Alcoholic drinks have accounted for a large proportion of Korean food culture. Makgeolli is one of our traditional drink and is the oldest one in Korean alcoholic drink history. Makgeolli has been around with us for over 1000 years. We have always been together with Makgeolli as we have farmed for a long time. Farmers used to drink Makgeolli to relieve thirst with their neighborhoods when they stopped working for a while.
Makgeolli is made of rice. We mix steamed glutinous rice or nonglutinous rice or barley with water and leaven and then let it ferment.
Makgeolli has low alcohol content which is about 6 to 7 percent, so we would feel comfortable while we drink Makgeolli. It also has beautiful ivory color which brings up pleasing mood and sweet taste. That's because Makgeolli is especially popular with women and foreigners who first come across Korean culture.
Thesedays, there are various kinds of Makgeolli such as citron-scented Makgeolli and chestnut Makgeolli. Makgeolli has already been exported abroad;to America and Janpan. People feel like drinking Makgeolli on rainy days with Pajeon which is kind of Korean style pancake. If you are considering what to experience in Korea, why don't you try Makgeolli first? You will be fascinated by it :)
Do you like music? Do you like people do dance, and perform a wonderful feat and play wonderful music by various instruments? If you like it, visit Korea and see "Namsadang play"!
What is Namsadang play?
Members of Namsadang are wandering farming and fishing village to perform their play. They perform various entertainments and be deserved.
First, they do "Pungmul". Pungmul's main instruments are kkwaenggwari, drum, janggu, and jing. Pungmul makes people get excited.
Second, they do a plate turning trick. This trick spreads in Asian countries. But, they do not only turn plates but also jokes and Korean traditional narrative song. It is dramatism.
Third is salpan, in other words, ddang trick. It is similar with modern apparatus gymnastics.
Forth is tightrope act. Tightrope person jokes with people and sing.
Fifth is dutbeagii, which is smaller than talchum and similar with talchum but it has less dance than Talchum, instead it has more plenty mime, jokes and a social satire.
The last, sixth is a puppet show.
Oh, they plays really many things. I didn't explain detailed here, because they do so many exciting and amazing plays. If you want to know more about it, send me a message. Bye~ ㅎㅎ
Are you interested in fashion? Looking for unique and beautiful dress? How about the cultural clothing of Korea, Hanbok?
Hanbok was influenced by the nature of Korea, which shows in ways of curves and vibrant color. It shows natural and artificial harmony. If you ask me the most standing out feature of hanbok, I would say its elegant 'line'. Even simple design of Hanbok looks graceful because of it. Take a look at the picture underneath. You will find smoothly curved line of the voluminous skirt 'chima', the sharp lines of neck-band 'dongjeong' on the coat 'jeogori', cute raised front end of the toe of a padded sock and more. Not only making Hanbok look beautiful but these lines also make one's moving more easier and shows best figure, providing an elegant feminine beauty.
Hanbok has lots of designs and made of various kinds of fabric which gives each of them different kinds of charm. Also, you can choose fancy headgear and accessories for yourself that would match the dress perfectly. For example, there are 'Jokduri' or 'Hwagwan' which is a type of crown, 'Jobawi' or 'Ayam' the winter cap made of silk, 'Dwikkoji' or 'Binyeo' the fancy accessory to pin on knotted hair, 'Norigae' the pendant which was one of the major accessories that gives a luxurious look to the cloth.
How about trying on Hanbok yourself? This amazing cloth with distinguished charm creates various ambience as you please.
South Korea is now looking for our new 18th president. On December 19th Wednesday, we're going to select next president of ROK, Republic Of Korea. There are two the most competitive candidates in this election. In this article, I'm going to tell you about those three candidates.
First one is Geun-hye Park, who is the most influential candidate for now. She is known to have almost half of the votes in the poll. She's the representative of 'Saenuri-party', which is a conservative party. The special thing is that Geun-hye Park is daughter of Jeong-hui Park, the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th president. He was a second dictator of South Korea. That's why she is so unique. She has powerful support in elderly. Her catchphrase is 'Female President'.
