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Category Archives: Strange but true

Kim Jong Il in Photoshop Friday

08-Nov-08

Kim Jong Il in Photoshop Friday

Well, it was the KCNA which started it all, for publishing that photoshopped image of Kim Jong Il on parade with his soldiers, which appeared in the Times earlier this week. Here's the bit which gives it away: The Chosun Ilbo published an almost identical photo on the same day, but their particular military inspection took place on grass rather than tarmac: One wonders precisely how many military divisions need to be inspected in a particular week. So now, for something completely different, visit Something Awful. Their Photoshop Friday weekly digital trickery spot featured Kim Jong Il yesterday, with some humorous Zelig-style images of the Dear Leader. My own personal favourites? Runners up are Kim Jong Il in Reservoir Dogs, and Kim Jong ...
Also filed in DPRK, Pictures | | Comments (0) »

Advance fee frauds – the Korean connection

05-Aug-08
We have all received garbage emails from dodgy people in dodgy countries giving us a sob story explaining how they’ve managed to end up with several million dollars and need help getting it out of the country. They started in Nigeria but have now spread to other countries as well. Two recent ones have come to my attention. First, someone claiming to be a North Korean is seeking help to move some cash which I’m sure the Dear Leader would prefer is used for more constructive purposes: Greetings Hello I am delighted to have this opportunity to introduce myself to you. My name is Bang (IN) Hwang; I am from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). I had been working for EMC ...
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North-South Korea b-boy battle

10-Jun-08

North-South Korea b-boy battle

Someone's been having a bit of fun creating a spoof b-boy battle at Panmunjom. Enjoy. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKoXG0RjC7E[/youtube] You have to wait 60 seconds for the real action to start. HT to Tom Coyner. Related posts:Welcome to North Korea A documentary by Peter Tetteroo and Raymond Feddema If you...That Wonder Girls song - and an antidote This one will be quick. Once again, Matt over at...YouTube Korea - Fighting Congrats to the Metropolitician and Bum Lee on their YouTube... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Also filed in B-boys, DPRK, VoDs | | Comments (4) »

The Seoul Magazine photo challenge

29-Apr-08
One of my minor complaints with Seoul Magazine is their slapdash approach to visual material. Particularly in their events listings they splatter pictures around the page with no description of what the image depicts and what article or event it relates to. We bloggers have a partial excuse for not putting captions under pictures, because as far as I'm aware html currently only supports captions for tables, not images. But publishers of printed media have no excuse. Take as an example the listing of festivals and events on page 60 of April's edition. One of the events listed is the Gyeongju Traditional Drink and Rice Cake Festival (19-24 April). It does not take a genius to link the image below with ...
Also filed in Pictures, Travel | | Comments (0) »

Park Jin, man of many faces

09-Apr-08
From the Korea Times, illustrating an article entitled "Seven Candidates Score Dramatic, Sweet Victories": Will the real Park Jin step forward? HT to Aidan Foster-Carter. Update: in case you were wondering which one was really Park Jin, the KT has now corrected the captions: Related posts:Aidan FC’s whirlwind week of media exposure Here’s a link which I’ve been meaning to post for...Sunset for the Sunshine Policy? The inaugural Global Korea Lecture will be held on Wednesday...The Seoul Magazine photo challenge One of my minor complaints with Seoul Magazine is their... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
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The redemptive power of Lee Young-ae

13-Jan-08
As we all know, Jewel in the Palace is a hit in many countries. It's watched all around the world. Including in Indian jails. A convict in India has sent a letter of gratitude to a top Korean network for airing the historical drama "Jewel in the Palace," or "Daejanggeum" in Korean. Narendra Kumar Sharma, an inmate at Ambala Prison in Haryana, northern India, sent the letter to Munhwa Broadcasting Company, or MBC, for producing the drama. Sharma is serving time for multiple attempted suicides, a crime under Indian law, and has been under close watch at the prison for the past three years. "I have developed a fondness for 'Ghar Ka Chirag' and its lead character 'Jangum' (Jang-geum), who has been ...
Also filed in Dae Jang Geum, Lee Young-ae | | Comments (2) »

