| Chinatown Revisited | |||||
 | By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter
In the past, it has been pointed out that there is no Chinatown in South Korea. The lack of a Chinatown has always been blamed on the past governments’ discriminatory policies against Chinese immigrants. Since the normalization of diplomatic ties between South Korea and China 15 years ago, a ``real’’ Chinatown has started to emerge, designated as a special tourism zone and actively promoted as a tourist destination. Red Chinese lanterns adorn the streets, while some buildings have been remodeled into traditional Chinese buildings such as the Puksong-dong office. Weekends bring in crowds of tourists walking around Chinatown and the nearby Chayu (Freedom) Park. Chinatown is easily accessible by subway (Inchon Station on the subway line 1), a one-hour ride from Seoul Station. From the subway exit, you can immediately spot the stately Paeru gate serving as the entrance to Chinatown. There are three Paeru gates that lead to the main streets of Chinatown. While they are common in Chinatowns around the world, these Paeru gates are the only ones given as a present from a Chinese city. The gates were a gift from Weihai. Chajangmyon's Birthplace Chinatown in Inchon is known as the birthplace of the beloved ``chajangmyon,’’ or the Koreanized version of Chinese black bean noodles. Considered a comfort food, chajangmyon brings back happy childhood memories for most Koreans. The noodle dish has even been the subject of a hit song, ``To My Mother,” by boy band g.o.d. Moreover, Koreans consider April 14 as Black Day, when lonely hearts and single people share their misery over bowls of chajangmyon. Chajangmyon actually originated from the Chinese dish called zhajiangmian, which literally translates to fried sauce noodles. Served with a side dish of onion and radishes, a bowl of chajangmyon costs an average of 3,500 won. The Kongwhachun building, built in 1905, is described as the first Chinese restaurant serving chajangmyon in Korea. A long-time resident in Chinatown, who only gave his last name Lee, said the former Chinese restaurant closed down in 1984, after financial difficulties. He said the Chinese brothers, who owned the place, squabbled over the ownership. Last year, the building was registered as a cultural property that will be preserved. However, Kongwhachun still remains as a rundown building with broken windows, peeling paint and a fading signboard. Kongwhachun may be long closed, but chajangmyon is still on the menu of dozens of Chinese restaurants lined up along the main road. Traditional Chinese restaurants here are known for their delicious dishes at a fairly reasonable prices. Most places offer a set menu to allow customers to sample a variety of Chinese dishes, such as sweet and sour pork, fried noodles, shark’s fin soup and dumplings. The price of the set menu can go as low as 15,000 won to as much as 60,000 won for one person. Chajangmyon remains a popular choice. A Korean waitress at a Chinese restaurant suggested that chajangmyon tastes better if the noodles are mixed in one direction. She noted the chajangmyon should also be eaten as soon as it is served, since the noodles swell after a couple of minutes and change texture.
