Pork bulgogi, grilled fish, spicy nakji, herb pancake, a decent doenjang jjigae... not exactly Vegas-style-all-you-can-eat portions for each, but the perfect quantity for a pleasant 14 course meal.
Now consider the bargain : all this comes for only KRW 7,000 (just over 6 bucks nowadays). No wonder Joeunjib ranks among the most popular restaurants on Yeonhui-dong's "taste street" (Yeonhuidongmat-gil / 연희동맛길), a 2-lane parallel to main road Yeonhuiro...
Joeunjip / 조은집 (restaurant)
133-24 Yeonhui-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, ROK
Tel : +82.2.323.8084
Seoul Village 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Find a name for SGC's new business center at COEX
A brand new "Seoul Global Business Support Center" will be inaugurated next month in Gangnam (COEX*). International residents will be able to consult for daily life as well as business issues, like in the other "Seoul Global Village Centers" run by the Seoul Global Center across the capital (see links and addresses below**), but this one will strongly focus on business. Gangnam already hosts the Yeoksam Global Village Center in Yeoksam-dong.
"Seoul Global Business Support Center" is only a tentative name, and until March 26, everyone is invited to suggest a name. The winner will receive a gift certificate, see all details in the public naming contest form.
So good luck to you, and long life to this new center, which is bound to receive a lot of visitors, prolonging the city's fantastic efforts to serve its international residents.
Seoul Village 2010
* COEX 1st Floor, 159-1, Samsung-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
** More about SGC in "Invest in Seoul, Seoul is already investing in you". Reminder : as of today, Seoul Global Center's existing global village centers are :
- in GANGNAM-GU (YEOKSAM) : Yeoksam Global Village Center in 5F Yeoksam1 Residence Center, 829-20, Yeoksam 1-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
- in MAPO-GU (YEONNAM) : Yeonnam Global Village Center in 3rd floor, Suseong bld., 198-31 Dongkyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul.
- in SEOCHO-GU (SEORAE VILLAGE) : Seorae Global Village Center in 90-12 Banpo 4-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul.
- in SEONGBUK-GU : Seongbuk Global Village Center in 246, Seongbuk-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.
- in YEONGDEUNGPO-GU : Yeongdeungpo Multicultural Village Center in 2nd floor, Standard Chartered First Bank Korea, 710-10, Daerim 3-Dong, Yeongdeungpo-Gu, Seoul.
- in YONGSAN-GU (ICHON-DONG) : Ichon Global Village Center in 304 Hangang Shopping Center, 300-27 Ichon 1-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 140-854
- in YONGSAN-GU (ITAEWON-HANNAM) : Itaewon-Hannam Global Village Center in 5F Hannam Bldg., 737-37 Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 140-893.
"Seoul Global Business Support Center" is only a tentative name, and until March 26, everyone is invited to suggest a name. The winner will receive a gift certificate, see all details in the public naming contest form.
So good luck to you, and long life to this new center, which is bound to receive a lot of visitors, prolonging the city's fantastic efforts to serve its international residents.
Seoul Village 2010
* COEX 1st Floor, 159-1, Samsung-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
** More about SGC in "Invest in Seoul, Seoul is already investing in you". Reminder : as of today, Seoul Global Center's existing global village centers are :
- in GANGNAM-GU (YEOKSAM) : Yeoksam Global Village Center in 5F Yeoksam1 Residence Center, 829-20, Yeoksam 1-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
- in MAPO-GU (YEONNAM) : Yeonnam Global Village Center in 3rd floor, Suseong bld., 198-31 Dongkyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul.
- in SEOCHO-GU (SEORAE VILLAGE) : Seorae Global Village Center in 90-12 Banpo 4-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul.
- in SEONGBUK-GU : Seongbuk Global Village Center in 246, Seongbuk-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.
- in YEONGDEUNGPO-GU : Yeongdeungpo Multicultural Village Center in 2nd floor, Standard Chartered First Bank Korea, 710-10, Daerim 3-Dong, Yeongdeungpo-Gu, Seoul.
- in YONGSAN-GU (ICHON-DONG) : Ichon Global Village Center in 304 Hangang Shopping Center, 300-27 Ichon 1-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 140-854
- in YONGSAN-GU (ITAEWON-HANNAM) : Itaewon-Hannam Global Village Center in 5F Hannam Bldg., 737-37 Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 140-893.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Korean War : a photo exhibition at Cheonggyecheon
Don't get fooled by the UN flag : a highly conservative "freedom" movement is behind the photo exhibition on Cheonggyecheon Plaza which, instead of promoting peace and progress, too often radiates pure resentment and hatred.
