GwangJu Blog

(More) Underrated Places in Gwangju

(GwangJu) — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:11:17 +0900

A few Fridays ago, I wrote about some places to see in Gwangju that are so obvious you might forget about them. Today’s post will give you the low-down on three more places, namely Gwangju’s two larger open-air markets, Yangdong and Nam Gwangju, as well as a Bohemian clothing/jewelry store located near the blue wall downtown.

The Markets:

A lot has been written about these markets already, and if you’ve been in Gwangju for a while, chances are you’ve already been to see them. And “see” is the operative word here—for the most part, these markets sell things most foreigners already buy in DC Marts and sidewalk vendors closer to their homes. However, at least for a foreigner, the Yangdong and Nam Gwangju markets are an authentically “old Korea” experience. Most of us typically see only the newer, shinier side of Korea with its ubiquitous Wi-Fi, smart phones, marble stairs and designer fashion. Eventually, you become so accustomed even to the sound of Korean that you can occasionally forget you’re not in a Western, English speaking country. These markets have a more traditional, more distinctly Asian feel to them. My friend and I went to Hong Kong for New Years a few months ago, and as soon as we stepped off the plane sensed that Hong Kong felt more Asian than most of what we’d experienced in Korea. The Yangdong and Nam Gwangju markets are the same way. They are little pockets of “old Korea” hidden in the middle of an increasingly international, technological Gwangju. But don’t let the “old Korea” title make you think slow, quiet, or boring. These markets are still packed with people, and buzzing with the same business that’s been going on there for decades.

Yangdong Market:

According to the Korea tourism website, the Yangdong market started in the 1910’s on the banks of the Gwangju River and was moved to its current location in the 40’s. The Yangdong market is the largest traditional market in the Honam region of Korea. You could definitely lose yourself in its 1,253m. This weekend is a great time to visit the market, as during the May 18th Democratization Movement, the vendors and merchants here provided food, beverages and medicine to protestors. I rode my bike to and through the whole market, and it carries almost everything—bedding, shelving, clothing, produce, meat (and live chickens), baked goods, kitchenware, furniture, and lots of it.

In 2010, a special section of the market called the “Multicultural Happy Market Place” opened to help financially support lower income families. This section holds restaurants from China, Vietnam and Japan, all reasonably priced and authentic. A Gwangju Blog post about this section of the market can be viewed here:http://gwangjublog.com/852

Nam Gwangju Market:

Located further south than the Yangdong market, the Nam Gwangju market is slightly smaller but still sizeable. It’s famous mostly for it’s seafood, delivered fresh early every morning. The Nam Gwangju market is an excellent purveyor of traditional Korean food items, and some limited clothing/kitchenware, but does not have furniture, shelving and chairs like the Yangdong market.

The “Inca” Bohemian Clothing Store:

I stumbled across this little gem while walking to work one day, and it’s what I would like to call “Ajumma chic”….if Ajumma’s were from India or Nepal. I’ve always been drawn to incense, flowy skirts, and eclectic jewelry and this store has it all, at really reasonable prices. Every time I go I see awesome dresses, tops, skirts, hats, jewelry, bags, wallets, sunglasses and scarves. There is a sister store just across the street, which carries Bohemian style trinkets, knick-knacks, incense and home décor. The staff is friendly and most speak fairly good English. It is located on the corner, at 124 JaeBong Ro.

If you happen to come across any Underrated Places in Gwangju you feel need some publicity, please email them to me with a short description and a photo, and I will add them to the next blog post. Stewietwosoups@gmail.com

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 48 Kpop Chameleons

(GwangJu) — Thu, 17 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Firstly, Happy Birthday to the nation’s sweetheart IU who recently officially turned 20. We wish you a successful tour around the country and much love for your recent song Peach. Only one question, why aren’t you coming to Gwangju?

Now onto a Kpop boy group who has made their return. If you thought pop Queen Madonna was the queen of reinvention, think again. Never have I seen or experienced artists change their image with every song release as I have in Korea.

Well generally there are two main image concepts in the industry cute, and then rough, tough and sexy for example in Shinee’s super dark and sexy Lucifer, which was starkly contrasted with their soft and adorable Hello. Other groups with radical image changes include Girls Generation moving from sweet and innocent Gee to super sexy drop down low The Boys.

Now turn to Dalmation, a rookie group from last year who have had relative success with hits including That Man Opposed. This song left a lasting impression of cute and innocent boys wanting to capture the heart of girl with cute and sentimental charms.

This week however they released their new track ER which is a total turnaround in concept. Out with the cute and they have transformed into aggressive dance idols who are scribed with tatoo’s and aren’t afraid to show off their ‘I’ve spent all winter in the gym’ bodies which are sure to drive their adoring fans crazy. I am sure this will be the biggest hit for the group and we expect it to rank highly on the charts soon, so don’t forget to check out the Kpopular Top 40 this Saturday of GFN.

For now check out the boys in action below with subs as well.

That man opposed (2011)

E.R (2012)

Peace,

PS. JD also comes to you live on GFN’s Kpopular daily. Tune into GFN98.7 AND 93.7FM or listen online at www.gfn.or.kr from 12.10 weekdays and 12.05 on weekends.

Where to eat Wednesday: Golden Shrimp

(GwangJu) — Wed, 16 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

by Jen Lee

If there's one thing I've missed having in Korea, it's good sushi. Now, I know different people have different opinions on what good sushi is, and that's all up to personal taste. For me, freshness and simplicity are ideal. For as long as I've been in Gwangju, I've struggled finding places to fulfill my requirements, often running into rolls that tasted more like kimbap rather than a good maki. Just when I was ready to give up, I was introduced to Golden Shrimp.

Located in the beautiful area of Suwan, Golden Shrimp has already become quite popular with the foreign crowd after having been open for less than a month. One major draw for non-Koreans is the fact that the talented chef speaks amazing English. After having spoken to him for a moment, I learned that much of his skills were picked up while he lived abroad in the UK before coming to Gwangju. With a cool vibe and a kind smile, he was more than happy to stand by and describe each menu item that my lunch dates and I were curious about.

After a look over the menu (as well as the prices), it was difficult to not order everything. Many of the raw dishes have salmon, so it's a great place for those that enjoy fresh cuts of such a beautiful fish. Another specialty is the hairy prawn, which is a large shrimp that is fried in a noodle-like batter (which is what gives it that hairy look). We made sure to try each of these in some form or another.

Once we ordered our food, we sat back and enjoyed cold Japanese beers while enjoying the nice weather. There was a bit of a wait, as everything was made to order, guaranteeing that freshness I so craved. My partner and I had ordered the salmon tataki, prawn maki, and the salmon and avocado maki. In addition, our friends pretty much got the same thing we did along with salmon sashimi, hairy prawn, and an order of seared salmon nigiri. With each minute, it became harder to keep our appetites and excitement in check.

The salmon sashimi and hairy prawn came out first. The sashimi, which consists of simple cuts of salmon served over a bed of greens and ice, was a fair portion and incredibly fresh. The hairy prawn, which I managed to get a nibble of, was perfectly crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside.

Before long, the salmon tataki made its way to our table. As delicious as everyone else was, I do believe this dish was the star of the meal. The salmon tataki pretty much consisted of slices of seared salmon topped with capers that were served with a refreshing salad made with fire roasted cherry tomatoes, onions, and jalapenos, all brought together by a soy sauce dressing. While the seared salmon was delicious, I found myself addicted to the salad more than anything.

The prawn roll, which is pretty much a hairy prawn served in roll form, was quite good, but my favorite roll of the day was definitely the salmon and avocado roll. Avocado is what I consider my happy food, and putting it in sushi rolls just seems to make it so much better. It’s not often you see a sushi place in Gwangju that has fresh avocado in their dishes, so that was very much appreciated.

All in all, Golden Shrimp is an amazing find that pleasing to both the palette and the wallet. I know I’ll definitely be looking for excuses to head back to Suwan soon to enjoy more of what I believe is the best sushi in the city.

Phone: 062-956-1021
Address: 광주 광산구 장덕동 1662 (located near the giant Lotte Mart)
Website: http://blog.naver.com/goldenshrimp

Cheongsando: A Photo Essay by Kezia Chee

(GwangJu) — Tue, 15 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

World Human Rights Cities Forum begins tomorrow!

(GwangJu) — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:23:21 +0900

The World Human Rights Cities Forum is a platform and network of cities and local authorities to the implementation of internationally recognized human rights standards and norms.