Insult me again

19-Dec-07
A frivolous post for election day. About a year ago, when I was more assiduous in reading the Chosun's celebrity pages than I am now, I noted a trend in mindless prose, particularly when the paper was commenting on the most recent commercial featuring some skimpily-clad popstrel or other. I was convinced that the text was generated by a computer and, in an idle moment, thought it might be worth reverse-engineering that august organ's VPGA (the Chosun Ilbo Vapid Prose Generation Algorithm). The algorithm must run something like this: [Insert name of celebrity here] shows off her [sexy dance moves / copper skin-tones / etc ] while revealing her [girl-next-door looks / wholesome charm / etc] I never got further than that, having rather lost interest in the ...
Also filed in DPRK | | Comments (0) »

Rent-a-loo

20-Oct-07
The Korean Toilet Association makes it into the news again. If you're looking for an innovative public-hygiene-themed mini-break in Korea you could do worse than rent a toilet-shaped house for the night. All proceeds will go to support that splendid and worthwhile organisation. HT to Jim Hoare. Links: World's first toilet house to be built in Korea, Building.co.uk, 18 October 2007, where apart from the full story you will also find a fine collection of toilet-related puns. Related posts:Cleanliness is next to godliness A post by Mark Russell over at Korea Pop Wars...International Toilet Rescue Revealing my schoolboy sense of humour, I couldn’t resist posting...DPRK BlogWatch As the name suggests, a collection of DPRK-related RSS feeds.... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts ...
Also filed in Tabloid | Tagged | Comments (0) »

Indian Summer? Try Indian boshintang

17-Aug-07
And in the second of today's frivolous links, here's a story from Associated Press. An Indian politician has allegedly proposed solving India's stray dog problem by shipping the creatures to Korea. One cynical wag has suggested that there would be howls of protectionist protest... Links: Indian Politician: Ship Stray Dogs to Korea, Hindustan Times via Fox News, 16 August Related posts:Korean Seasons to launch the summer The London concert-going public groans inwardly when it sees...Spring, Summer at the KCC The KCC’s third film screening, on Friday 11 April...Pet/food To celebrate my impending arrival in Seoul, a controversial topic... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Also filed in Food & Drink | | Comments (0) »

International Toilet Rescue

17-Aug-07
Revealing my schoolboy sense of humour, I couldn't resist posting this link to an article about the Korea-based World Toilet Association "racing to rescue Cambodia" Toilets are no longer a space for excretion only; they are becoming the central place in our daily lives where cleanness, relaxation, and aesthetics are important. Read on at expat-advisory.com. It was, of course, Mark Russell who first alerted me to the existence of this important international organisation, and a little bit of googling also reveals the existence of its Singapore-based rival, the WTO (the T stands for Toilet, not Trade). Thanks are due to Tom Coyner for circulating the latest gem. The WTA, or the WTO for that matter, should turn its attention to the Chinese railway ...
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Beware the mystery killer

11-Jul-07
As we get into the heat of the Distinct Season of summer we can expect to start hearing stories of the uniquely Korean cause of death -- the electric fan. Urban legend has it that sleeping in a sealed room with the fan going can kill - though all the detailed explanations of how death is actually caused are pretty feeble. The theories that fans cause a deadly vortex or reduce the body temperature to dangerous lows don't really stack up. But whether in response to fears of Fan Death, or simply because you keep cooler with air conditioning, LG and Samsung report massive sales of their domestic aircon units. But even if drafts can't kill, they can still harm. I ...
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Korean man victim of Tokyo bum-slasher

10-Jun-07
Even if there wasn't a Korean involved in this story I think I would have still linked to it. Some pieces are too weird to pass up. Random rump ripper leaves unkindest cut of all By Masuo Kamiyama an English Tokyo newspaper June 7, 2007 "Sake katte shiri kirareru" (buy wine and your ass will be cut), an old Japanese saying goes. Its meaning might not be entirely clear, but there was no doubt about what happened to Norio Tsuji. The vernacular Yomiuri Shinbun reported that while walking to work in Tokyo's Bunkyo-ku on the morning of April 2, Tsuji, a 34-year-old member of the riot police squad, was assaulted from behind by a man wielding a cutting instrument. The slash to his left buttocks left ...
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Cleanliness is next to godliness