Don't get me wrong :
- here is an interesting exhibition about key episodes of the Korean War (until March 18)
- that tragedy was started by the North
- Korea can thank the UN and all the countries who helped save not only half the peninsula, but also more than a few Northeners who refused to subscribe to Kim Il-sung's agenda (including NK POWs, who overwhelmingly opted for the South after 1953)
It's just that the not so subtle propaganda trickling down every other panel (along with a persistant rain that day) almost ruins the visit. And instead of Confucian wisdom and hope, the final message ("Never changed") exudes blind anger. It can be summed up like this : stop talking to North Koreans, they still want to get South Korea, and there will never be peace with such obtuse and stubborn people (I second that : peace is not likely to happen with this kind of dangerous ultra-radicals in Seoul to face that kind of dangerous ultra-radicals in Pyeongyang).
So it's a little bit like visiting Seodaemun Prison : you only have one side of the coin, a clumsily edited good v. evil, black-and-white fairyscarytale. There, you learn a lot about the horrors perpetrated for decades by Japanese torturers, but not one single word is written about the abuses that followed, perpetrated for many long years by the Korean government (as if you wrote the final book about Abu Ghraib without mentioning the post-Saddam mess). Here, you can expect many lyrical digressions about religion, but certainly not the full picture of a really nasty civil war (yeah, I know : all wars are nasty, and all civil wars are even nastier).
The only way to fix things and to prevent such tragedies from happening again is to promote truth and reconciliation, not to maintain obsolete propagandas and censorships. Praise the heroes yes, but please show some respect for innocent victims from all sides.
Ultra-conservatives will probably consider this exhibition a success because it exposes in the most direct fashion their basic points of view to the face of the world. Unfortunately for them, just like their attempt to silence the Truth and Reconciliation Commission*, this exhibition backfires and eventually exposes their imposture, sending the worst possible message to foreign visitors : not only North Korea is not changing, but some retrograde people in South Korea still refuse to see their own country become a great nation, and only manage to bring more shame upon themselves.
As a French citizen, I am very much humbled by the courage of countrymen who fought for peace and freedom in Korea, but ashamed to see the tricolore flag associated with such an agenda.
Seoul Village 2010
* see "TRCK lost in translation or lost in transition ?"
Don't get me wrong :
- here is an interesting exhibition about key episodes of the Korean War (until March 18)
- that tragedy was started by the North
- Korea can thank the UN and all the countries who helped save not only half the peninsula, but also more than a few Northeners who refused to subscribe to Kim Il-sung's agenda (including NK POWs, who overwhelmingly opted for the South after 1953)
It's just that the not so subtle propaganda trickling down every other panel (along with a persistant rain that day) almost ruins the visit. And instead of Confucian wisdom and hope, the final message ("Never changed") exudes blind anger. It can be summed up like this : stop talking to North Koreans, they still want to get South Korea, and there will never be peace with such obtuse and stubborn people (I second that : peace is not likely to happen with this kind of dangerous ultra-radicals in Seoul to face that kind of dangerous ultra-radicals in Pyeongyang).
So it's a little bit like visiting Seodaemun Prison : you only have one side of the coin, a clumsily edited good v. evil, black-and-white fairyscarytale. There, you learn a lot about the horrors perpetrated for decades by Japanese torturers, but not one single word is written about the abuses that followed, perpetrated for many long years by the Korean government (as if you wrote the final book about Abu Ghraib without mentioning the post-Saddam mess). Here, you can expect many lyrical digressions about religion, but certainly not the full picture of a really nasty civil war (yeah, I know : all wars are nasty, and all civil wars are even nastier).
The only way to fix things and to prevent such tragedies from happening again is to promote truth and reconciliation, not to maintain obsolete propagandas and censorships. Praise the heroes yes, but please show some respect for innocent victims from all sides.
Ultra-conservatives will probably consider this exhibition a success because it exposes in the most direct fashion their basic points of view to the face of the world. Unfortunately for them, just like their attempt to silence the Truth and Reconciliation Commission*, this exhibition backfires and eventually exposes their imposture, sending the worst possible message to foreign visitors : not only North Korea is not changing, but some retrograde people in South Korea still refuse to see their own country become a great nation, and only manage to bring more shame upon themselves.