Period: May 15th to 18th, 2012 (4 Days)
Venue: Kimdaejung Convention Center, City Hall and others
Participants: Around 500, which include representatives from 50 human rights cities and organizations, and citizens
Theme: City and Human Rights – Promoting Accountability through Empowerment
Host: Gwangju Metropolitan City Government
Organizer: World Human Rights Cities Forum Promotion Committee
Co - sponsors: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, The Ministry of Justice, UN OHCHR, The National Human Rights Commission of the Republic of Korea, Korean National Commission for UNESCO, Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding under the auspices of UNESCO (APCEIU), UNESCO Office in Bangkok, Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education and others

Date		Major Event
May 15 (Tue)	~	Arrival
	17:00~18:00	Meet with Korea NGOs
	18:30~20:00	Pre-Opening Event
May 16 (Wed)	10:00~12:00	Opening Ceremony (Congratulatory Performance, Keynote Speech)
	12:20~13:30	Convened by Chairman Park Kyeong-seo of 2012 WHRCF Promotion Committee
	14:00~16:00	Institutional Mechanisms to Create human Rights Cities(Session I)
	16:20~18:20	Challenges to Human Rights Cities (College Students Participating Program)	International Conference of UNESCO Coalition of Cities against Discrimination in Asia and the Pacific(Ⅰ)
	19:00~21:00	Welcome Reception (Hosted by Mayor Kang Un-Tae)
17 (Thur)	09:00~12:00	Guidelines to Become a Human Rights City (Session II)	International Conference of UNESCO Coalition of Cities against Discrimination in Asia and the Pacific(Ⅱ)
	12:20~13:30	Convened by Chair of the City Council
	14:00~16:40	Human Rights NGO Seminar	International Conference of UNESCO Coalition of Cities against Discrimination in Asia and the Pacific(Ⅲ)
	16:00~18:00	Adoption of the Declaration / (Closing Ceremony)
	18:00~21:00	May 18 Ceremony Eve Festival
May 18 (Fri)	10:00~11:00	Participation in May 18 Ceremony
May 18 (Fri)	12:00~13:30	Luncheon

World Art Number One at the Jami

(GwangJu) — Mon, 14 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

The Gwangju Artist Collective presents "World Art Number One at the Jami"
Public Event

Saturday, May 19, 2012
3:00pm until 6:00pm

Jami Art Center, Gwangju
May 19-31 2012. Opening Reception, Saturday May 19th from 3pm to 6pm. 14 Artists from gwangju, Jeonju, Daegu, Suncheon and Seoul. All Ex-Pat. artists working in Korea.

Gilda Wilson
Anjiee DiSanto
James C. Greer, Jr.
Tim Han
Joe Wabe
Mark Eaton
Maria Lisak
Leroy Kucia
Doug Stuber
Jess Hinshaw
Zach Rensberger

and in pottery 3-D

Scott Shanklin and Jennifer Nakao

Directions available at:

http://utour.gwangju.go.kr/utour/culture.do?S=S02&M=030500000000&b_code=CULTURE_ENG&tour_cg=TOUR013&v_type=SK2&b_list=16&act=view&list_no=234&nPage=1

The Jami is located on the diagonal side street behind the Cinus building near the Buk-Gu District office, which is at the southern end of “Chonndae Humun” at Chonnam National Museum. You can click on “view map” in the web site above. The Humun stop of numerous busses, including #7 puts you two blocks away, travelling south on Uchiro, then turning left at the first major light, and right at the first minor diagonal road that comes up quickly as you walk.

Photos of artists in the show, a selected list, are below. Hope to see you there!

By Jess Hinshaw:

By Anjee Di Santo:

By Gilda Wilson

By Leroy Kucia:

By Zach Rensberger

By Doug Stuber

ROKin' Health Care

(GwangJu) — Fri, 11 May 2012 09:10:00 +0900

By Erin Stewart

Even if you've only been in Korea a short time, chances are you've had at least some experience with medical care in the ROK, as most teachers get a health check upon arrival. But I'm sure you noticed while at the hospital that things here in Korea are different than most English-speaking countries. For one thing, things are a bit more laid back, and often quicker -- most times I've gone to the doctor here, I am in and out again within an hour; sometimes even just 30 minutes. The most important difference, however, is the cost. Even with health insurance in countries like the United States, Australia, South Africa and Canada, you will generally pay at least double what you will pay for the same procedure in South Korea. This Friday's post details a few experiences people have had with medicine in the ROK, including traditional Korean medicine, dental work, Lasik surgery, and pregnancy.

Even if a Korean medical practitioner is not technically an English speaker, most can speak enough English to get you through your visit. At the very least, you can point to what hurts and say "Apayo 아 파 요" ("it hurts") and they will take it from there. The physicians I have met during my 8 months here have all seemed accommodating and kind, regardless of their English ability. Back in March, I woke up to white-spotted tonsils of elephantine proportions, and simply walked to the nearest hospital (4 minutes away), opened my mouth and pointed, and left twenty minutes later with the pills I needed. With my ARC card, I only paid 13,000 won for the visit and the medicine, an unthinkably easy experience for someone used to the American healthcare system.

My experiences at the traditional Oriental medicine clinics, though, have been my favorite so far in Korea. Generally speaking, medicine in Korea is usually more holistic than Western medicine, and going to these clinics is a great way to alleviate pain, stress, and other minor maladies like strains or sprains without the use of antibiotics or invasive surgery. Despite all the recent hubub about capsules filled with human powder designed to enhance stamina imported to South Korea, Oriental medicine clinics around Korea and in Gwangju are reputable and safe. Oriental medicine clinics provide treatments ranging from acupuncture (침 술 요 범) and massage (마 사 지) to small electric shock therapy and the famous Korean "suction cups" (부 항). One of my friends calls having the suction cup procedure getting "Krakened".

Walking into the clinic is an interesting experience from the start, because one herbal remedy used at these clinics is a tea whose smell is reminiscent of another herbal remedy currently legal for medicinal purposes in places like California. But don't be fooled -- it's still Korea. Each time I go, I get acupuncture, the suction cups, and a short massage, usually on my back where I carry most of my stress. The procedure takes about 30 minutes total, and never costs more than 13,000 won. The Oriental clinic is definitely the place to go for a quick adjustment or pick me up.

Dental care is the one thing I haven't found to be delightfully cheap in the Korean healthcare buffet. It's still cheaper than the US, though. Dental care is also one of those things that may or may not be covered by your school's insurance, so it varies depending on the person and procedure. I went for a checkup a few months ago, just to get my teeth cleaned (which can cost either 10,000 or 50,000 won depending on your insurance situation), and ended up paying about 200,000 won to fill two cavities. I learned later that you have the option to fill cavities with less expensive material, significantly lessening the cost. This is one thing I definitely wish I had known about prior to my visit. It is important to remember to always ask about your options, and keep in mind that you can refuse any procedure recommended to you.

Several friends of mine have had Lasik surgery while here in Korea, and they have all had positive experiences. One friend had surgery in Seoul, and another here in Gwangju. Both said they paid about half the price that Lasik would have cost them in the States, and that the procedures were handled professionally, skillfully, and easily. My friend who had the procedure done in Gwangju said she paid 300,000 won for one eye. The first visit to examine her eye and decide what kind of surgery she would need took over an hour and the actual surgery took about 2 minutes. After that, she had several follow up appointments and no complications. It is also important to remember that when it comes to health care in Korea, sometimes it's not what you know, but who you know. My friend got a 200,000 discount because the doctor was a friend of a friend. Nepotism aside, if you need a procedure done, and know someone who knows another someone, it's definitely worth a shot. (ㅋㅋㅋ...).

Last year, Lindsay Nash wrote an excellent article about her experience having a baby in Korea, which you can view here. A good friend of mine in Gwangju is pregnant and has had an amazing experience working with Korean doctors. She says that she has had a sonogram every visit and hasn't had to make any extra appointments or special trips to get them done. The fee for her appointments is also much lower than they would be back in the states. She had a sonogram and blood work done for 48,000 won, where in the US, even with insurance, it would be at least triple that, and you wouldn't get one every time you visited the doctor. The Korean National Health Care System also gives its members 500,000 won in the form of a debit card to help pay for prenatal appointments. There are also holistic and naturopath options for pregnancy available to you here in Korea in the form of birthing assistants, or Doulas. One such person is Lauren Lee, who has studied to become a Doula since her arrival in Korea and has already assisted in one birth. She is a great person to contact if you are pregnant and looking for more advice and assistance during your pregnancy: Lparker747@gmail.com.

Putting it mildly, Korea is into medicine of multiple varieties. Some people might call it hypochondriac, but others might call it attention to detail. Either way, if you get sick, you're in good hands. And chances are, you'll pay less here for quality care than you would anywhere else.

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 47 DramaTime with a time travelling Prince

(GwangJu) — Thu, 10 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

This week it is all about the drama edition. One of the best and most entertaining shows on television at the moment is Rooftop Prince (옥탑방 왕세자). This is a fantasy story of a Prince from the Joseon dynasty who time travels 300 years into the future to Seoul 2012 to find out the reason behind the death of his Princess.

As with many Korean dramas there are loads of twists and turns along the way in this drama including the Prince meeting people in present day Seoul who are the re-incarnation of all the people in his life from Joseon. He also has to deal with the fact that he resembles the grandson of a wealthy CEO who wants him to take over the company even though he has no clue what is going on, and also dealing with corporate espionage from his own cousin who is trying to kill him.

The story is endearing, comedic and the storyline will have you hooked from the first episode. The role of the Prince is also played by Hallyu superstar and member of super celebrated JYJ Micky Yoochun who has become noted for his amazing acting ability.

Below is a trailer for the story and also a link to a site which offers the show on streaming with English subs for your enjoyment.