21-May-07
A post by Mark Russell over at Korea Pop Wars about a particular piece of junk mail he got recently - the first issue of Toilet World - prompts me to link to two other toilet-related articles which I've had in my inbox for a while. Links: Korea Poop Wars - Mark Russell at Korea Pop Wars, 18 May 2007 South Korean Leads Restroom Revolution - Burt Herman at Associated Press, 17 Nov 2006. The article is reproduced in its entirety on page 11 of Toilet World #1 Toilet cleaning craze hits Japan - a Reuters story from 1 March 2007 Toilet World #1 - March 2007, at the World Toilet Association website Update 17 July 2007 - a new story: Toilet cash mystery grips Japan ...
Also filed in Film, Fruit Chan | | Comments (1) »

Get plastered and win a holiday in Cheju-do

12-May-07
Not any more, though. Reports of a rather fun "drinking culture" competition hit the presses this week. The story even made it into the free newspaper handed out in the London Underground. Battered by criticism from the media and civic groups, Goesan's county government decided to stop awarding its "Drinking Culture Prize'' to its county employees who boosted the local economy the most by drinking at bars. Ahn Byung-hoon, an official of the county in North Chungcheong, said yesterday the county government will abolish the prize, which it introduced on May 1. Three county employees were awarded for drinking heavily in local bars for more than 20 years. They were given a three-day trip to Jeju Island and a plaque for what the ...
Also filed in Food & Drink | | Comments (0) »

Defensive Walking on the streets of Seoul

17-Apr-07
One day I'll work out, from the ethical and technological perspectives, how to go about embedding other people's videos into this blog. Until that day, I'll just have to link to the sites where the videos are displayed. So here's a fine video containing instructions for a foreigner on how to walk "defensively" down the streets of Seoul. There's lots of truth in the video, but one huge falsehood: I think it must have been filmed first thing on a Sunday morning, because the pavements are absolutely empty. There's good advice about using street furniture to protect yourself from motorcyclists driving on the pavement, and a helpful tip about using ajummas as human shields on the zebra crossings. But there's no advice on ...
Also filed in Bloggers and newspeople, Seoul, VoDs | | Comments (0) »

Are Koreans really the Irish of the Orient?

17-Mar-07
A St Patrick's Day special from Tom Coyner. This was written for the Korea Times, but never got published. So go buy his book, because he needs the money. The stereotype that the Koreans are the Irish of the Orient has been around for at least half a century and some may argue much longer than that. When I was researching my recently released book, Mastering Business in Korea: A Practical Guide, I had a chance to investigate this old saw. The first time I heard this statement was in the mid-1970s as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Frankly speaking, I thought it was a bit ridiculous. But, then, when I was a university student in Colorado, I heard from an ex-GI that ...
Also filed in Bloggers and newspeople | | Comments (0) »

DPRK humour

27-Nov-06
One view of recent events: Pyongyang's latest statue © Chappatte - www.globecartoon.com (where you can find more along the same lines: filter on "Nuclear North Korea"). Plus, for "On-the-spot whimsy and wisdom from a Benevolent Despot" - an irreverent blogger claiming to be from within the DPRK - visit the Beloved Leader. And some unintended humour from the Voice of Korea. The original caption to this photo was HEY, AMERICANS, YOU SHOULD LEARN A LOT FROM OUR NORWEGIAN FRIENDS WHO ARE HAVING REALLY GOOD TIME WITH NORTH KOREAN YOUNG SCHOOL BOYS. until the unfortunate wording was passed round the net. The caption as of 21 November had been toned down to AMERICANS NEED TO LEARN A LOT FROM OUR NORWEGIAN FRIENDS. THEY ARE HUMANITARIAN FRIENDS OF DPRK BEYOND POLITICAL ...
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North Korea Detonates 40 Years Of GDP

26-Oct-06
Remains Of Country's Economy Sent Deep Into Earth's Core For a bit of light relief, visit the Onion. Here's a representative extract. PYONGYANG, NORTH KOREA -- A press release issued by the state-run Korean Central News Agency Monday confirmed that the Oct. 9 underground nuclear test in North Korea's Yanggang province successfully exploded the communist nation's total gross domestic product for the past four decades. North Korea's announcement would appear to support the CIA's intelligence information on the blast. According to the CIA, over 500 tons of compressed purchasing power, the equivalent of 40 years of goods and services produced by the impoverished country, vaporized in 560 billionths of one second. The device consumed 15 years of peasant wages' worth of uranium, two ...
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Why Koreans have so many bank accounts

