NOV 2013

Cheon Woon-young Jeonju, Where History and Food Meet

Author

KOREA'S GARDENS
The Beauty of Natural Harmony

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CONTENTS NOVEMBER 2013 VOL.9 NO.11

04
C O V er S t O ry Korean gardens form a perfect harmony between nature and the manmade.

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Gateway

to

Korea
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KOREAS GARDENS
PEN & BRUSH

Author Cheon Woon-young

PEOPLE

Dr. Kim Soon Kwon changes the world through corn

TRAVEL

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28

Jeonju
SPORTS

Koreas rising gymnastic stars

ENTERTAINMENT

Jazz singer Nah Youn-sun moves European audiences

SPECIAL ISSUE

2013 Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale

CURRENT KOREA

26

Korean reality shows go global

SUMMIT DIPLOMACY

President Park discusses innovation, openness and  investment during Southeast Asian trip
Publisher Woo Jin-yung, Korean Culture and Information Service Executive Producer Suh Jeong-sun E-mail webmaster@korea.net Magazine Production Seoul Selection Editor-in-Chief Robert Koehler Producer Shin Yesol Production Supervisor Lee Jin-hyuk Editorial Advisors Jang Woojung, Im Hyeong Doo Copy Editors Gregory C. Eaves, D. Peter Kim, Hwang Chi-young Creative Director Jung Hyun-young Head Designer Ko Min-jeong Photography Ryu Seunghoo, Robert Koehler Printing LEEFFECT All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without permission from KOREA and the Korean Culture and Information Service. If you want to receive a free copy of KOREA or wish to cancel a subscription, please e-mail us. A downloadable PDF le of KOREA and a map and glossary with common Korean words appearing in our text are available by clicking on the thumbnail of KOREA on the homepage of www.korea.net. 11-1110073-000016-06

36 38 40

POLICY REVIEW

Regulatory reform changes lives

CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY

Korea takes to the seas for energy, minerals

GLOBAL KOREA

Building houses of home with HFHK

GREAT KOREAN

Assisting events that introduce Korean culture to non-Koreans Producing foreign-language publications and different types of promotional materials on Korea Operating the government homepage, www.korea.net Assisting intenational academics, opinion leaders and foreign media reporting on Korea

42 44 46 48 50

Confucian scholar Yi I
MY KOREA

Taking in the autumn colors

MULTICULTURAL KOREA

The hand of God

TALES FROM KOREA

Pak Hyeokgeose
FLAVOR

Gimjang

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KOREAS GARDENS

Revealing the beauty of nature as it really is

Written by Hong Kwang Pyo

Garden of Seongyojang villa, Gangneung

Huwon Garden, Changdeokgung Palace, Seoul

Buyongdong Garden, Bogildo

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application of feng shui is for the founding of cities, but on a micro scale, it involves things like digging ponds and planting trees in your garden to control energy flow. The influence of Buddhism can best be seen, naturally enough, in the gardens of Buddhist temples. Ponds are dug and lotuses planted to recreate the Buddhist Pure Land paradise. The influence of Seon (Zen) is also apparent in the use of nature as an object of contemplation. Confucian virtues, like filial piety, are also physically expressed in the scenery of Korean palaces, Confucian schools and homes.

groundbreaking and landscaping, which in turn requires a lot of money. So these kinds of gardens were rarely built by laymen or the non-wealthy. Anapji Pond in Gyeongju and the rear gardens of Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces are examples of such gardens, with largely artificially dug ponds.