The 60,000 won set menu features assorted cold appetizers, shark’s fin and abalone soup, braised scallops, braised sea cucumbers, lobster dish, sliced beef in oyster sauce, sauteed mushrooms, noodles and rolls. A Chinese man operates a stall selling hot, deep-fried twisted dough stick for 1,000 won. This is traditional Chinese breakfast snack called ``You Tian.’’ He apologized for being only able to communicate in broken Korean, saying he has only been in Korea for a couple of years. He said it is a traditional snack quite popular among tourists, especially during weekends. On that particular day, a handful of foreigners were snapping pictures of him frying the twisted dough. Other stores sell moon cakes or round pastries with a thick sweet filling, which is best eaten with a cup of hot jasmine tea. Chinese Culture With China emerging as a superpower, many Koreans are realizing the importance of learning about Chinese culture and language. The Korea-China Cultural Center is one of the few centers set up by the Chinese government to promote its culture and boost ties with Korea. The center, which opened in 2005, features exhibitions of Chinese artifacts, hosts cultural performances, language and calligraphy lessons. Even while walking around Chinatown, you can get a quick cultural lesson. A colorful 100-meter long mural is painted on the walls of the Inchon Chinese Chungsan School. The mural recreates scenes from the famous Chinese classic, “Tale of Three Kingdoms,” which deals with themes of honor, betrayal, love and hatred. The main characters Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are depicted in lively scenes. For visitors unfamiliar with the Chinese novel, captions are available but are only written in Korean. Located near the mural is a statue of Chinese philosopher Confucius, a gift from Qingdao City, China. The statue is in the middle of the historic boundary separating the old Chinese and Japanese settlements in the area. Take a careful look at the stone lanterns on either side of the stairway leading to Chayu Park. You’ll realize that one side features Chinese style lanterns, while the other side features Japanese-style lanterns. There is also a good number of Chinese souvenir shops in the area. At the Pomun China Gift Department Store, the selection of souvenirs is not anything to rave about. Prices of souvenirs are certainly cheap, with coin purses and moon cakes selling for 1,000 won each. To celebrate the year of the pig, there are many pig figurines, coin banks and toys. Traditional Chinese clothes such as the body-hugging qi pao, or chongsam, can be purchased for around 18,000 won to 30,000 won. Bags made out of shiny Chinese print fabrics costs as low as 3,000 won. Not everything is cheap though, as huge antique vases from China are priced at 800,000 won. Hallyu Attractions In the last few years, Chinatown has been the location for a handful of television dramas and films. An old-fashioned two-story building located near the Confucius statue was the location for two dramas, ``Steal My Heart” and ``Six Siblings.” The film ``Failan,” a story about a Chinese woman (played by Chinese actress Cecilia Cheung) who falls in love with a gangster (by Korean actor Choi Min-sik), was also shot partly in Chinatown. Another film, ``Take Care of My Cat,” starring Bae Du-na, also featured some scenes shot in the area. Perhaps to attract more tourists interested in hallyu or the Korean wave, Chinatown is now being featured prominently in the new MBC drama ``Kung (Palace) S.” ``Kung S” stars K-pop star Se7en, as a modern-day prince who works at a Chinese restaurant and delivers bowls of chajangmyon in the city. The series featured a scene depicting a chajangmyon battle to see who can deliver a bowl of chajangmyon in the fastest time. If “Kung S” becomes a hit around Asia, the drama may give a big boost to Chinatown, similar to what Winter Sonata did for Nami Island, where the widely popular television drama ``Winter Sonata’’ was shot and, therefore, draws numerous tourists, mainly the Japanese.
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Thursday, January 25, 2007
chinatown
The Brian
| Brian Joo Flies Solo | |||
| By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter
``I just want to get my name out there. I'm always known as Fly to the Sky's Brian, but I want them to know me simply as Brian,” Joo told The Korea Times in an interview backstage at SBS Kongge Hall in Mok-dong, Seoul, on Sunday. Wearing pinstriped brown pants, a crisp white shirt and a vest, Joo was relaxing backstage after performing on the TV music show ``SBS Popular Song.’’ He received the show’s Mutizen Song award for his single ``Kajima.’’ Joo, a native of Absecon, N.J., in the United States, said he wanted to try a different pop sound on his solo album to distinguish himself from Fly to the Sky's signature R&B sound. He originally planned to do all the songs in English but wasn’t able to because of lack of time. The album contains one song in English, ``All I Know.’’ Joo’s solo venture doesn’t mean a divorce from Fly to the Sky and fellow member Hwan Hee. The duo plans to release a seventh album in May. Joo added that he is not following any trend of boy group members going solo. Once Joo starts talking, you get the feeling that he's not your typical K-pop star. Sure, the 26-year-old singer has the look, the voice and the moves, but he's also down-to-earth and humble. Joo, a Christian, said that religion plays a big part in how he deals with the stress and the pressure of entertainment. ``If I didn't have my religion, I would break down. This is not an easy career for young people,” he said. He was a 16-year-old high school student in New Jersey when a friend signed him up for an audition. The audition landed him a deal with top Korean agency S.M. Entertainment. In 1999 he made his debut as part of Fly to the Sky in Korea. ``When I was a kid growing up, my goal was to be the Asian Michael Jackson. That never happened, but this is just one step for me,” Joo said. `` When I was growing up, I never thought I’d go to another country and become a singer. I’m happy with what I'm doing right now. Hopefully in the future, whether it's the U.S. or Asian market, I'm going to try and do it.’’ For the many kids who dream of becoming entertainers, Joo has some words of advice: ``I have some friends who are top singers who call me up at 2 o’clock or 4 o’clock in the morning, weeping and saying how hard it is. It's a lot of pressure. If you can't handle it, then don't do it,’’ he said. ``You have to discipline yourself and realize this field is not going to be nice to you. You’ve got to be strong because people will try to break you …’’ Joo also wants to pursue acting in the future. ``Acting is one thing I want to do. But it’s not happening right now. Hopefully, one day they'll have a part in a movie or drama where they’ll say: ‘Oh, Brian is that character’... Or maybe even in Hollywood,” he said. K-pop stars like Rain and Se7en prepare to break into the U.S. market this year, but Joo is waiting for the right opportunity. Right now he’s trying to become closer to his fans in the U.S. and other countries by opening an account on the popular social networking site My Space. He tries to check his account (http://www.myspace.com/thebrian110) at least once a week to respond to the messages left by his fans. | ||
kahoe
| Kahoe_Where the Old Meets New | ||||||||||
| By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter
Nestled between Kyongbok and Changdok palaces, the Kahoe-dong neighborhood is often overlooked in favor of the much swankier Samchong-dong and the tourist magnet Insa-dong. The main attraction of Kahoe is Pukchon, most famous for its cluster of hanoks, traditional Korean houses. While it remains a quiet residential area, some of the hanoks are being turned into restaurants, cafes, teahouses, boutiques, museums and even offices. Compared with Insa-dong, filled with hundreds of tourists at any given day, Kahoe is less crowded and relatively quiet. It also attracts a different crowd _ a mix of office workers from nearby office buildings, groups of middle-aged ladies who have long leisurely lunches, retirees who sit around having tea, students from nearby schools and tourists in search of the hanok village. Trendy Food Places Good food is probably the first thing that attracts people to a neighborhood. Kahoe is not lacking in trendy restaurants and quaint cafes serving tasty food in a tasteful setting.
Step inside Gourmet. and you’ll be greeted with the scent of freshly baked bread and a whiff of brewed coffee. The shop offers a tempting array of bread, baguettes, multi-grain bread, chiabatta, as well as cheesecake, chiffon cake, tiramisu. It is almost enough to make one forget about their New Year’s resolution to go on a diet. Gourmet, a wine and tapas bar at night, is well stocked with wine and cheese. Ga-Hoe-Heon has a sophisticated atmosphere. You can sip wine and savor sumptuous Italian dishes. Sandwich places are also becoming popular in Kahoe. Sally’s Salon is popular for its hearty sandwiches, which are served with wine or coffee. Its salami sandwich with wine set is a steal for 7,000 won.
Other interesting places to have coffee are the rustic-looking Egg and the modern Dexter House. For a more upscale atmosphere, To Go Coffee is the place to go. Located in a red brick house with floor-length windows, To Go Coffee is a perfect place to relax and just watch the world go by. Health-conscious people may want to check out Organic Coffee. The cafe’s main selling point is that it serves organic coffee, grown without using pesticides or harmful chemicals. Recent studies have shown organic coffee has more nutritional and medicinal benefits than regular coffee. Another popular Italian restaurant is Flora, located in front of Art Sonje Center. Flora provides a perfect ambience for a date. It boasts an award-winning chef Cho Woo-hyun, who won a gold medal with the Korean Cuisine Association in the gourmet team challenge in Thailand last year. Wagamama is a Japanese sushi bar with reasonably priced dishes. Wagamama owner Cho Mun-ho said the restaurant has only been open for a couple of months but has already attracted a steady lunch crowd. The restaurant also has a small section with clothes and jewelry for sale. The unique jewelry and accessories were designed by Cho’s wife Park Myoung-hee. If that’s not enough, Wagamama also has resident tarot card master who will tell you what you want to know about your future. A tarot card reading for one question costs 5,000 won, and a tarot card reading for couples is 10,000 won. Satisfy your sweet tooth at J’s Cake (www.jscake.com), which offers yummy treats such as raspberry cheesecake, Austrian choco cake and yogurt potato cake.