As a French citizen, I am very much humbled by the courage of countrymen who fought for peace and freedom in Korea, but ashamed to see the tricolore flag associated with such an agenda.
Seoul Village 2010
* see "TRCK lost in translation or lost in transition ?"
Friday, March 12, 2010
Expats in Korea : have your say !
The Prime Minister's Office is collecting suggestions from expats on ways to reduce discriminations against foreigners in Korean laws and regulations.
The subject has been pretty well covered in the news recently but it's the occasion to spot loopholes or to correct details that can make a difference in your daily lives.
So have your say, be fair and creative, and send your proposals by e-mail (sangsan@pmo.go.kr) or by fax (+82.2.2100.2323) by the end of March 2010.
Seoul Village 2010
The subject has been pretty well covered in the news recently but it's the occasion to spot loopholes or to correct details that can make a difference in your daily lives.
So have your say, be fair and creative, and send your proposals by e-mail (sangsan@pmo.go.kr) or by fax (+82.2.2100.2323) by the end of March 2010.
Seoul Village 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
KAIST unveils OLEV, the On-Line Electric Vehicle
The Seoul Grand Park train has been replaced by this OnLine Electric Vehicle (OLEV) developed by KAIST.The OLEV must follow an underground powerline to charge, thus the "online" label, and the relatively light batteries compared to the ones usually found in electric vehicles. Of course, you need to keep in touch with the powerlines, but this "touch" is "contactless", which means you don't see any tracks nor wires. Power transmission requires specific enablers in the vehicle, and electromagnetic emissions respect all security norms, so if you happen to pass over the lines, your old Hyundai won't start a Transformers break dance, and the old bag lady pushing her caddy (you know, that Hollywood all time fave when the hero's brakes have been sabotaged) won't see her cat turn into bulgogi.
Because batteries can stock power, you don't need to be always online, and that makes the heck of a difference in a business plan. For instance, at Seoul Grand Park, 16% of the 2.2 km circuit are equipped : 3 sections are 122.5 m long, and a fourth only 5 m long - probably a station. Lighter vehicles, lighter infrastructures, and a promising yield : with a 13 cm airgap, transmission reaches 74%.
KAIST estimates that "if the OLEV charging method is applied to the public bus system in South Korea, the underground power lines need to be installed on only 20% of the total bus route at places like bus stops, parking lots, and intersections". Last year, the Institute clinched a MoU with Seoul Metropolitan Government : standard prototypes are expected in 2012 and commercial launch in 2013.
This disruptive innovation came along with 120 patents, and could not only help Seoulites enjoy greener transportation systems, but also become a star product for Korean exports.
Seoul Village 2010
* "KAIST introduces environmentally friendly public transportation to Seoul Grand Park in Gwacheon City"
Business Start-Up Education Program - Seoul Global Center
You are a Foreigner residing in Seoul and you want to set up a business in Korea ? The Seoul Global Center is launching a "Business Start-Up Education Program" for you. Free of charge... provided of course your application is selected (20 participants), and submitted on time (only a few days left !).
=> Download the application form.
=> Download the program (see also below)
The Basics course (first term - total 23 hours, see details below) will be held between March 22nd and April 1st, 2010 :
• Participants: Foreigners who reside in Seoul
• Participation Fee: Free of charge
• Application period: March 10 to March 19, 2010
• Application method: After filling out the application form, please send an e-mail (barammeri@sba.seoul.kr).
• Selection process: Submission of application and screening
• Location: SGC seminar room (5th Floor, Press Center)
And if you are not ready yet to set up your own business, remember that the SGC also provides a job marketplace on its website.
Seoul Village 2010
* Basics Course Program at a glance
March 22
18:30 ~ 19:30 Orientation Overview of the Business Start-up Education & Business services of SGC
19:30 ~ 21:30 Korean business culture Korean business culture
March 23
18:30 ~ 20:30 Evaluating business potential & finding business ideas Select business items and details
March 24
18:30 ~ 20:30 Establishment How to register a business
March 25
18:30 ~ 21:30 Business plan preparation Business plan preparation
March 27
13:00 ~ 15:00 Location & premises Business location / Location analysis
15:00 ~ 18:00 HR Hiring/ 4 kinds of insurance / Labor Standards Act/management
March 29
18:30 ~ 20:30 Legal requirements Business contracts
March 30
18:30 ~ 20:30 Tax & accounting VAT, income tax, corp. tax, acquisition tax
March 31
18:30 ~ 20:30 Obtaining finance Government's SME's support/preliminary expenses support/how to get help from the allied organizations
April 1
18:30 ~ 20:30 Licenses & permits Copyright and license/Intellectual property rights, different types of business requirements
=> Download the application form.