Composition of Korean Gardens

Korean gardens are a combination of architectural, spatial, water and stone elements. Architecturally, Korean gardens make frequent use of pavilions. Typically, they employ jeong (small pavilions) and nu (larger pavilions). Nu are prevalent in palaces and government buildings, but jeong are typically used in home and hermitage gardens. Examples of nu are Gyeongbokgungs Gyeonghoeru, Changdeokgungs Juhamnu, Namwons Gwanghallu, Byeongsan Seowons Mandaeru and Gukdamwons Pungyongnu. The numerous examples of jeong include Gyeongbokgungs Hyangwonjeong, Changdeokgungs Buyongjeong and Aeryeonjeong, Bogildos Seyeonjeong, Seongyojangs Hwallaejeogn, Andongs Gunjajeong, Bonghwas Cheongamjeong, Buam-dongs Seokpajeong and Buamjeong, Hwasuns Imdaejeong and Yeongyangs Gyeongjeong. Occasionally employed are dae, which are either a raised slab of earth or stone or a building built on it.

Korean Garden Forms

Fundamentally, Korean gardens are composed of natural elements like water, wood and stone. Where no natural elements exist, an artificial framework is created and nature moved into it. In the case of hermitage gardens, the natural environment is left relatively unchanged compared to other garden forms. For instance, at Soswaewon Garden, a space was made in the garden wall to not impede the flow of water, while at Songgwangsa Temple, the natural environment was retained so that people could enjoy reflections on the gathering water. Artificial gardens are often inside palaces and aristocratic estates. Building such a garden requires a good deal of

hile relatively unknown overseas, Korean gardens embody a unique aesthetic beauty and philosophical underpinning that make them truly mesmerizing. With a gardening heritage that dates back millennia, Koreans have created spaces that reveal a natural beauty with as little artifice as possible. Korean gardens are the products of a people who love nature.

Korean Garden Philosophy

Korean traditional gardens embody a variety of ideologies and philosophies. Through this we can see Korea and Koreans through the spiritual world they have built over time. Typically, the gardens embody the following philosophies: hermitism, Taoism, Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, feng shui, Buddhism and Confucianism. A philosophy that tangibly reflects Korean traditional societys view of nature and life, hermitism
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is a major influence on Korean gardens. The hermitage garden, a type of Korean traditional garden, is based on this philosophy of tossing aside worldly interests and desires and returning to nature to remain aloof from the world. Taoism has also left an impact. This philosophy encourages you to pursue benefits in the here and now with the objective of obtaining immortality. This was a core value of those who maintained hermitage gardens with the intent of making nature their friend. Yin and Yang refers to the yin and yang in the taegeuk, while the Five Elementswater, fire, wood, metal and earthcreate and transform the cosmos. Korean gardens sometimes make use of part of this philosophy, which posits that the cosmos is round while the earth is square. This is most frequently seen in the design of ponds, which are often square with round islands. Feng shui, meanwhile, seeks places where the energy within the earth is the strongest. On a grand scale, the

1. Changdeokgung Palaces Buyongji Pond, a beautiful example of Korean palace gardening. The Huwon Garden, of which the Buyongji Pond is a part, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 2. Damyangs Soswaewon Garden, one of Koreas best loved hermitage gardens.

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Spatial elements of a garden include the courtyard, hwagye, walls and gates. Gardens are usually found in the courtyard of the mens quarters or the rear gardens of the womens quarters or detached halls. A hwagye is a staircase-like flower bed and usually contains seasonal flowers or trees that turn beautiful colors in autumn. Typical examples of this can be found at Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung and Changgyeonggung palaces. Walls, meanwhile, are used to delineate space or provide privacy. Gates are built to provide beautiful views. Water is an important element in Korean gardens. The water elements employed include yeonji, yeongji, gyeryu and gyedam. Certain water elements are natural but most are artificial, and depending on the character of the garden, their design can vary wildly. Most ponds in Korean gardens are square with round islands. Gyeongjus Anapji Pond has three islands that symbolize the Three Gods Mountain, while the pond of Gyeonghoeru at Gyeongbokgung Palace has three square islands. Ponds are divided into yeonji and yeongji, depending on their function. If it holds lotuses, the pond is called yeonji. If it is a reflecting pond, it is yeongji. Yeonji can be found at Buddhist temples, while yeongji are found at