Stylish Shops For a fashionista, exploring Kahoe’s streets can yield chic finds and maybe even some bargains. Boutiques specializing in one-of-a-kind, handmade shoes, bags and jewelry are sprouting up in the neighborhood.
The boutique Shoes and Shoes also displays quite fashionable shoes and handbags. A row of small boutiques selling quirky jewelry, bags, clothes and other accessories is also found behind the Jeongdok Library.
Cometa is a small shop specializing in art jewelry. Kim Hyung-mo designs most of the jewelry sold at the shop, although some pieces are imported from Venice, Italy. Kim, a friendly, soft-spoken man, greets customers at the store, where he also painstakingly creates earrings and other pieces of jewelry. He worked in a chemical lab for 15 years before deciding to shift to his passion for jewelry design.
Another interesting shop is Piktor, which sells a mix of handmade accessories and fashion-forward clothing. Not many flower shops in Seoul can boast of a chic shop like Soho and Noho. This is no ordinary flower shop, since it also provides party and event decoration services. Cultural Tour There are many art galleries in the area such as Arario Seoul, PKM Gallery and Art Sonje Center. There is even a Tibet Museum (www.tibetmuseum.co.kr), which may initially conjure questions as to why would there be a museum devoted to Tibetan culture in a traditional Korean neighborhood. Admission costs 5,000 won. But a visit to Kahoe would not be complete without checking out the hanoks. Some residential hanoks are open to the public, while others have been converted into museums to show different aspects of Korean traditional culture. The Dong-lim Museum, which features Korean traditional knots, is located in a hanok. The museum sheds light on the different meanings behind knots. For instance, amber knots symbolize wealth, while pepper knots symbolize fertility. The museum also offers knot-making program for those interested in learning how to make Korean knots. It takes about an hour to complete a project such as a cell phone cord. Gahoe Museum (www.gahoemuseum.org) is a hanok remodeled to become a small museum. Yoon Yul-soo, the museum director, said the hanok is estimated to be nearly 90 years old. The museum boasts of a collection of amulets, folk paintings and books, although only a few are actually on display. Admission fee is 3,000 won for adults and 2,000 won for students.
Visitors are served a cup of green tea from the Dongwoen Temple in Naju, South Cholla Province, and are encouraged to stay and savor the peaceful atmosphere A middle-aged Japanese man from Fukushima enjoyed the peaceful ambience at the Gahoe Museum. He said he enjoyed walking around the hanok neighborhood. ``It is very quiet. It makes you forget you are in a busy city,” he said. True enough, Kahoe is only a few blocks away from the busy, chaotic streets of downtown Seoul, but there is a sense of calm in the hanok neighborhood. Amid the rapid pace of development and modernization of the neighborhood, it will be a challenge for Kahoe to preserve its unique character.
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Thursday, January 11, 2007
funny signs
Or here either!
Only a Filipino would know why these signs are funny!
* Signs spotted at the theme park Everland in South Korea.
Monday, January 1, 2007
kpop-jpop crazy
| Korea-Japan Pop Culture Exchanges Flourish With Headphones On, Korean, Japanese Teenagers Discount Animosity | |||
| By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter
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Shinhwa, an all-boy band of Korea, performs enthusiastically during a concert held in Japan. When Japanese pop group Arashi arrived for a press conference at Incheon International Airport last July 31, about 2,000 screaming teenage girls greeted them. It was hard to tell who was more surprised at the boy band’s raucous reception _ the fans, the media or Arashi themselves.