=> Download the program (see also below)
The Basics course (first term - total 23 hours, see details below) will be held between March 22nd and April 1st, 2010 :
• Participants: Foreigners who reside in Seoul
• Participation Fee: Free of charge
• Application period: March 10 to March 19, 2010
• Application method: After filling out the application form, please send an e-mail (barammeri@sba.seoul.kr).
• Selection process: Submission of application and screening
• Location: SGC seminar room (5th Floor, Press Center)
And if you are not ready yet to set up your own business, remember that the SGC also provides a job marketplace on its website.
Seoul Village 2010
* Basics Course Program at a glance
March 22
18:30 ~ 19:30 Orientation Overview of the Business Start-up Education & Business services of SGC
19:30 ~ 21:30 Korean business culture Korean business culture
March 23
18:30 ~ 20:30 Evaluating business potential & finding business ideas Select business items and details
March 24
18:30 ~ 20:30 Establishment How to register a business
March 25
18:30 ~ 21:30 Business plan preparation Business plan preparation
March 27
13:00 ~ 15:00 Location & premises Business location / Location analysis
15:00 ~ 18:00 HR Hiring/ 4 kinds of insurance / Labor Standards Act/management
March 29
18:30 ~ 20:30 Legal requirements Business contracts
March 30
18:30 ~ 20:30 Tax & accounting VAT, income tax, corp. tax, acquisition tax
March 31
18:30 ~ 20:30 Obtaining finance Government's SME's support/preliminary expenses support/how to get help from the allied organizations
April 1
18:30 ~ 20:30 Licenses & permits Copyright and license/Intellectual property rights, different types of business requirements
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Apateu Fashion and Houses of cards
I often compare Korean "apateu" with consumer goods, consumables you discard every 3 years.
Since it's fashion week in Paris these days, I can't help but make the parallel with that other versatile sector. After all, builders do present their collections in showrooms, hire top international designers to redefine home interior, and push comfort to new levels every single season.
Uniform tombstones, the Ford T of Korean housing boom for decades, are at long last deserting the catwalk in favor of much more diverse and exciting forms which are redefining, for better or for worse, XXIst century Seoul.
Not all haute couture ends deserves a museum, not all ready to wear is junk, and Seoul has no choice but to wear out what's given to her. "Aparteu Fashion" has its trends and fads, successes and failures. A couple of years ago, twin towers combined with a commercial base were all the rage... until inhabitants realized how much such hybrids altered their quality of life. Then came the lavish duplexes with their huge window panes and vast terraces... and the shock when fashonistas received their air conditioning bills.
Among the differences between an apateu and a dress is the fact than an apateu can usually be resold with a profit, and that a second hand dress generally comes cheaper than a brand new one, when it is still resalable. Of course, apartment buildings are neither consumables nor fashion items, but when you see an ad for a new complex in a paper or on the TV, you keep wondering.
Seoul Village 2010
Since it's fashion week in Paris these days, I can't help but make the parallel with that other versatile sector. After all, builders do present their collections in showrooms, hire top international designers to redefine home interior, and push comfort to new levels every single season.
Uniform tombstones, the Ford T of Korean housing boom for decades, are at long last deserting the catwalk in favor of much more diverse and exciting forms which are redefining, for better or for worse, XXIst century Seoul.
Not all haute couture ends deserves a museum, not all ready to wear is junk, and Seoul has no choice but to wear out what's given to her. "Aparteu Fashion" has its trends and fads, successes and failures. A couple of years ago, twin towers combined with a commercial base were all the rage... until inhabitants realized how much such hybrids altered their quality of life. Then came the lavish duplexes with their huge window panes and vast terraces... and the shock when fashonistas received their air conditioning bills.
Among the differences between an apateu and a dress is the fact than an apateu can usually be resold with a profit, and that a second hand dress generally comes cheaper than a brand new one, when it is still resalable. Of course, apartment buildings are neither consumables nor fashion items, but when you see an ad for a new complex in a paper or on the TV, you keep wondering.
Seoul Village 2010
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