Sit back and enjoy and be transported from Joseon to Seoul as we discover the mystery behind one of the most entertaining storylines of the moment.

http://www.dramafans.org/drama/rooftop_prince

Peace,

PS. JD also comes to you live on GFN’s Kpopular daily. Tune into GFN98.7 AND 93.7FM or listen online at www.gfn.or.kr from 12.10 weekdays and 12.05 on weekends.

Where to eat Wednesdays: Yoogane

(GwangJu) — Wed, 09 May 2012 07:40:16 +0900

By Jen Lee

유가네 (Yoogane) is one of those places that's always packed, which can be a turn off for anyone that doesn't want to stick around for the wait. Also, it's one of those places that you'd never want to go to alone, as the whole restaurant is set up for parties of two or more. I had been trying to get a few friends together to check the place out ever since I first saw it, and it wasn’t until last weekend that I was lucky enough to be accompanied by a couple of friends who love trying new places as much as I do.

It's a good thing that we weren't too terribly hungry when we arrived, as there was a 20 minute wait to be seated. With large parties waiting before and after us, we eventually grew hungry with anticipation to finally see what the big deal about this often busy, popular restaurant was.

After one look at the menu, I quickly gathered that this restaurant specializes in chicken galbi and fried rice. As tempting as many of the dishes looked (especially the rice ones), we all decided to settle on the chicken galbi set, which came with two servings of the house special marinated chicken galbi, mozzarella cheese, ramen noodles, two servings of fried rice, and a soda. By this time, we were feeling extra hungry, so we tacked on a combination order of sides (mushrooms, two different types of noodles, cheese filled rice cakes, and peppers).

Before long, our table was cluttered with plates of ingredients, and our waiter started up the gas burner to begin cooking the marinated chicken mixed with potatoes and cabbage. It was interesting to see that unlike other places with similar serving methods, this restaurant had some sort of giant, metal ring to keep food bits from flying onto us while it cooked. While the chicken did take some time to cook, we were able to keep our hunger in check by making frequent visits to the self-serve kimchi and salad bar.

While it may be tempting to push your food around as it cooks, my recommendation would be to leave it alone. There's apparently a system and order to how things work in this restaurant. Really, it's best to leave the waiters to do their thing. At least until they tell you that it's okay to eat.

As expected, the food was delicious. Though the sauce was somewhat spicy, the cheese and noodles did well to mellow out the flavors, melding them all together into a delicious combination that made for a tasty meal.

After we inhaled the meat, veggies, and noodles, our waiter mixed a plate of white rice and other seasonings (which was brought out at the beginning of the meal) into the pan that had just cooked our meal, turning the combination of everything into a delectable fried rice. Fair warning, it’s quite hot, so it may be worth waiting a minute or two before diving in.

I still find it hard to believe that this set was actually meant to be shared between two people, considering the fact that it left four hungry Americans feeling quite satisfied. For the price we paid, it was a great bargain for great food, and we definitely plan to go back to give the cheesy looking fried rice a try.

There are actually two locations within two blocks of each other in downtown. We went to the first location.

First Location Phone: 062-233-9234
First Address: 광주광역시 동구 황금동 69-3 (next to Burger King)
Second Location Phone: 062-234-9233
Second Location Address: 광주광역시 동구 충장로3가 19-11
Website: http://www.yoogane.co.kr/

Cooking in Korea: Everything but the Kitchen Sink Soup

(GwangJu) — Tue, 08 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

By Kezia Chee

I am by no means a chef, but every now and again, the time comes to clean out your pantry and fridge, and soup is one of the best ways to make use of all the odds and ends you are left with. It also fits well into my personal "I Don't Know How To Cook For One Person, So I Will Cook Enough For An Army And Then Live Off Of This One Meal For The Rest Of The Week" mentality.

If I'm going to cook, it's got to be easy and it's got to be quick. This recipe was made on the fly as I emptied pretty much everything from my kitchen -- except the sink, of course (ba-dum-cha!). Feel free to adapt it to your own tastes and experiment with other ingredients you have lying around.

Everything But the Kitchen Sink Soup
Prep Time: 5 mins. Cook time: 15 mins. (Serves 4-6)

500 grams cooked rice
5 heads winter plowing, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled & diced
8 green onions/scallion bulbs, diced
1 can (405 g) of corn
8-10 frozen dumplings
8 whole garlic cloves
1/2 cup soy sauce
3 tbs salt
3 tbs black pepper
1 tbs cumin
3 tbs red pepper flakes

1.) Over high heat, bring a large pot filled halfway with water to a boil. Add salt and soy sauce. As the water is boiling, clean, peel, & chop the winter plowing, carrots, and scallions.
2.) Over medium heat, add whole garlic cloves and diced carrots to boiling water. (If you prefer your garlic diced or minced, feel free to do so during prep time.) Let cook for 3-5 minutes.
3.) Add winter plowing, corn, and scallions. Again, any green, leafy vegetable will do. Let cook for 1 minute.

4.) Add cooked rice in 1 cup increments, breaking up clumps and allowing it time to absorb the broth. (Any amount & any kind will do. I happened to have some leftover cooked white rice from the weekend.) Add more water as needed.
5.) Add frozen dumplings. Let simmer 3-5 minutes.
6.) Add red pepper flakes, cumin, and any other spices you like to taste. Feel free to add them to individual bowls of soup as well, for an extra punch of flavor.

Voilà! There you have it. Now you can feast solo like a king or queen for the week or have friends over for a soup party.

*NOTE: Though I do not consider myself a talented chef, I always strive to aim for a broad range of color in my meals, as this is the easiest way to know my body is getting a healthy array of nutrients. Red bell peppers, red & white onions, cabbage, pumpkin, squash, and zucchini would also make great additions to this meal.

Seogulicious!

(GwangJu) — Mon, 07 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

We here at Gwangjublog.com are a bunch of food lovers. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that when we receive a guest blog post about food, we post it as soon as we can. A big thanks to Steve for submitting this to us! If you'd like to share a secret place in your part of town, feel free to write up a post and we'll blog it! Just send it to us at Gwangjublog@hotmail.com with your name and contact information.

Thanks to the restaurant guidebook recently by the Seo-gu District office, I was able to find this hidden gem. Located just south of the Sejong Outlet and Sangmu Station, it is not exactly in a place that has a lot of people traffic. To get there from Sejong Outlet, cross the street, go down the street past the big electronics store that never has what I want, into the neighborhood of crummy buildings, and turn right after 1 block. Go past the row of abandoned trucks until you see the duck restaurant. You will see a 2-story building, which houses Haksangnongjang (학사농장).

The food:
Located on the second floor of the building, you will notice right away that it is a bit small and personal. One advantage to the small size is that you can see the cooks cranking away in the kitchen on their delectable creations. The signature dish of the restaurant is Sweet Pumpkin Grilled Duck (단호박오리구이) a pricy (48,000W) dish that is worth every hard earned won you shill out for it. It is basically grilled duck stuffed into a pumpkin, which would seem to be an odd combination at first. One taste, however will change your mind. Bring a friend because it is a large dish.

On a later trip, I had their organic pizza (12,000W). It seemed a bit lacking in the flavor department and my companion noted that it resembled the frozen pizzas sold downstairs. And yet, it didn't have cardboard aftertaste that often accompanies frozen pizzas. Overall, their menu doesn't have a lot of options for a restaurant that is above a store. For vegetarians, there is a lotus leaf rice dish which my companion said was pretty good, and a salad bar which has actual veggies unlike the Mr. Pizza salad bar which has nacho chips and chocolate chip cookies.

The food not to your liking? Not hungry at the moment? Like a department store, this restaurant gives you a second option

The shop:
On the first floor is the organic food shop. Here, you can find locally and internationally grown/produced/manufactured organic goods, from bell peppers to meats and cookies. No "Frankenfoods" in this warehouse, no sir. The pizza that they sell upstairs in the restaurant can also be found here, for roughly the same price. Unlike most organic shops, this one comes with a fresh meat section, in case you were really fond of the shabu-shabu dish you just had upstairs. I am especially fond of their black chocolate chip cookies.

Hours: 10am to 8pm. Tel No: 384-6202

5 Underrated Places in Gwangju

(GwangJu) — Fri, 04 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

By Erin Stewart

Gwangju's not a small city--but it's not the biggest. I've often heard foreigners who have lived in larger cities like Seoul or Busan say they prefer Gwangju's size for it's ease of mobility and friendlier people. I've also heard people from smaller towns like Naju, Mokpo and Yeosu say they wish they lived in Gwangju for the better choices of restaurants, stores, and doctors. Either way I think most people can agree that Gwangju is not too big and it's not too small---it's just right.
That being said, even in the sixth largest city in the ROK, you can occasionally feel like you're going to the same shops/venues/bars every single day and weekend and sometimes it's hard not to get stuck in the grind. This Friday's post is about, as the title implies, underrated places in Gwangju. Now that the weather's better, here are some things to go and see that are so obvious you may have missed them:

1. The River:
I've heard a few people chide GwangjuCheon (the Gwangju River) , calling it a muddy little stream. There's some merit there---it's not the Amazon by any means, but if you're looking for a quick escape from city sounds on a pretty day, or even just a nice place to bike or run, look no further. The Cheon stretches from southeast Gwangu, near Hwasoon, straight up through the heart of downtown and Northwest towards Sangmu where it connects with the Yeongsan River by the airport. Because of this, you can reach the river fairly easily from most parts of Gwangju proper. It is peppered with little clusters of exercise machines, as well as picturesque waterfalls and stepping stones every few hundred yards. There are even a few intermittent pavilions, or "chill-pavils" as my friend Adrian calls them, for your all-purpose chilling needs.

