London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

2016 travel diary 1: Arrival

Canary Wharf, London, 12 May 2016. In previous years I had always felt stressed in the run up to my departure for my annual Korea trip. Had I packed everything? Would I get everything done before I left? This time I was straining at the leash. I couldn’t wait. I had planned most of my trip … [Read More]

2016 travel diary: the index

Thu 12 – Fri 13 Arrival Sat 14 Coffee with the Drawing Hand Buddha’s Birthday 1: morning at Jogyesa. Exhibition of restored Hwaeomsa painting Wedding at Unhyeongung Buddha’s Birthday 2: lunch and afternoon concert at Giweonjeongsa Stroll through Ehwa Womans University Buddha’s Birthday 3: evening at Bongwonsa. Makgeolli  and 2차 in Insadong Sun 15 Walking … [Read More]

Looking back at 2015: Culture, sport and tourism

In the first of four articles looking back over 2015, we recall some of the culture, sports and heritage stories that made the news. Heritage The historic Baekje sites were listed by UNESCO as world heritage. UNESCO also listed in their Memory of the World register some Confucian woodblock texts and records of the family … [Read More]

Exhibition visit: Korean artists at APT8

The Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) has been hosting the Asia Pacific Triennial since 1993. The exhibition features artists from all over the region, and Korea has been represented from the start. The triennial is spread over two buildings (the QAG itself and the nearby Gallery of Modern Art which opened in 2006) which collectively are … [Read More]

2015 Travel Diary day 11: a visit to Studio MWP

Daehakro, Seoul, Monday 8 June. This year’s trip to Korea had been full of pleasant surprises: people I had not expected to meet, things I had not been expecting to see. But the most pleasant surprise of all had been an invitation to visit Studio Meditation with a Pencil, creators of my favourite Korean animated … [Read More]

2015 Travel Diary day 9: Yeongsanjae and Seodaemun

Myeongdong, Seoul, Saturday 6 June Bongwonsa temple and the Yeongsanjae rituals Today is the second UNESCO-listed item of intangible cultural heritage of my brief stay. I am tagging along with a small group of American summer students who are getting course credits by having a whale of a time in Seoul. How this works from an … [Read More]