Second one is Jae-in Mun. He was one of the most influential person with Mr. No, our last president who passed away. He is the representative of Democratic party. One of the special thing is that he is the result of unification. Mr.Ahn was also an important candidate in opposition party. However, for the 'political evolution', they decided to unify the candidate. So after the discussion, Mr.Mun became the only candidate in opposite party. His catchphrase is 'Human First'.
We have 19 days left to the election. There are still 5 more candidates in this election. We're expecting a great leader who can really care about our country and who can make some progress. Hope someone great can be the President!
Hi~ I'm Stephanie. Do you know Kim Yu - na ? or or Lyu Jae Seok? I want to talk about Korean Celebrities. It is very interesting. They have the courage to try again and a lot of passion about their job. It is very awesome. And They
have many good traits we can take on.
So From Now On, I will introduce Korean Celebrities. Listen Carefully! :)
1. Kim Yu - Na
Thep person I am going to introduce is figure skater Yuna Kim.
She was born in March 1990 in Gyeonggi-do, Seoul.
Now, she is the best figure skater in the world who deserves to be called a figure skating queen for her outstanding perofrmance despite unfavorable circumstances..
She owes what she is today to her mother who helped her battle her way to the world sports arena. It was when she was seven years old that she first began skating.
She reportedly decided to be with her daughter wherever she was, when she saw Yuna, a 7-year-old, so eager to follow what figure skaters on video were doing. Yuna looked so eager for her age seven. It was not so easy to foster a figure skater in Korea where the word figure sjkating was not familiar to Koreans Tightening their belt to put away moeny for skating lesson fees and rink rental charges, her mother braced herself for difficulties, But Yuna and her mother had to face so many hurdles ahead. Trying to overcome each obstacle coming their way, they made a step forward again.
Finally that led them to what they are today.
Yuna's being loved by all Koreans is ascriable to such efforts.
She is another figure skatiing queen on many TV programs and TV commercials as well.
And also news about her clothes and makeup she wore is one of the most frequently cited articles while she is a lady of all men's dreams.
And some time ago, she was a part of the Bidding Committee of Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games, playing a very important role in impressing each IOC members.
Now she is a national treasure, being called Queen of Pyeongchang, and Lady of Durban, as well as a Figure Skating Queen and Queen of Commercials.
2. Lyu Jae Seok
He is one of the great Korean comedians. He is very famous in Korea. He's popular program is '무한도전' and 'Running man' that's very funny . He is verykind and lots of fun. He is
Because of a song, 'Gangnam Style'(sang by PSY), people all around the world are singing and dancing 'Gangnam Style' anywhere.
When the song released at first everyone in Korea said "Psy was as might have been expected." Because Psy's music was always be excited and very nice.
So 'Gangnam Style' was ranked the top of music ranking and everyone was singing and dancing like Psy.
A few days later, 'Gangnam Style' was introduced other countries including America.
And I heard the news that the song appeared the Billboard Chart and went up straight to second place.
It was the first time that Korean music ranked that high in the Billboard chart.
All the Koreans was surprised and proud of Psy.
Thanks to Psy and 'Gangnam Style', Korea came to the forefront.
And K-Pop also became popular all around world.
Psy didn't ranked the top of the Billboard Chart, but he set a world record for the Youtube hits, he got over 800 million hits.
How amazing! Now, korea and K-Pop is famous all around world.
Everybody say! "Oppan, Gangnam Style!"
written by Mun Do Hyeon, IIHS 10513
Does snow fall in Korea in winter?
Hello everyoneJ It’s
the last day of November (in Korea). Now, the real winter comes! Before start,
I want to ask you a question. Snow does fall in Korea in winter. Do you think
it is true or false? Actually it’s true! Today, I want to tell you about Korea’s
winter.
It snows in Korea!
First, let's have a look at Korea's winter pictures.
You can find out that snow comes in Korea.
By using snow, we enjoy winter sports such as skiing.
Some people love snow, but some don't because it can make traffic jam and car accidents more than usual.
Is it cold in winter of Korea?
Of course it is!