The river is a great place to enjoy some sunset libations or a picnic with friends amid the greening Spring foliage.

And if you look closely, you might even get to see some excellent street-artwork, provided by Gwangju's talented underground. Which brings me to

2. The Blue Wall:
Gwangju prides itself on being a city of Asian culture, and in my opinion the big blue construction wall in the heart of downtown is a great example of this. According to the Gwangju website, the lot is 128,621m' in size, meaning that the big blue wall is very big indeed. The city has done an excellent job employing artists of all ages and skill levels to decorate the construction wall of what will become in 2014 the Asian Culture Complex. My school is located about 100 yards from the blue wall, and as such I walk past multiple sides of it everyday, usually with a few moments to spare. The kinds of painting, graffiti, and other creative art just hanging out on the wall genuinely impress me. They have exhibits created by Gwangju school children, as well as professionals in the area. The best part is, it's free! If you find yourself downtown with an hour or so to spare, I strongly suggest spending that time walking the perimeter of the wall and looking at the artwork.

3. The Pungam Dong Reservoir
Located a short walk from the World Cup stadium, the Reservoir, or "Juh-Soo-Jee" (저 수 지) is another awesome place for the outdoor-inclined. The reservoir was originally built for agricultural purposes but has been turned into yet another useful green space for a large, crowded city. The path around the reservoir is about 2km, and winds through picturesque flowers, trees, and the ever-present exercise equipment. There are also some lovely bridges and sculptures.

Photo Credit: Kezia Chee

4. "Dos Mas" Mexican Grill near Chosun University

As a small burrito shop near a university, Dos Mas caters mostly to the college crowd, and is a perfect place to grab an after work/after downtown burrito. I'm from Texas and have pretty high burrito standards and the grilled burritos at Dos Mas are definitely good. You have a choice between beef, chicken, or vegetarian, and can make it a combo with french fries for about 5,000 Won. If it's been a long day, you can throw in a tequila shot for 2,500 won. The phone number is 070-4220-3577. 지 산 동 518-7번 지.

5. "So Blue" Sandwhich Shop and Beer Joint Downtown

The best word to describe So Blue is probably "hipster" but a close second is "delicious". I'd walked past this place several times before and had heard from a few foreigners that it's one of the best places in Gwangju to get great tasting, very western style sandwiches. The decor is cool and relaxing and they have awesome beer and coffee selections as well. I got a tofu sandwich for 8,000 Won, and it came with grilled veggies on grilled rye bread and a honey mustard sauce that was nothing short of amazing. It is located on the west side of the street between the Ministop and the Wedding street downtown, on the second floor.

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 46 Kpop’s hottest is coming to town this week

(GwangJu) — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Last week I reported on Kpostar which has crowned its winner. If you haven’t already heard Park Ji Min is the latest star of Korea shockingly stealing the title from online favorite Lee Ha Yi. Both did an excellent job in the finals so congrats to both.

Now onto the best news can hear if you like kpop and are willing to stand in line to meet some of the hottest boy groups around at the moment. Nu’est and EXO-K are coming to Gwangju on the 5th and 9th of May.

First up this Saturday the 5th Nu’est will be in Gwangju for a signing. They are from Pledis Entertainment which also represents Afterschool and Son Dam Bi. Their name is a combination of NU (New), E (Establish), S (Style), and T (Tempo) and with fresh looks and even fresher electro-pop beats they have been heating up music variety shows with their hit Faces.

Next also coming Gwangju on the Wednesday the 9th is much hyped SM group EXO-K. Comprised of 6 members EXO-K is a sub-unit of 12 member group EXO (greater) which also has another 6 member group EXO-M which promote in Korea and China simultaneously. Well this group is made up of mostly male models so if it is eye candy you want be sure to get in line on the 9th. Their songs are trendy and addictive so don’t miss out on this opportunity to meet some Kpop stars.

Here is the low down.

Signings only allow a limited amount of fans per event and you need to buy your album in advance. Where is all of this Kpop madness happening? Well at the most famous cd store in Gwangju - located at the top of Chungjanro near wedding street. It is pretty easy to find with huge posters up in the windows.

If you are not sure yet, below find two videos from the groups.

Nu’est

Exo - Mama

Peace,

PS. JD also comes to you live on GFN’s Kpopular daily. Tune into GFN98.7 AND 93.7FM or listen online at www.gfn.or.kr from 12.10 weekdays and 12.05 on weekends.

Where to eat Wednesdays: Menmusha

(GwangJu) — Wed, 02 May 2012 07:17:00 +0900

by Jen Lee

I love living in Korea. I love the life I have in Korea. Despite those facts, it's not uncommon for me to sit back and enjoy the memories of the life I had before coming here. One memory that always sticks out is the year I lived in Japan. While life in the land of the rising sun wasn't always easy, I managed to find comfort in the form of a hot bowl of ramen (as well as other forms of Japanese cuisine). It may sound silly, but I've recently found myself craving Japanese food a lot more than I thought I would. While one could easily hop a ferry to the neighboring country to fix these cravings, such a trip could get expensive (trust me, I know). That's why I'm happy to say that I think I may have found a better, cheaper alternative.

I was actually introduced to 멘무샤 (Menmusha) by a friend who had spent almost a year hunting this place down after forgetting the location on a very drunk night. After hearing so much about it, I had to try it out.

Upon arrival, I could see how one could have lost the location so easily. Located in a random corner on the busy streets of Sangmu, I'm pretty sure I probably walked past this restaurant without even taking a second glance. The main sign is actually made up of Chinese characters with some Korean written right next to it, and there was no way I would have guessed that this was a place to eat if it weren't for the pictures they had put up outside.

Once we entered, we were greeted with kindness and enthusiasm, and then seated immediately (the owner seems to like foreigners). The decor was quite nice, and instantly reminded me of some of the bars I frequented when I lived in Japan. If that wasn't enough to transport me back a few years, the menu definitely did. Serving up everything from ramen to gyudon to even okonomiyaki, it was difficult for me to not order everything that caught my eye. Despite the temptation to overindulge, I ended up ordering the spicy looking 탄탄멘 (tantanmen). My usual partner in crime, who doesn't have as much of a stomach for spicy food, got the 미소라멘 (miso ramen), and my friend got the 차슈덮밥 (chashyu deopbab), which was pretty much marinated pork over rice. We also got a sampler platter consisting of some of the fried snacks the menu had to offer.

After a short while, our food came out piping hot. The spicy ramen I had was tasty with just the right amount of burn to satisfy my Korean side. I also appreciated that the broth wasn’t too salty, which is a major mistake that many places claiming to make Japanese ramen make. The whole dish actually reminded me of my usual order at a restaurant I frequented in the small city of Tsuyama. I managed to steal a taste of the creamy miso broth before my partner devoured the whole bowl, and I even asked nicely to get a taste of my friend’s rice dish. Needless to say, it was all good.

While the ramen was the highlight of the meal, the sampler platter we got was also filled with pleasant surprises. The dish came with a small salad, fried shrimp, potato croquettes, and three different types of fried chicken. While all that was great on its own, what really made it special was this sweet and spicy sauce that came with the order. The closest thing I can think of when trying to describe the taste is a type of sauce you’d find on American-Chinese style chicken (General Tso comes to mind). Fair warning, sharing may be a little difficult.

While 멘무샤 may not be the best place I’ve been to in Korea for ramen and Japanese food (my ultimate favorite is still in Busan), it’s definitely good enough to keep me from dropping all of my money and vacation time on trips to a place I consider my third home. Also, if you're into Japanese alcohol, this place seems to have plenty to choose from.

Address: 광주광역시 서구 치평동 1228-9
Phone: 062-383-0040
Website: http://www.menmusha.co.kr/

The Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival: A Photo Essay by Kezia Chee

(GwangJu) — Tue, 01 May 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Sungbin's Saturday

(GwangJu) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

May 19th can mean only one thing for everyone, CAKE!!!!!

by Andrew Sweeny

Sungbin orphanage invites the community of Gwangju to a date of coffee drinking, cake eating, book buying and even a go at some silent auctioning!! On May 19th 'The Underground Grocers', in the downtown area, will host a bake sale in aid of the Sungbin Orphanage. The bake sale, which starts at 12 noon and finishes at 6 o' clock, will raise funds for the girls of the orphanage, and all the money will go towards the girl's educational needs.

The art work for the silent auction has been donated by those who want to. So, if you are the 'arty' type and you want to see what your work is worth, please contact us and we will be delighted to auction it for you. We are always in need of volunteers and May 19th is no different. If you want to get involved you can bake, donate those 'classic' books that you have no interest in reading or you can help us sell on the day.

So, please, spread the word to all cake lovers, and join us on May 19th for a very worthy cause!!!