palaces, aristocratic homes and hermitage gardens. The lotus flowers planted at yeonji in Buddhist temples symbolize both the Enlightened One the Buddhaand the Pure Land Paradise. Lotuses planted at aristocratic homes or hermitage gardens represent virtuous men. A yeongji, meanwhile, is a reflecting pond. The ponds of many Korean gardens serve as both lotus and reflecting ponds. Typical reflecting ponds include that of Gyeonghoeru at Gyeongbokgung Palace, the Buyongji and Aeryeonji ponds of Changdeokgung Palace, Gupumyeonji Pond of Bulguksa Temple, the reflecting pond of Munsuwonjeong in Cheongpyeong, and the reflecting pool of Haeinsa Temple. Most streams, or gyeryu, found in Korean gardens are natural. Examples of natural streams include those at Damyangs Soswaewon and Myeongokheon gardens and Bogildos Buyongdongwonseo garden. Gyedam, meanwhile, are ponds formed by blocking streams. Many examples are found at Buddhist temples. They serve a feng shui purpose by turning bad spots into auspicious ones and an aesthetic purpose in serving as reservoirs to store water used for a variety of purposes. Leading examples can be found at Songgwangsa, Baegyangsa and Haeinsa temples. Korean gardens also use a wide range of stonework elements. Chimneys take away the smoke created by Koreas underground heating system, but Koreans have long used them as decorative elements as well. Ornamental examples can be found in the rear garden of Gyeongbokgung Palace. Chimneys at Buddhist temples typically use broken roof tiles stacked together with clay mortar. A hwaseok is a set of uniquely shaped rocks positioned near ponds or in flower beds. The rocks are either placed on a base or planted directly into the ground. A seongnyeonji, a stone basin, is sometimes used to grow aquatic plants or raise fish. Another piece of masonry often used is a dragon- or turtle-head spout that empties stream water into ponds. Finally, a seongnujo, a stone tongue, funnels rainwater like a waterfall.

Differences with Chinese and Japanese Gardens

While gardens in Korea, China and Japan are based on nature, the way they express this is quite different. Chinese gardens exaggerate the beauty of nature within a confined space, while those of Japan tend to create artificial beauty by abstractly depicting beautiful natural scenes. Korean gardens, meanwhile, strive for naturalistic beauty. They stress the meaning of nature and return people to the environment, recreating nature as it is.

1. Anapji Garden in Gyeongju. Built in the 7th century, the garden is Koreas oldest existing garden. 2. Hyangwonji Pond and Hyangwonjeong Pavilion, Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul

The Beauty of Korean Gardens

Korean gardens are set apart by their affinity for nature. Indeed, a Korean garden's closeness to nature, its resemblance to nature, is generally its most desired trait. Ever since the olden days, Koreans have preferred to build their pavilions
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Koreas Representative Gardens

Anapji Garden
Anapji is Koreas oldest existing traditional garden, built in 674 during the reign of King Munmu of the Silla Kingdom. Anapji is a fully articial garden in that the pond was dug, hills created, owers planted and rare birds and animals introduced. The water in Anapji comes from Gyeongjus Bukcheon Stream via a series of stone steps. The lakeside is modeled on the shape of the seashore, and ornamental rocks have been placed there to lend beauty to the landscape. Also accentuating the scene are owering trees that bloom in accordance with the seasons. (Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do) private space that is a cut above mere simple beauty. Sit above it, and you feel almost as if youre on a ship. Located on the way to Ongnyucheon Stream, the Aeryeonjeong area is simple and rustic. If you head up a bit from Aeryeongjeong, youll come to a couple of pavilions such as Gwallamjeong and Jondeokjeong--this is the Jondeokjeong area. The ponds and pavilions in this area have been placed in a way that maintains the natural topography. A nice walking path has been created, too. In the deepest part of the garden is the Ongnyucheon area. The heart of this section is a stream owing from the eastern peak of Mt. Bugaksan. The name Ongnyucheon comes from an inscription written onto a rock by King Injo. On this rock, a channel has been carved, taking the water to an articial waterfall that produces a waterfall-like sound in a deep valley. (Seoul) pool, Seyeongjeong Pavilion was built with an entirely open structure to provide unobstructed views of the surroundings. On a mountain slope a kilometer north of here is the Dongcheon Seoksil section. The center of this section is Dongcheon Seoksil, a small pavilion whose name means house of a hermit. Yun spent quite a bit of time here, reading books and enjoying the mountain scenery. The last section of the garden is Yuns own living space, the halls of Nakseojae and Goksudang. Both have a natural beauty to them. Behind Nakseojae is a beautiful boulder, while next to the Goksudang ows a stream. In the pond dug in front of the Goksudang are three ornamental rocks that represent the Three Gods Mountain. (Bogildo, Jeollanam-do)