-2.4℃ is the average degree in Korea in winter.
So, people wear thick coats and boots.
Also, it's not hard to find people wearing gloves and scarfs.
Foods that are popular in Winter
People wants to eat hot foods in winter.
Have you ever heard Bungeobbang?
It a fish shaped bread with red beans in it.
It's really delicious and very cheap.
You can have 3-6 of them with 1 dollar.
Also, fish cake with hot soup is really popular, too.
It really makes us warm cause the soup is really hot!
This one is very cheap, too.
You can get 2 of them with 1 dollar.
For the last, I want to introduce roasted sweet potatoes.
They are sweet and hot.
These days, it got harder than before to find a person selling roasted weet potatoes.
However, many people like them.
It makes your hands get really warm, too.
Was it interesting?
Next time, I'll prepare for a lot more interesting and amazing topic.
Do you know 'korea' located in the east asia? Korea has many attractive cultural assets such as Kyeong Bok palace, Cheom Seong Dae, and so on. Also, there was grand history, and it is continued until now: about 5000 years.
However, there was bleak history. Before korea was established, there was dynasty named JOSEON. At the close 18th centuries, Japan had threaten Joseon, but Joseon couldn't stop the desire of Japan because Joseon have no power at that time. So Joseon's Queen, Myeong Sung, decided to go hand in hand with Russia to prevent korea from Japan. Japan hated her as she stopped their goal, RULE the east asia included Joseon and Cheong, the nation before china. So Japan planned to kill her. August 20 1895, some of unidentified armed men broke into Kyeong Bok palace, killed joseon's soldiers and FINALLY killed Queen Myeong Seong. In addition, they burned her to conceal the fact that Japan killed her.
In 2001, the drama 'Queen Myeong Seong' was made about her life story and given many loves from the public. In the drama, there was a Famous line: I am a Queen of Joseon dynasty. That's right. She will be in koreans' hearts and we will remember that she is the last queen of Josan Dynasty!! Thank you for reading this!!!
Additional mention: I want to upload the photo of her, but there is no photo can be told EXACTLY her. So I can't. Sorry :)
Temple stay is well-known in Korea society. It becomes famous among the people who want to escape from reality, seeking for some peace in their mind. There are 16 temple stay programs for foreign tourists too. In survey, researchers found that more than 70 percent of its participants are non-Buddhist, and therefore the popularity of the temple stay increases more. The monks in the temple usually do not teach about Buddhism. They just talk about the method of how to relieve your mind and it is the main difference between Korea's temple stay program and Japanese.
The purpose of this program is not only finding peace in people's mind, but also actualizing cultural movement by experiencing monks' lives. In this program you can feel the nature in the law and eat properly for not having avarice. Buddhist ceremony, talking with the monks and mediation will make you feel better.
Hello! I'd like to introduce our country's traditional food KIMCHI. Kimchi is a traditional fermented Korean dish made of vegetables with a variety of seasonings. It is Korea's national dish, and there are hundreds of varieties made with a main vegetable ingredient such as napa cabbage, radish, scallion, or cucumber. Kimchi is also a main ingredient for many Korean dishes such as kimchi stew, kimchi soup , and kimchi fried rice.
I'll tell you about 3 categories of Kimchi. They are its history, nutrition&health and varieties. Let's start!
First, HISTORY.
In ancient times, kimchi was made of greens picked and salt or a salt and alcohol mixture. By the end of Unified Shillan and the beginning of Koryo, sliced-radish kimchi pickled in brine became popular. Soon thereafter chili was introduced to Korea around 1500 and it was added to make kimchi as well. During the late Choson era, powdered chili, together with chotkal (fish or shellfish paste), became the favored ingredients in kimchi.
Second, Nutrition&Health.
Many South Koreans credit their nation's rapid economic growth in part to eating kimchi. The dish is made of various vegetables and contains a high concentration of dietary fiber, while being low in calories. One serving also provides over 50% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C and carotene. Most types of kimchi contain onions, garlic, and chilli peppers, all of which are salutary. The vegetables being made into kimchi also contribute to the overall nutritional value. Kimchi is rich in vitamin A, thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), calcium, and iron, and contains a number of lactic acid bacteria, among those the typical species Lactobacillus kimchii. Health magazine named kimchi in its list of top five "World's Healthiest Foods" for being rich in vitamins, aiding digestion, and even possibly reducing cancer growth.