For all donations or enquires please contact Daniel at daniellister7@hotmail.com

Bitgoeul Korea Traditional Classical Music Instruction Hall

(GwangJu) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 08:12:18 +0900

By Erin Stewart

Even if you don't consider yourself a musical person, you would still enjoy a visit to the Bitgeoul Cultural Korean music center in Seo-Gu. "Bitgeoul" in Korean means "Light District". The main purpose of the center is to provide a place for the preservation and continuation of Korean traditional culture. Koreans and foreigners alike can take instructional classes in the art of several kinds of traditional Korean music, including Pansori (판 소 리), a kind of traditional Korean song chant, and Dae Gum (대 금), the traditional Korean flute.

Pansori consists of one performer with a drum or other percussion instrument, and another performer singing. Occasionally, there is a leader with a percussion instrument, directing a group of singers. The day I visited the center I sat in on a Pansori class and was able to experience firsthand what it felt like to be in this sort of a Pansori "choir". A formidable woman, adept in the art, led a class of mostly Koreans by beating on her drum and singing each phrase as the students repeated her. The class lasted for about two hours, breaking halfway through for a lunch I was warmly invited to partake in. Pansori, with only voices and percussion, has a raw, compelling sound that I liked instantly. As the only foreigner, the "gosu" or leader, asked me to sing in front of the rest of the class, mimicking her chants. Even though I was terrified, I think everyone there got a huge kick out of a girl from Texas attempting the Pansori chant. UNESCO named Pansori a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" in 2003.

When I sat in on the Dae Gum (traditional flute) class next door, I was surprised and thrilled to see that my Korean coworker was a student in the class. Gum Yie, a Korean English teacher at my Hagwon, has taken Dae Gum classes at the center for the last year, and couldn't recommended them enough for both foreigners and Koreans alike. She used to play the flute when she was younger, but has just in the last year picked it back up again. There are usually between 20 and 30 people in her class, mostly Korean, of varying ability levels. Though the class is conducted in Korean, she said any foreigner with a minimal understanding of Korean and a sense of adventure could probably get along fine in the class. When I sat in on the class I felt incredibly welcomed by all the participants and the instructor. Gum Yie and her classmates often get together outside of the class, and the instructor once invited the students to an art exhibit in Hwasun where the music was provided by professional traditional instrumentalists from the Gwangju area.

The cost for classes is very reasonable. Each class is between 10-12,000 won, twice a week, or you can sign up for three months of classes for about 50,000 won.

According to the center, they are planning on developing new programs for foreigners such as Pan So Ri classes, Korean traditional cooking classes,and Korean Calligraphy classes in English. There is a free concert every Thursday night, as well as yearly special concerts with all the classes. The Korean traditional music center is a great way to spend a day experiencing a more historic Korea.

Address: Geumho-dong, Seo-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City 790 | Tel : 062-350-4557

Korea Traditional Music Instrument Culture School: Adult 50,000won(3months), Children 30,000won
Korea Traditional Music Instrument Museum(Display Hall) : Adult 500won, Young people 300won, Children 200won

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 45 She is the new Kpop-Star

(GwangJu) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Who will be our latest Kpop-Star? Sunday sees an epic battle showdown between two budding musical talents that have been competing for months. Yes, the widely publicised and noted Kpop-Star reality singing contest culminates this Sunday crowning its first muse.

The show that initially gained attention for being underwritten and judged by the CEO’s and representatives of the three biggest Kpop music agencies in South Korea, YG Entertainment, JYP and SM Entertainment is now the must watch television show of the week.

This Sunday 29th April sees two brilliant vocalists and performers Park Ji Min and Lee Ha Yi battle for a life changing record deal with one of the above mentioned agencies. Both have been the judges and public favorites since the start of the competition.

The two remaining girls each have their own unique charms. 15 year old Park Ji Min was an attention grabber effortlessly belting out Adele and Whitney Houston classics and 16 year old Lee Ha Yi has taken the industry by storm with her sultry and husky voice by perfectly vocalising classics by Duffy as well as Jasmine Sullivan.

Unlike with many other reality tv shows with a clear winner emerging weeks before the final I will say that the playing field is pretty much equal for these two amazingly talented songstresses. Last week they performed collaborations with top industry stars Lee Ha Yi with Miss A and Park Ji Min with GD and TOP and wowed audiences only baiting them further for this week’s grand finale. I hope Ha Yi does some Amy Winehouse and Ji Min some Toni Braxton. Anyway, who do you think will take the title of Kpop-Star this Sunday? Tune into SBS this Sunday at 6:30pm and vote for your favorite.

Below are links to their best performances so let’s enjoy and anticipate the newest member of the Kpop community.

Park Ji Min - Somewhere over the Rainbow

Lee Ha Yi - Mercy

Peace,

PS. JD also comes to you live on GFN’s Kpopular daily. Tune into GFN98.7 AND 93.7FM or listen online at www .gfn .or .kr from 12.10 weekdays and 12.05 on weekends.

Where to eat Wednesdays: Jeon Jeon Jeon!

(GwangJu) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:35:00 +0900

by Jen Lee

One thing that I've learned while living in Korea is that it's supposedly good to eat fried food on rainy days. While I don't understand the reasoning behind this, it's always nice to have an excuse to chow down on unhealthy junk from time to time. One particular fried dish I've enjoyed since I was a kid is 전 (jeon). It is basically a pancake-like dish with things like green onions and all sorts of other goodness mixed in. I'm personally a huge fan of the kimchi variety. While it is usually eaten as an appetizer or a side dish, it can often be enjoyed on its own.

I was taken to 전판 철판 술한판 (jeonpan cheolpan sulhanpan) on one of those annoyingly sprinkly days by a friend who's just as much of a nut for savory pancakes as I am. While location can be a little difficult to find, especially since it's a small shop with little to no English available, it's a good choice for those looking for a place that offers many different varieties of jeon. It also appears to be a popular option for locals, as the place had absolutely no shortage of them.

Now I understand that a look at the menu can be a little scary for anyone that's not familiar with the Korean language, so here is a quick translation of many jeons you can try:

소고기전 - Beef Jeon

동그랑땡 - Circle Jeon (made with all sorts of ingredients)

명태전 – Pollock Jeon

굴전 – Oyster Jeon

해물파전 – Seafood & Green Onion Jeon

홍어전 – Skate Jeon

고추전 – Pepper Jeon

김치전 – Kimchi Jeon

부추양파전 – Chives & Onion Jeon

산적 – Assorted Skewers (made with all sorts of ingredients)

For those of you that want to sample everything, they even had an order that comes with the restaurant’s most popular jeons (beef, circle, pollock, oyster, pepper, assorted skewers), and it even comes with some mushroom jeon and pumpkin jeon.

Since we weren’t feeling too adventurous, we went for the Beef option with an extra order of the Chives & Onion variety. Right after we ordered, we were given many different types of kimchi to enjoy as side dishes. The one that stood out the most was the slightly brown kind that was actually made with 된장 (doenjang), which is a popular bean paste that people seem to either love or hate.

The Beef Jeon came out first. I wasn’t sure what exactly to expect when I placed the order, but it was definitely different from any other type of jeon I ever had. It was basically flattened pieces of lean beef that had been dipped in batter and pan fried. It was quite tasty, and I couldn’t help but be reminded of Chicken Fried Steak (a classic dish that is quite popular back where I come from) with each bite. Soon after, we got the Chives & Onion Jeon, which was much closer to the original dish I used to enjoy. If you’re a fan of chives, this one is one to get. The combination of onions and chives served with the right amount of peppers turned out to be a delicious, but messy pancake that fell apart as we tore into it. I would recommend this one be eaten with a little more care.

While this wouldn’t be a place I’d recommend for any readers that are in need of something filling, it’s definitely a good option for anyone that wants to indulge in one of Korea’s favorite junk foods.

Address: 광주광역시 서구 쌍촌동 1281-6

Phone: 062-383-8858

Who is Travvy G? The international man of mixery?

(GwangJu) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

by Kezia Chee

Travis Groves is both media mogul and man of the world: he has been living in South Korea for 4 years and recently moved from Seoul to Gwangju, where he is the writer, co-producer, and host of the GFN program, ‘In the Mix’.

Growing up in Queensland, Australia, Groves spent most of his life surfing and skateboarding along the Sunshine Coast (as Aussies are want to do). He studied fashion and media during his college years, where he also trained to be a television reporter. In 2006, Groves moved from Queensland to the UK, eventually securing a job as the Advertising Operations Executive of the world-famous, upscale department store, Harrods Knightsbridge of London. This position provided him with the unique opportunity to brush elbows with some of the media’s most well-known celebrities, including Kylie Minogue, Liam Gallagher, Kate Bosworth, Georgio Armani, and David & Victoria Beckham.

After a year in the UK, Groves moved back to Australia but was subsequently hit with what he deemed the “travel bug,” leading him to pack his bags and head to South Korea to teach English and travel Asia. He moved to Hongdae in Seoul in 2008, where he landed a gig as a guest reporter on a popular radio program Drive Time at TBS eFM. It was here that Groves was able to exercise his media chops by covering fashion and rock music, as well as write for a program called Mtown, which grew in ratings under his guidance.