05-Sep-06
This is such a fun article I have to quote it in full. High frustration in a low-trust country By Harold Piper, JoongAng Daily, 3 September 2006 Korea is a funny country. Actually, I quite like it. There is a lot to be said for a big city where a woman can go out safely at night, and where pretty girls in uniforms beckon cars into parking lots with fluttering fingers and dancing feet. It still astonishes me that when a computer or household appliance goes down, a repairman comes to your apartment within 24 hours. And not only are his charges ridiculously modest, by the standards of my country, he doesn't sneer at you for not being smart enough to figure out the problem ...
Also filed in Business | | Comments (1) »

Priceless

16-Aug-06
A picture to gladden the heart. Thanks as ever to Tom Coyner for this treasure. And another, unrelated, bizarre item from the North, from Der Spiegel: this coming weekend will see the opening of Pyongyang's new Russian Orthodox church, whose priests are all ex-DPRK intelligence agents. Related posts:Holiday snaps from the DPRK Tom Coyner has delivered another gem of an email to...Cheju, the love island We all knew that Cheju-do was a holiday destination for...DPRK propaganda films As promised yesterday. Thanks to Tom Coyner for circulating this... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Also filed in DPRK, Pictures, Religion | | Comments (0) »

Christ’s tomb maintained by Japanese yoghurt profits

29-May-06
An off-topic post, but this story is too good to pass up. Today's (London) Times is a bit of a mess. Its leader column, trying to say something witty about our comedy deputy prime minister having an afternoon playing croquet with his aides (why that's a resignation issue is beyond me - it's not as if he was playing golf), demonstrates its ignorance of the game; while a badly written article about excessive alcohol consumption in Padua, Italy, suggests that Italian winemakers have come up with a vicious variety of sparkling wine which is 50 percent proof. However, you can forgive the editor completely (even Homer nods), because there is this gem of an article, which made me wonder if ...
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Korean driving

24-May-06
Anyone who has been in a taxi in Busan will understand completely how Korea can be second in the OECD car accident rankings. (The mystery is: why only second, and how come there are any cars left on the road?) It must be something in the blood. Thanks to Tom Coyner for circulating this image from a New York newspaper. The caption is "Police report that no injuries were sustained by the drivers, Mr Kim and Mr Park, both from Queens." Tarik, my New York correspondent, thinks that this is the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. Related posts:Korean man victim of Tokyo bum-slasher Even if there wasn’t a Korean involved in this story...The fate of North Korean returnees “The only way I’m going back ...
Also filed in Motoring, Pictures, Statistics | | Comments (0) »

Korean boffins develop space kimchi

13-May-06
What would we do without the Chosun? In preparation for the journey into space of the first Korean astronaut in 2008, scientists are working on a way to make kimchi without having the little friendly bacteria turn into space aliens. The solution is gamma radiation, plus special packaging to ensure the red juice doesn't squirt everywhere when opened. Update 17 Oct 2006, from the Chosun again: Space Kimchi Poised for 2008 Launch Traditional Korean delicacies kimchi, gochujang (red pepper sauce) and ginseng are being made ready for their launch into space. The Ministry of Science and Technology said Sunday Korea's first astronaut will be eating Korean space food which Dr. Kim Sung-soo of the Korea Food Research Institute is developing. The plan is ...
Also filed in Food & Drink | | Comments (0) »

A day in the life of a Kim Jong-il impersonator

11-May-06
This article on the Yonhap website is worth a look. Related posts:Kim Jong Il in Photoshop Friday Well, it was the KCNA which started it all, for...Kim Jong-il’s book on cinema Filmbrain has spotted - and bought and, even more nobly,...DPRK Nuclear test Readers may wonder why on a day when the news... Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
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Elevator music leads to defection

04-Apr-06
To many it's the sort of music one would endure all sorts of hardship to get away from -- but to a talented NK pianist it was a revelation which led him to defect to the South. Yes, it's the easy-listening grooves of Richard Clayderman which inspired the Damascene conversion. It says something about the state of music in North Korea that such cocktail-lounge doodling should seem like an oasis in the desert. But the Gallic charmer is also big elsewhere in Asia: a story from last year has a music teacher blowing more than $100 to assure himself of a front row seat at a Clayderman gig in Shanghai. Not my sort of music, but if you spot a ...
Also filed in DPRK, Music: other | | Comments (0) »