<One study conducted by Seoul National University claimed that chickens infected with the H5N1 virus, also called avian flu, recovered after eating food containing the same bacteria found in kimchi. During the 2003 SARS outbreak in Asia, many people even believed that kimchi could protect against infection, although there was no scientific evidence to support this belief. However, in May 2009, the Korea Food Research Institute, Korea’s state food research organization, said they had conducted a larger study on 200 chickens, which supported the theory that it boosts chickens' immunity to the virus.>-by wikipedia
Third, Varieties!
Spring
After a long period of consuming gimjang kimchi during the winter, fresh potherbs and vegetables were used to make kimchi. These kinds of kimchi were not fermented or even stored for long periods of time but were consumed fresh.
Summer
Summer radishes and cucumbers are summer vegetables made into kimchi, yeolmu kimchi which is eaten in several bites. Brined fish or shellfish can be added, and freshly ground dried chili peppers are often used.
Autumn
Baechu kimchi is prepared by inserting blended stuffing materials, called sok (literally inside), between layers of salted leaves of uncut, whole Napa cabbage. The ingredients of sok can vary, depending on the different regions and weather conditions. Generally, baechu kimchi used to have a strong salty flavor until the late 1960s when a large amount of myeolchijeot or saeujeot had been used.
Winter
Traditionally, the greatest varieties of kimchi were available during the winter. In preparation for the long winter months, many types of kimjang kimchi were prepared in early winter and stored in the ground in large kimchi pots. Today, modern kimchi refrigerators offering precise temperature controls are used to store kimjang kimchi. November and December are traditionally when people begin to make kimchi; women often gather together in each other's homes to help with winter kimchi preparations. "Baechu kimchi" is made with salted baechu filled with thin strips of radish, parsley, pine nuts, pears, chestnuts, shredded red pepper, manna lichen, garlic, and ginger.
Do you know K-pop? Maybe some of you do, some of you do not. K-pop is an abbreviation of Korean pop or Korean popular music which originated in South Korea. It consists of many different musical genres like dance, electronic, electropop, hip hop, rock, and R&B. However, it is commonly considered as songs of Korean teen idols around the world which includes mostly dance, electronic, rap, hip hop and R&B genres.
Nowadays, a lot of teenagers and young adults around the world like k-pop musics and its singers. Actually, we can easily see people who go to k-pop concerts or upload their dance cover video on You-tube. K-pop has gained popularity because Korean teen idols have good visuals, sing well, and have their own characteristics. Also, K-pop musics are very addictive and are mostly hook-songs in which some of the words and phrases are repeated. Therefore, lots of people remember and sing along them.
There are many Korean idols such as Girls’ generation, BigBang, KARA, Super junior, TVXQ, Shinee, 2PM, Wonder girls and so on. They have their groups’ own music, dance and characteristics. Especially, Psy’s song ‘gangnam style’ became very popular in US and also ranked high in the BillBoard Chart. He was famous for his dance which reminds horse. Now, many people know him and his music video are parodied by them.
Lots of people know about k-pop however, it also has many ways to go. There are still more people who don't know k-pop and only some fans know it in Europe. If you didn’t know k-pop so far, you missed good opportunities. From now on, how about listening to k-pop musics and enjoying them with your friends?
Alcoholic drinks have accounted for a large proportion of Korean food culture. Makgeolli is one of our traditional drink and is the oldest one in Korean alcoholic drink history. Makgeolli has been around with us for over 1000 years. We have always been together with Makgeolli as we have farmed for a long time. Farmers used to drink Makgeolli to relieve thirst with their neighborhoods when they stopped working for a while. 
Makgeolli is made of rice. We mix steamed glutinous rice or nonglutinous rice or barley with water and leaven and then let it ferment.