From TBS eFM, Groves moved on to Mnet America, where he became an entertainment news reporter for a popular TV program called US Wide, which broadcasted throughout parts of the US. He was able to interview Korean K-Pop and film stars (including Girls Generation, 2PM’s Jaebom Park, and Brad Pitt) on the red carpet and attend a slew of high profile events, such as Seoul Fashion Week, the Style Icon Awards, Melon Music Awards, and Daejon Film Awards.

Ever the versatile media machine, Groves has also developed and designed all of the promotional material for his show, ‘In the Mix’, on the Gwangju Foreigners’ Network here in Gwangju. The program covers a myriad of musical genres, from pop and hip hop to rock, indie, jazz and electronic. “I always had the intention to make something of myself in Korea within the media industry…I feel very privileged to have been given the opportunity and creative control in developing what I hope will be considered one of the best western music programs in Korea.”

As for his time in Gwangju so far, Groves says he has “been overwhelmed with the reception from the Korean and expat community,” and that he is “very excited about bringing people together through good music and events.” He has traveled over 18 different countries, including Egypt, Israel, Japan, Hong Kong, France, and Spain. One of his ultimate goals is to advance his career in radio hosting to another country, such as America. He has also started to host parties at Club Volume in downtown Gwangju, which are aimed at bringing the foreign expat and Korean communities together.

Tune in to Groves’ ‘In the Mix’ Monday to Sunday from 8pm – 10pm on GFN 98.7 FM in Gwangju, 93.7 FM in Yeosu, or stream from www.gfn.or.kr. You can also add him on facebook and twitter by searching GFNinthemix.

What's your (new) address?

(GwangJu) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

In the not too distant future, South Korea will change over from its current lot-based address to the world standard of number, street name, city, province or state and country with zip code. While this is meant to reduce confusion in the long term, in the short term, don't expect your postal service to be too pleased with you being ahead of the curve and using the new system. Nevertheless, it's a nation-wide change and we're all eventually going to be getting a new address. The following information comes from our Korean helper, Eunkang Chung.

What is my new address?

Go to www.juso.go.kr to find out.

1. Click on "English" on the top.

2. Click on your area on the map.

3. Input your information on the drop-down menus.

Your new address will look something like this:

1 Gwangju Gil, Buk-Gu Gwangju.

Roads are classified into 3 categories: Daero, ro and gil- based on their width.

A Daero is more than 8 lanes, a ro is more than 2 and less than 7 and a gil only has one lane. For example, geumnam RO.

New road names will be given after gathering opinions from residents and deliberations by a committee on the new address system.

Since Korea has so many apartments, addresses can be detailed to provide apartment building, floor and room numbers. The complete switch over is going to occur by 2013. Got any questions? Email us at gwangjublog@hotmail.com!

Top of the Mt. Mudeung To Be Opened For The First Time This Year

(julie Kim) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 09:32:00 +0900

The city of Gwangju will open the top of Mt. Mudeung to the public on April 28th from 9 am to 4 pm for the first time this year.

The summit of Mt. Mudeung has been closed to the public ever since national troops were stationed near a missile base in Cheonwangbong in 1966.

This is the second year Gwangju is opening up the peak to meet the citizens’ long-cherished desire to visit Cheongwangbong, a long standing Gwangju symbolical landmark.

Anyone can participate in the opening event of the Mountain and visitors will be asked to have a photo ID with them when entering.

Running: Not Just For Forrest Gump

(GwangJu) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

When it comes to running, people usually either love it or hate it. There is, however, a minority who enjoy it occasionally. You might call them dabblers. I myself dabble in running. Even though I never did track or cross-country, I've found that my body generally feels pretty good after a run (if not during a run) and it can be worth the pain for the positive after-effects a few times a week.

However, I'd never considered actually running a race until a few years ago. I'd had several friends who followed the marathon-training recipe and had successfully completed one or even a few. Running a full marathon definitely did not sound appealing to me, especially when I saw the time commitment, charlie horses, and black toenails involved. But during the summer of 2010 my roommate and I decided to train for a Sprint-Distance triathlon and thought a 5k would be a great way to help us stay motivated during the course of our training. I enjoyed the experience immensely: I set achievable goals and really surprised myself. By the end of that summer I had run (albeit slowly) 7 miles, the most I'd ever run in my life. But most importantly I realized I had started to enjoy running. I also realized that races are a lot of fun—the energy and excitement are contagious and you are likely to forget the fact that you are actually running.

Most races are held for charity, and your participation can help support a good cause. (Just as a fun side-note, I once participated in a 5k benefiting orphans called, understandably, "Run for Orphans". However, a misprint on one of the flyers called it the "Run from Orphans"... I grabbed a few extra flyers. They at least got it right on the T-shirts). Also, unless you find yourself in the Boston marathon or some other such event, most races have a wide spectrum of participants, ranging across all ages, genders and ability levels. At most races you can usually find other like-minded people that are running or walking comparable distances and paces.

Here in Korea, races are gaining in popularity. One such race was held this past Sunday in Boseong, the town where the beautiful Green Tea Fields are located. It was a warm, sunny day, and the Gwangju Running Club and many of its members came out to participate in the race’s 5k, 10k, half and full marathon events. The Boseong race was well organized at a stadium where all the runners could congregate before and after the race. The crowd was a lively mix of over 1,000 people, Koreans and foreigners, ranging from 4 years old to about 60. There was a pre-race ceremony, complete with fireworks, photos, and Gwangju FC cheerleaders leading a group warm-up. The event also included a great post-run Korean lunch of noodles, Kimchi, tofu, makeolli, bananas, cakes, juice, and of course cupfuls of the famous Boseong Green Tea. Another souvenir of signing up for the race was a bag of Boseong Green Tea rice, most of which the Gwangju Running Club donated to the Il Mek Won children's home in Dong-gu Jisan-dong, who were pleased to receive it. Mike Lee, a Gwangju teacher who participated in the 10k was impressed that the times for the 10k, half and full marathon races were promptly posted by Monday night.

Justin Rankin, an avid runner who organizes the group’s events, spoke about his experience at the Boseong race as compared with other races in Korea:

“I think the biggest difference between the Boseong race and other larger scale events like the Seoul International Marathon was the sense of community present amongst the runners, volunteers and spectators that day. In a huge race like Seoul it's easy to get caught up amongst the thousands of other runners and you often lose sight of the little things that make a race in Korea such a cool experience. It was fun to run through the rural areas outside of Boseong and receive a warm welcome from the residents. They stood outside smiling and cheering while handing out water, bananas and even makeolli at their homemade aid stations. That kind of thing just doesn't happen in bigger events”.

Justin has been involved with the Gwangju Running Club since the beginning of his time in Korea, and recommends joining the Facebook group to anyone interesting in becoming more involved with running, whether seriously or recreationally. The site posts information about weekly runs as well as group registrations for the larger running events across Korea. Plus it’s just a cool way to make some new friends.

There is also talk of post-run beers/dinner---I’m down.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/113340165347695/

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 44 Learn Korean through Kpop

(GwangJu) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Last week I featured the amazing Busker Busker who have been sweeping the charts and as I predicted rightfully grabbed the number 1 spot in the country on the KPOPULAR TOP 40 Countdown with me JD and Soo on GFN last Saturday.

Their songs are by are by far the most addictive at the moment and I have been finding myself happily singing the Korean lyrics to their hit Yeosu Night Sea and noticibly improving my Korean pronunciation too. I can’t get the following out of my head...

너와 함께 걷고 싶다

이 바다를 너와 함께 걷고 싶어

이 거리를 너와 함께 걷고 싶다

이 바다를 너와 함께 걷고 싶어

여수 밤바다

I want to walk here with you

I want to walk along this sea with you

I want to walk this street with you

I want to walk along this sea with you

Yeosu night sea

This got me thinking about improving my Korean proficiency through popular media and music. After searching the net for a while I came across the super useful youtube channel Sweet and Tasty which breaks Korean down into incredibly easy digestible chunks that you can practice while at your desk or at home. Trust me - after watching a few of these funny and true to life clips your understanding will improve and you can start making more sense of the world around you.

I also found this Gem all about Kpop which will help you to understand the industry and some useful Korean about simple emotions to go along with it.

Ok - time to sit back and enjoy Billie Jin and her alter ego’s.

Kpop

Where to eat Wednesdays: The Frypan

(GwangJu) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

When it comes to Westernized food in Korea, it usually seems to be hit or miss. Sometimes you get delicious variations on an old favorite, while other times can leave you feeling wanting to leave the country for a bowl of something to get the taste out of your memory. That being said, if there's anything that Korea seems to get right, it's fried chicken. What can I say? I love fried chicken. Anyone that feels the same way as I do may suffer from eating it way too often. After the delicious recipe that GwangjuBlog posted about a week ago, I find myself having fewer excuses to not indulge.

While there is a lot of debate on which chicken place holds the top spot, one place that is guaranteed to always stay in my top 5 is the Frypan. Anyone that enjoys partying into the night in downtown should be familiar with this small, but cozy place. After all, it's pretty difficult to miss the giant sign that proudly boasts "Fried Chicken & Beer" right under it.

The wooden menu is small, but offers more than enough to keep a hungry customer satisfied. What's the best thing to order? While you may be quick to assume that the American style chicken is what makes this place special, it's actually the freshly cut potato chips that won me over in an instant.