Dongnakdang
Dongnakdang was the living room and study of Joseon Dynasty scholar Yi Eon-jeok. Using the borrowed landscape technique, the room allows visitors to enjoy the surrounding natural beauty. From it, one gets ne views of the pine forest beyond its walls. (Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do)

Soswaewon
Built in the 16th century by scholar Yang San-bo, Soswaewon is one of Koreas best known hermitage gardens. As a hermitage garden, its makers showed great restraint and produced a naturefocused space. For instance, the garden wall was designed to avoid impeding the ow of the stream at the heart of the garden. Several pavilions are at vantage points throughout the garden. To reach the garden, you must rst pass through one of the countrys most scenic bamboo forests. Soswaewon is located in a village called Jigok; nearby are many pavilions such as Hwangbyeokdang, Myeonangjeong and Songgangjeong. (Damyang, Jeollanam-do)

Gyeongbokgung Palaces Amisan Garden

Amisan Garden behind Gyeongbokgung Palaces Gyotaejeon Hall has a four-story ower bed made of rectangular stone. In the ower bed are ornamental rocks, stone basins and other stone elements, as well as four and six-sided chimneys beautifully built from brick. The chimneys are nely decorated with a variety of motifs including arabesque, pine, bamboo, plums, peonies, chrysanthemum, dragons, tigers, bats, haetae and clouds. Flowering shrubs like dwarf almonds, yellow and red plums, apricots, peonies, azaleas and cherries are planted alongside tall trees such as those of pine, pear and apricot and Cornelian cherry, producing a beautiful vegetation landscape. (Seoul)

Seongyojang
Founded by Yi Nae-beon in the mid-1700s, the ten-building structure Seongyojang took several eras to reach completion. Hwangnaejeong Pavilion was built in the early 19th century, with a pond full of lotuses. The nearby myrtles ll the space with beautiful owers and scents in summer. (Gangneung, Gangwon-do)

Buyongdong Hermitage Garden

Located on the southwestern island of Bogildo, Buyongdong Hermitage Garden was built in the 17th century by scholar Yun Seon-do. The garden can be divided into several sections. The area around Seyeonjeong Pavilion comprises a pavilion, pond and pool. The square-shaped pond has a square island and draws water from a pool made by blocking a stream with a stone dam. Built between the pond and

Changdeokgung Palaces Huwon Garden

Changdeokgung Palaces famous Huwon Garden is divided into several sections: Buyongjeong, Aeryeonjeong, Jondeokjeong and Ongnyucheon. Located at the entrance of Huwon, the Buyongjeong area utilizes scenic elements with different meanings, producing a

