago, back in 1995, Korean pop music marked a very different kind of peak — a golden age that captured the spirit of a…
How a London-trained designer left high fashion behind to weave culture, teaching, and tradition into a new kind of garment. I didn’t meet the designer by accident. In December last year, I drove down to Keimyung University in Daegu to meet Ali Ruth, who teaches fashion design there. That visit became the basis for a…
“This isn’t a date-night pasta place. It’s where you show up in slippers and eat something honest.” A minute’s walk from Samgakji Station’s Exit 6, D’asti the Hidden faces an elementary school across the road — a quiet slice of the city where horns fade, children’s voices carry, and time feels slower. It’s calm here…
An Anthropological Perspective on Culture, Identity, and Storytelling I recently came across an insightful interview with Pauline Brown, former North American Chairman at LVMH, in Korea’s JoongAng Ilbo. In it, she describes Korea’s explosive global popularity — through K-Pop, K-Dramas, and K-Beauty — as akin to “sweet candy,” beloved globally yet at risk of losing momentum unless…