Song Il-gon, always poetic, documents Los Coreanos – the Korean diaspora in Cuba – in his first feature documentary, Dance of Time. Let’s hope it makes it to subtitled DVD soon. http://bit.ly/85zV2A. 10:08 PM Dec 16th from bit.ly [Read More]
Category: Living abroad (page 12)
Looking at Korea through a glass sphere
British photographer (and English teacher in Korea) Simon Bond sees Korea through a glass sphere – a nice article in the Daily Telegraph http://bit.ly/3NW0oi # Simon Bond’s websites: on Flickr | 369photography.co.uk (where you can buy his work). [Read More]
A view of Korea from Bangladesh
Peter Corbishley has just returned from a trip to Dhaka, Bangladesh, where the Koreans are also active. In 2009 South Korea is putting some $320m investment into the Bangladeshi economy and nearly 160 companies are working there, including a third of all companies operating in the export processing zones. In addition in 2006, for example, … [Read More]
“Asia! Asia!” – Stephen Epstein at SOAS
Stephen Epstein had a busy week last week giving lectures in Cambridge, Oxford and London. He is on a lecture tour of Europe, using the trip as an opportunity to test various chapters from his forthcoming book with a critical audience. Friday’s lecture at SOAS focused on the portrayal of some of Korea’s Asian neighbours … [Read More]
Koreans sparkle at the Goldsmiths Fair
The Goldsmith’s Fair is an annual show of some of the best designers and craftspeople in the jewellery and metalwork business, in the livery hall of the City of London’s oldest established guild. Every year, with around 80 stalls to choose from, there is a stunning range of items to view, many of which are … [Read More]
Goldsmiths Fair, week 2
Goldsmiths Fair week 2: Serena Park has created absolutely the *cutest* pillbox hat from glass, and Misun Won makes lovely jogakpo-inspired silver jewelry # [Read More]
A meeting with Maangchi in Manhattan
It was LKL’s first transatlantic trip for about two years, and I was keen to see what had changed in Manhattan’s Koreatown. In addition, I was keen to meet up with Maangchi, one of the winners of the first prize in the KTO’s Blog Korea, Visit Korea competition. I had been aware of Maangchi’s work … [Read More]
The Folding Plug
Korean designer Choi Min-kyu fixes clunky UK 3-pin plugs. Ingenious. “I was on my way to college once and put my laptop in my bag, but when I took it out again there was a huge scratch across the surface which had been made by my plug,” said Mr Choi, who moved to the UK … [Read More]
Surprise sushi restaurant in New Malden mini-market
There’s a good sushi restaurant at the back of the Seoul Plaza shop very near the Fountain Pub in New Malden. Turbot Set with maeuntang especially recommended! # [Read More]
The British fighter pilot buried near Pyongyang
Michael Rank in the Asia Times on the British fighter pilot buried near Pyongyang. Well worth a read. http://bit.ly/1Os32 # There can be no lonelier grave anywhere on Earth. Amid fields close to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, lie the remains of Flight Lieutenant Desmond Hinton, a British fighter pilot who flew for the United … [Read More]
Korea’s got talent
While Britons were focused on their own domestic talent competition last week, Korea was demonstrating the depth of its classical music talent at the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Brussels. The venue was the Palais des Beaux Arts, where earlier this year the Smile of Buddha exhibition was held. The Queen Elisabeth competition traces … [Read More]
Ernest Bethell in Korea
The ambassador’s blog reminds us that it is 100 years since the death of Ernest T Bethell, “a name all but unknown in his homeland”. Bethell merits half a page in Don Clark’s Living Dangerously in Korea – the Western Experience 1900-1950, but occupies the first (very brief) chapter in Don Kirk and Choe Sang-hun’s … [Read More]
London Koreans in demand in Italy
Two separate exhibitions at opposite ends of Italy have featured the work of London-based Koreans. In the Milan Furniture Fair last week, Jackie Choi London was exhibiting in the Salone Satellite, 22-27 April. The Salone Satellite is designed to showcase the work of young designers under the age of 35. The Choi sisters, Jackie and … [Read More]
A celebration of young Korean talent
A somewhat ponderous performance of Shostakovich’s Fifth by an international maestro marking a fifty-year association with one of London’s orchestras might seem to be an odd occasion to choose to celebrate young Korean talent. But when the companion piece is the same maestro’s Music for Cello and Orchestra played by the young star cellist Han-na … [Read More]
The ambassador’s blog
In honour of the Four Ambassadors evening next week, I’ve recently introduced a section into the sidebar called The Ambassador’s Blog. In this section you can find the recent headlines from the blog maintained by the UK’s ambassador to Seoul, Martin Uden (right). Well worth a visit. He recently hosted his colleague north of the … [Read More]
A new variation on a familiar pun
We all groan when we come across yet another pun involving the Republic of Korea’s capital city. Maybe I should get out more, but yesterday was the first time I had come across the Mart » 마트 » Mate pun. So, welcome Seoul Mate: not a London Korean dating agency but the latest Korean food … [Read More]