Before I go and obsess about the chips, I'll cover the rest of my order. My usual partner in crime and I were feeling pretty hungry, so we got the Chicken Tender + Salad set. With the set, you get an order of chicken, a decent sized salad, and two choices of sauces. We chose the original (good) and the garlic (bad) sauces.

The salad, which tends to be hit or miss, came right after the complementary bar snacks. I can’t say that it was a salad I’d eat again, considering the fact that it was covered in a citrus, jam-like sauce and had slices of bananas in it. It seems like they like to change the salads around every few months, so it may be worth asking what ingredients they’re using before ordering it.

It wasn’t too long after we finished picking at our salad that the chicken and chips came out. As someone who loves chicken and hates bones, the food at the Frypan is a perfect fit for me. The breading is seasoned with just the right amount of spices, and the chicken is served hot and right out of the fryer. The meat is juicy and tender, which is an absolute requirement for good chicken. I also love the fact that the shape and style of the chicken is very reminiscent of what I used to enjoy back in the states.

Now, about those chips. I have yet to meet anyone that’s rejected these fresh cut potato chips. It really is amazing how such a simple concept manages to set this chicken place apart from so many others in the country. Be sure to eat them quickly before they get soggy, and don’t forget to share. Also, it may be worth noting that they don’t really salt these chips, so I recommend that you enjoy them with ketchup.

All in all, the Frypan is a good place for a delicious taste of familiarity. While it’s good to enjoy at any time (after 5PM), I personally find myself craving it the most at odd hours of the night after a hardcore karaoke session with friends.

Jimmy Yu and City of Light

(GwangJu) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Jimmy Yu is a Korean-American who was born in Colorado, hails from California, moved to Korea, and found himself in Gwangju as of February 2012. A man of many talents, Yu has been a law school candidate, English teacher, international manager for an A-list actor, television sports anchor, voice actor, and currently works for GFN as the host of the news and culture program, City of Light.

After graduating from the University of Michigan Ann-Arbor with a degree in political science/economics in 2008, Yu had plans to attend law school after a short summer stay in Korea. When the time came to return to the states, however, he decided to stay and teach English instead. He taught at various institutions for a couple of months until he realized his heart would be happier elsewhere, and, through a network of friends, found work as an international manager for an A-list actor inside a major entertainment company.

But as exciting and busy as this job and lifestyle were, Yu ultimately (and wisely, I might add) decided to pursue his own dreams instead of working to achieve someone else’s. He auditioned for a spot on Arirang TV, an international, English-language network based in Seoul, and landed a job as a radio announcer in early 2010. It was at this time he also began working as a reporter for various programs ranging from K-pop Zone at Arirang to the Morning Special at EBS radio, the only Educational Broadcast System that covers South Korea and “strives to supplement school education and promote lifelong education for everyone in Korea.”

Yu also supplemented his work at Arirang through voice-acting gigs for M-net (a Korean-based Music Television channel), as well as songs on JYP Entertainment (a Korean record label whose roster includes Rain, Lim Jeong Hee, and Wonder Girls) and TV commercials. It was here that he found his stride, saying “This was about the time I realized that I truly enjoyed working in media—I loved the jitters before every live show, I loved delivering the latest news, and I loved being behind the mic.” An unstoppable force of media savvy, Yu also was able to work as a sports anchor on a daily TV show at this time, and was still doing so until a few weeks ago, when he decided to move to Gwangju and work for the Gwangju Foreigners’ Network.

In regards to City of Light, Yu mentions they have brought about improvements for the program, from adding daily national and sports reporting from their Seoul correspondents to longer and more interesting guest segments. He also adds, “The best improvement is that we are now live every day, as a news program should be. We’ve been and will continue to tweak stuff around to make the program more entertaining and fun for our listeners.”

As for now, Yu has long-term aspirations to work in media and plans to study intensive Korean with the goal of being able to write newspaper articles in Korean.

Catch Yu hosting City of Light live on GFN radio daily from Monday – Friday, 6-8 PM by tuning the radio to 98.7 FM or streaming from www.gfn.or.kr. For smartphone owners, you can also listen by downloading the Tune-in Radio app.

The realities of bringing 3 pets to Korea

(GwangJu) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

Today's guest blog post is some helpful advice based on experience of bringing a pet or three from home to Korea. Akasha Kanter and her husband are currently living and teaching in Mokpo, and have shared their experiences for us today. If you'd like to take a look at their blog, you can find them at http://jeollanamdosalad.wordpress.com.

In general, this blog is to keep up to date with friends and family and give you a glimpse into our new life. With this particular post we want to share with friends what it was really like to move here with our pets, and help people planning to bring their animals to South Korea. While planning, we heard so many things that simply were not true. There are so many forums where people say just awful things about animal care on airlines and in Korea, and the truth is, we've had a wonderful time here with our pets. People have been just lovely, the animals weren't stressed out, and it didn’t cost a fortune. There are pet travel companies that were bidding $5,000 to ship the pets door to door and we are so glad that we took the risk and went it alone.

Here’s what we did, how much it cost, and how they are adjusting to life in South Korea:

The Pets:
We have one 46 lb English Springer Spaniel named Remi (friendly), a 10 lb black short haired cat named Clark (aloof), and a 11 lb black long haired cat named Ching (alluring).

Required Paperwork:
Vet visit for vaccines: 3 pets, including wellness check $238.11

Vet visit for USDA paperwork: (Professional Exam + International Health Certificate) x 3 pets $241.31

USDA Authentification of paperwork: 3 pets x $36 $108

Travel Expenses:
Dog Water Bottle for Kennel in flight: $10

Fare to board with pets to South Korea (total): $494.26

10 days to board the animals during orientation: $10 a day per pet = $300 (this included food/ litter/ walks)

For a grand total of: (drum roll please) $1,393.68

To get started, you must get your pet’s Rabies and Boretella vaccines updated 3 months before you plan to leave. Our animals had two years on their vaccines, but we still had to renew them. The vet will need to get some forms from the USDA for the final pre-flight visit, so make sure they know you’re taking your pet overseas.

Our recruiter scheduled our flights for us about a week and a half before we left. Once you have your plane tickets, schedule a trip to the vet within 10 days of your flight. This is because the USDA certificate is only good for ten days. Our vet insisted on 8 days to cover us in case the plane was rescheduled or our arrival was otherwise delayed, so we wouldn’t miss the window.

We also had to call each carrier that we were flying on and reserve “tickets” for our pets. They needed each pet’s name, their weight in the carrier, and the height, width and depth of the carrier. They said that the cats couldn’t weigh more than 10lbs in the carrier to ride under the seat in front of us, but the cat’s weight was not checked at the airport. We flew on American and Korean Air. It took 20 minutes to book the pets passage on American. It took a little longer to book the flight on KA, and Akasha had to call back a few times until she had permission from her supervisor. This would have stressed her out before, but she had read enough about Korean etiquette to know that it was a formality.

At the airport and on the Plane:

The cat carriers had to be soft sided. We brought along collapsible camping bowls for feeding in flight, and put absorbent puppy pads in their carrier. They didn’t use it to go to the bathroom, as intended, but did make a little cave to chill in when we were between flights and people were looking at them. The vet recommended we bring wet food to keep them hydrated.

They were in the carriers all through the airport, except for security. Luckily we knew this, so we bought kitty collars with id tags and harnesses clipped to a leash to get through security. Okay, so first you put all of your stuff in the security scanner. Then take the cat/ small dog out of the carrier and pass the carrier through the x-ray scanner and walk with the cat through the metal detector. It was fast and easy in Minneapolis. The TSA at Chicago looked at it for several minutes, and Ching was not enjoying any of the beeping sounds. Akasha was happy Ching had a harness on so she couldn’t get away. Clark clawed through Mike’s favorite University of Minnesota T-shirt in his excitement, but that was the worst of it.

The cats went in their carrier and were placed under the seats in front of us during take off, landing, and meals. Otherwise they were on our laps, in their carriers, as we petted them. The vet gave them short acting Valium. (2hrs a pill) We don’t recommend it. Clark didn’t like the pill and spit it out, frothing like a freak. It did chill him out, but wasn’t worth how stressed he got taking it. Ching liked it too much, if you know what I mean. She was rolling and rubbing against EVERYTHING. Gross. When it wore off we didn’t give them more and they were fine the entire flight. The flight attendants loved the cats, they didn’t make us store them below the seats although they could have.

The Korean Air flight attendants were super kind. They actually helped choose a seat mate for our aisle who didn’t mind traveling with cats. They also let us take the cats to the bathroom to stretch their legs a few times during the flight.

The dog traveled under the plane. His carrier had to be hard-sided, with a door that was secure, but could be opened and have a water bottle mounted in it. We sent him with his dog bed, a puppy pad, his favorite stuffed duck, and a t-shirt that smelled like me. We were able to visit him between each flight. Chicago even had a pet exercise area for us to relax together.

