In South Korea, motels, condoms and the pill are in hot demand for Christmas

SEOUL, South Korea - It's Christmastime in Seoul: the city decked out in festive lights, storefronts adorned with red and white decorations and the steady clang of Salvation Army bells echoing through subway stops.

Here, though, it's not the latest popular toys that fly off the shelves this time of year. In hot demand instead are birth control pills, condoms and Christmas-themed lingerie.

A reservation at one of Seoul's many rent-by-the-hour motels on Christmas Day? Many book up weeks earlier, even