Members of Arashi even admitted during the press conference that they were nervous about coming to Korea because they were not sure how many people actually know about them. It was the group’s first visit, but Arashi had managed to win the hearts of Korean fans even before setting foot in the country.
This is no longer a unique case. Thanks to the hundreds of fan sites, blogs and cafes on the Internet, J-pop stars like Arashi, L’Arc~en~Ciel, SMAP, Gackt, Hyde, Namie Amuro, Hikaru Utada and Ayumi Hamasaki have significant number of fans in Korea without the help of promotions, shows or concerts.
On the other hand, Korean pop stars are still seeking a breakthrough in the highly competitive world of Japanese pop music.
This year alone, K-pop stars such as TVXQ, Shinhwa, Rain and Se7en have gone on high-profile promotional tours in Japan and released Japanese-language albums and singles.
While their albums have all managed rank in the top 10 on Japan’s Oricon Charts, none of them have managed to even come close to the phenomenal success enjoyed by pop princess BoA.
J-pop Wave
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Japanese pop group Arashi at a press conference, at a music festival in Kwangu in fall last year. When the Korean government lifted the ban on imports of Japanese cultural products in October 2004, Koreans were finally able to watch Japanese films and dramas, as well as buy Japanese albums.
Japanese pop idols seem to have slowly won over Korean fans as part of the so-called Japanese wave or ``illyu.”
Japanese performers such as w-inds, Koda Kumi, Goto Maki, Miyavi, Paris Match and Toshi of X-Japan have held shows and concerts in Seoul this year. It was only in 2000 that Japanese stars were allowed to perform in venues holding more than 2,000 people.
More than 18,000 tickets to Arashi’s four concerts in Seoul last Nov. 11 and 12 were sold in one hour. Language is apparently no barrier when it comes to music.
During the concert, Arashi performed almost all of their songs in Japanese. They performed only one Korean-language song. While they attempted a few sentences in Korean, the group needed the help of an interpreter to communicate with the audience.
Sales of Arashi’s albums in Korea are unprecedented for Japanese artists in Korea. According to data from the Recording Industry Association of Korea, ``Arashic” was the top-selling foreign album in July, with sales of 10,675 copies. The group’s single ``Aozora Pedal,” albums ``5x5 The Best Collection of 2002-2004” and ``Single Collection 1999-2001” also sold more than 20,000 copies combined this year.
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Korean fans cheer as they watch Japanese pop group Arashi perform at the Asia Song Festival in Kwangju. Goto Maki, a former member of Morning Musume, attracted many Korean fans after she appeared at the Asia Song Festival in Pusan in November 2005. Since then, about 130,000 Koreans registered with her official fan club. She held her first concert last Nov. 19 at the Melon-AX.
Lee Sou-youn, an 18-year old student, said she started listening to J-pop after a friend gave her a CD of Japanese hip-hop group M-flo. ``I really liked it. Also, there are a lot of Web sites about J-pop singers, so I visited the Web sites, heard more J-pop songs and saw Japanese shows and programs from there,” Lee said.
Naver, Daum and other sites host fan cafes and blogs of thousands of fans who share a common passion for Japanese idols. Some of the fans discover J-pop as they study the Japanese language. Other fans even go to Japan to attend the concerts of J-pop stars.
The historical animosity between Japan and Korea does not seem to affect young fans. Lee said she simply likes the cool sounds of J-pop music and she doesn’t even think much about the fact that it is from Japan.
However, as of now, Japanese performers are still not allowed to appear on Korean television shows. Not that it matters to the fans who get to see performances of their favorite Japanese stars on the Internet.
K-pop in Japan
BoA is undoubtedly the biggest Korean star in Japan today, prompting some Korean fans to complain she is focusing more on Japan than Korea.
Unlike J-pop stars who release their Japanese language songs and albums in Korea, K-pop stars like Rain, Se7en and TVXQ have made the effort to learn Japanese and release Japanese language albums.
TVXQ, known as Tohoshinki in Japan, is being positioned as a J-pop newcomer rather than a K-pop group. Whenever they perform in Japan, the group sings only Japanese songs. The group now has about 10,000 members in its Japanese fan club.