In our carry-on we brought dry kibble for the dog, cat food, leashes for everyone, their travel documents, and wipes in case we had we had to clean up after an “accident.” They all chose to hold it for the entire trip. We did have to show documents at each airport and fill out new paperwork for all three flights. The cats were given boarding passes on their carriers. Remi was given a luggage sticker. It took 1 1/2 hours to check in to each flight, and we had to pay the pet-carriage fee for each leg of the flight separately. So, get to the airport super early, hope for long layovers, and stay patient.

Everyone on the flights was wonderful to the animals. Between flights, attendants ran to get Remi and bring him to us. They helped us get through immigration quickly so he could go to the bathroom. They asked if the cats were comfortable on the flight. Really, people went out of their way to help us.

We got to our hotel in Gwangju late in the evening, 36 hours after leaving Minneapolis. The hotel let us keep the animals in our room for one night, but our recruiter scheduled a boarder to care for the pets during the 10 day long orientation. The boarder ran a pet shop/ groomer in Gwangju on the Gwanju Kong. She was wonderful. She charged us $10 a day per animal, fed them good food (Nutra, same as home) and gave them lots of attention. We visited every night after orientation and walked Remi. He was happy to see us every day, but greeted her like an old friend when we returned to the shop. He was always happy to see her. She gave the cats a two-tiered kitty condo for their stay. We would sit and pet them until they returned to the condo on their own. Our animals were always treated very well.

Daily Life Now.

Our daily life, with regards to the animals, is about the same as back home. We wake up early to walk the dog before work. He gets walked after work and another bathroom break before bed. Some days he has longer walks, other days he has shorter walks. It’s slightly less convenient to take him down an elevator nine stories for his constitutional, but I like to think he’d do the same for me, if it came to that. It rains a lot in the summer so we bring a towel on rainy days to clean his paws before getting into the elevator.

Pet supplies are more expensive. A litter box is $26, a bag of litter is about $15 depending on the quality, cat food is $24 and a bag of store brand dog food is $10, nutra/ science diet $17. You can find a variety of familiar brands like tidy cat, science diet, purina, as well as Korean products. Pet products are in all the markets, with a greater variety in the local pet stores. We can’t find any beds, kennels, or accessories for the dog as Remi is 4 times the size of most of the dogs here. We haven’t found a groomer that has supplies for him. We didn’t bring his razor, so we had to buy one here. If your dog is medium to large sized, bring your own razor, bed, kennel, and toys for a year or have a friend ship them.

One cultural note:

Koreans don’t often keep cats in their homes. Our Korean visitors haven’t been comfortable around the cats, especially since ours are black. They think they will get scratched…

Most people are great about our dog. They tell us that he is big (kan), cute (ipo), or kind (chakan.) Young women (12-25) scream, shriek, and make other melo-dramatic expressions for negative attention. As soon as we smile, say “hello” and “kind dog” they cut it out. It was annoying at first. Once we realized that teenage girls everywhere are annoying it stopped being so annoying.

Old ladies (ajuma) take a special liking to Remi. They call us over and pet him eagerly, saying ipo-ipo (cute, cute). Remi loves the attention and is always sweet as pie whether it’s a little kid poking at him or an older lady giving him a good rub. We’re lucky to have him, as he’s a good match for Korea.

That’s about it. Life is good, the pets are happy, we are happy. We would have been miserable without them.

Couchsurfing

(GwangJu) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 06:15:00 +0900

By Erin Stewart

If you’re the type of person that moves to Korea to teach English (or for any other reason), chances are you’re the type of person to have at least heard of CouchSurfing. In the off chance you haven’t, CouchSurfing was founded in San Francisco in 2003 as a social networking project designed to pair travelers with willing hosts in cities all across the world. No money is exchanged for housing, and the entire system works off of personal references and online character/trustworthiness vouching. Sound awesome? It is. Sound crazy? Ok, yeah it is. But it’s still awesome.

I first heard of CouchSurfing while studying abroad in Sicily as an undergraduate in 2006. I come from a family of 8, and there was always at least one non-family member in the house. We were constantly taking in ‘strays,’ and as such, hosting became second nature. Because of this, I had way less trouble accepting the idea of staying with complete strangers, and having complete strangers stay with me, than a few of my friends. The concern that came up most often was the most obvious—safety. But this concern, ironically, was one of the founding goals of CouchSurfing: to foster a sense of trust and camaraderie in the global community.

According to their mission statement, CouchSurfing envisions “a world where everyone can explore and create meaningful connections with the people and places they encounter. Building meaningful connections across cultures enables us to respond to diversity with curiosity, appreciation and respect. The appreciation of diversity spreads tolerance and creates a global community.” Though I loved this ideology right off the bat, I would be lying if I didn’t say that my initial attraction wasn’t my other ideological love—having my cake and eating it too. A free place to stay when I’m sick of paying 26 Euros a night for hostels? And built in new friends who are going to give me the local scoop on the best stuff to see? Just tell me where to sign.

Since hearing about CouchSurfing in 2006 I have CouchSurfed in Dublin and Paris, and hosted five different surfers here in Gwangju from such places as Germany, Finland, Latvia, America and Japan. Each of my hosts was the pinnacle of welcoming and kind, usually taking me in fairly short notice, and showing me an awesome time. Each of my surfers has embodied the CouchSurfing ideology—positive, energetic, flexible, appreciative and fun. There have even been occasions where I didn’t end up staying with someone I’d contacted via the CouchSurfing website, but they still showed me around the city, or gave me some tips on places to go and things to see.

Odiva visiting from Japan. We went to Jung Shim Sa.

Imants, a PHD student in chemistry from Latvia, explaining about Latvia to my students

Dani and I at the Boseung Green Tea Fields

I’ve never felt inconvenienced by having a CouchSurfer. Most people who are willing to participate in something like this are of the minimalist sort—they really don’t need much – just a place to sleep. I really enjoy helping people see the city, though, and almost every time I’ve had a CouchSurfer here in Gwangju I’ve had at least 3 meals with them, and four out of five of them have come to work with me. My boss loves it—and my students love it, too. It’s not everyday a Korean 7^th grader gets to meet a 6’7 white-blonde man named Tomi. They’re even more excited when they learn that Tomi is from Finland—and so is Angry Birds.

Jordan VanHartingsveldt has been living and teaching in Gwangju for almost a year now and started a Facebook group for CouchSurfers in Gwangju about 6 months ago. Jordan started the group in the hopes that it would help connect fellow surfers/hosts here in the city, as well as make it easier for people to help surfers in Gwangju find places to stay. Jordan has hosted 14 people during his stay in Korea, from places like Mexico, New Zealand, China, Japan, Malaysia and even a family of four from France. Jordan has also CouchSurfed in Japan and estimates that he saved about $1,000 staying with CS hosts instead of in hostels. He even stayed with one host for two nights, but they became such good friends that he ended up staying there for 3 weeks.

In August of 2011, CouchSurfing changed from a non-profit organization to a for-profit organization, incurring some backlash from members that felt this violated its mission statement of being community-centered. However, around the same time, CouchSurfing launched the CouchSurfing Cultural Exchange Fund which, according to the website, “will award grants ranging between $30,000 and $50,000 annually to nonprofits and schools with compatible missions. The goal is to foster appreciation and understanding between different cultures — with an emphasis on youth and young adults — through such means as international travel, international cultural exchange programs, and classroom-based information exchange”.

If you like new friends, adventures, traveling, or a combination of the three, I highly recommend considering becoming a member of the CouchSurfing community. www.couchsurfing.org.

GIC Tour with Warren...on Youtube!

(GwangJu) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:38:27 +0900

submitted by Maria Lisak

Essential Kpop with Jdragon # 43 Cherry Blossom Beginning

(GwangJu) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 07:00:00 +0900

After the crazy cold snap this week the weekend is prime time to go out and see some cherry blossoms with many festivals happening in and around the city.

What better way to enjoy the beauty than with some chilled out musical accompaniment from Superstar K3 runners-up Busker Busker who came out with their debut CD two weeks ago. While on the show their hits included remakes Tokyo girl and Makolina as well as their own tracks Bus Stop and Seoul People which the public loved.

After a short break, lead vocalist Beom Jun, who is also from Gwangju, Hyun Tae and an American Brad are back with a 10 track CD and the title is the charming Cherry Blossom Ending. This track perfectly expresses nostalgia and wanting for something new in this season that is filled with the pink blush of the blooming trees. Another great offering on the album is The Yeosu Sea at night which is great to listen to while travelling or just hanging around your house.

As their name Busker Busker suggests before finding fame on the hit reality tv show the group were street artists playing to crowds around indie and student areas in Seoul and they continue with this novel street feel in their album.

Thanks to their hard work they are now well beloved and effortlessly put forward great melodies with surprisingly honest, poetic and relaxing lyrics.

If you are looking for a break from the electro and hook beats of Kpop I would suggest checking out Busker Busker. Below find some links to their tracks.

Tune in this Saturday to the Kpop to 40 to see if they make it to number 1.

Cherry Blossom Ending

http://youtu.be/wdVqMxnZf-M

Yeosu Sea at night

http://youtu.be/sxMzGTWBtL8

Peace,

PS. JD also comes to you live on GFN’s Kpopular daily. Tune into GFN98.7 AND 93.7FM or listen online at www .gfn .or .kr from 12.10 weekdays and 12.05 on weekends.

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