Yoko, a TVXQ fan who lives in Osaka, said she became interested in Korean pop culture after seeing the hit drama ``Winter Sonata.’’ She saw TVXQ’s performance in one of the Korean TV programs on the Internet and became a fan.
Yoko said K-pop groups like TVXQ and Shinhwa are slowly becoming popular among Japanese women. TVXQ and Shinhwa both held successful concerts and fan meetings in Japan the past year, and many Japanese fans usually go to Seoul to watch their shows.
``Regarding how popular they are compared to SMAP and other groups, I may say that TVXQ’s popularity is still budding at this time. But they’re becoming popular because they performed 14 concerts in 10 venues where the hall can seat 2,500 people,” she said.
Another Japanese fan, who declined to be identified, said Korean media seems to have exaggerated the popularity of some K-pop stars in Japan. The fan, who watched two of the YG Family concerts in Tokyo last October, said not all the YG concerts were sold out as reported in the Korean media.
``The venue was half-empty, and the audience atmosphere was low for the first concert. But on the second night, the show was sold out and everyone was really hyper. Se7en even did some Japanese comedy gags, which everyone loved,” the fan said. However, the fan said most of the fans were interested only in seeing Se7en perform.
K-pop stars are getting noticed for their talent and earnest efforts to learn Japanese. Yoko said she likes K-pop performers because they have higher quality songs and performances than some J-pop stars. She even thinks it is only a matter of time before TVXQ and other Korean stars equal J-pop stars’ popularity.
It is however tough to predict the future of K-pop stars in Japan and J-pop stars in Korea. But it is significant to see that Japanese and Korean pop stars are helping bridge the gap between the two countries, whose complicated history has always been a source of conflict.
12-31-2006 19:12
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| Rising Stars in Japan, Korea | ||||
| By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Next Big K-pop Stars in Japan
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K-pop stars are expected to continue their efforts to crack the Japanese market, but a new group of up-and-coming Korean singers are solely concentrating on making a name in Japan.
R&B singer K, whose Korean name is Kang Yoon-sung, has released several single albums and two Japanese albums, “Beyond the Sea” and “Music in My Life.”
Fluent in Japanese, the 23-year-old singer has impressed Japanese fans with his strong voice and piano-playing skills. His song “Only Human” was used as the theme song for the hit Japanese drama “1 Litre of Tears,” and “Over” was featured in another Japanese drama, “H2.”
Another singer, Sun Min, had her debut in Japan this year. She sang a duet with Japanese singer Toshinobu Kubota, “Keep Holding U,” which was the theme song of the blockbuster Japanese movie “Sinking of Japan.”
This month the 20-year-old singer released a single album, “The Miracle of Love.” Her profile is expected to rise next year, as she has been asked to sing the title song “The Rose” from Fuji TV’s drama “No Right to Be a Mom,” which will be aired in January.
Next Big J-pop Stars in Korea
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KAT-TUN is one of the most popular groups in Japan these days. The group is composed of five members _ Kazuya Kamenashi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki- Tanaka, Tatsuya Ueda and YuichiNakamaru. A sixth member _ Jin Akanishi _ is currently on hiatus.
When KAT-TUN released their album, single and DVD this year, they became only the second group in history to top all three categories of the Oricon Charts.
Kamensahi is already making waves as an actor in Japanese dramas “Nobuta Wo Produce” and “Gokusen 2.”
KAT-TUN has not yet released an album in Korea, but many hope the group will soon make move into the Korean market.
Known as Japan’s Madonna, Kumi Koda made a splash at the recent Asia Song Festival. She caught the audience’s attention with her sexy attire and catchy performance of “Cutie Honey,” which was re-made by Korean singer Ayumi.
The stylish singer has won numerous awards in Japan, including the grand prize in the 47th Nihon Record Taishou for her song “Butterfly” and the artist of the year award at the Japan Gold Disc Award this year.
12-31-2006 19:38
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