in beautiful natural locations rather than in their homes. Most Korean gardens are located in naturally beautiful spots. In particular, hermitage gardens are built on sites with outstanding natural scenery and much care is taken not to harm the aesthetic or ecological elements of the location. The garden was built so people could return to nature, borrow the space for a bit and make friends with nature. This sets Korean gardens apart from Chinese, Japanese and Western gardens. Korean gardens are designed to highlight the passage of time. People can tell spring has come from the sound of stream water flowing from the melting ice and the scent of plum blossoms. Azaleas and peonies blossom, followed by myrtles. Then the rains come, signaling the arrival of summer. As maple turns red, ginkgoes go golden, and grasshoppers chirp, you can feel the deepening of autumn. Finally, you wake up one morning and the garden is covered in white snowwinter is here. The Korean garden is a stage to see the passage of the four seasons through the transformation of nature. Korean gardens also reveal the beauty of emptiness. Trees are neither planted in intricate clusters nor spread out sparingly. The garden makes use of empty space thanks to a technique called chagyeong, or borrowed landscape. Through chagyeong, the beauty of the surrounding scenery is borrowed, so to speak, and is used as part of the garden itself. This gardening technique creates beauty from emptiness and is hard to find in other countries. Balance is created by emptying full spaces and filling empty spaces. Korean gardens are also a total sensory experience that use light, smell, sound, taste and touch. As the light changes from morning to dusk, lit spaces and shaded spaces are created and the scenery is transformed. The scents never stop, as different flowers blossom with the change in seasons. Humans and nature are in harmony through the beautiful music created from water, wind, birds and the swaying bamboo. The true taste of nature can be enjoyed by sitting on a pavilion with a cup of tea. Feel the softness of flower petals, your hair blowing in the wind, the coolness of the water when dipping your feet in the pond and the passage of time while gripping the weathered railing of an old pavilion.

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Globalizing Korean Gardens

Over the last few decades, diverse efforts have gone into building Korean gardens overseas. About 15 such gardens have been made in Japan, China and Europe, helping to promote Koreas unique culture abroad and instilling pride in ethnic Koreans living outside of the motherland. A Korean garden has been built in the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar, and efforts to do the same in Los Angeles and Irvine, California, will also promote Korean culture. Most Korean gardens overseas have been built by municipal and provincial governments, usually for overseas expos or as part of sister city ties. None were initiated or paid for by private initiative, however, partly because private entities have difficulty raising the cash for the projects. The main reason, however, is lack of leadership from the private sector. Korea has become a world leader with a mature economy and political system. Still, few abroad seem to know that the country has 5,000 years of history and unique culture. The Park Geun-hye administrations launch of its Cultural Enrichment initiative seeks to

promote Korea as a culturally mature nation and instill pride in its citizens as cultured people. Building Korean gardens overseas to promote Korean culture can help realize the initiatives goals. Active participation from central and regional governments and the private sector is required. The Korean traditional garden is a symbolic icon cultivated by Koreas unique environmental conditions and the people raised under those conditions. From Anapji Pond of the Silla Kingdom to the UNESCOregistered Huwon Garden of Changdeokgung Palace, such gardens have a scenic nature quite unlike those of other nations. Palace gardens express the highest level of decoration through the use of ponds, pavilions, flower beds and stones. Hermitage gardens show the beauty of nature as it is by employing as few manmade items as possible. Home gardens, meanwhile, focus on the backyard to produce a rustic atmosphere, creating a hidden beauty. When building Korean gardens overseas, this identity must not be damaged. When this principle is adhered to, the Korean character of traditional gardens can be preserved.
Lotus ponds of Seonyudo Park, a modern example of Korean gardening.

Gardens are made by people, but the principle is to make it look as if it were made by heaven. This is the key to Korean gardens, explains SeoAhn Total Landscape President Jung Young-sun, one of Koreas top landscape architects. In fact, she designed the venue for the interview, the lovely Heewon Garden of the HoAm Art Museum in Yongin, Gyeonggido. As we conducted the interview, she took the writer on a tour of the gardens, pointing out the beauty of the rough-cut rocks, the view of the nearby lake, and the terracing that gradually brought the hilltop museum into view. Jung quickly stresses that Korean gardens are quite diverse. A very important thing is that Korean gardensbe it Huwon, Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoswaewon or Buyongdong have similarities but are also quite different, depending on the place and the architecture, she says. This is reflected in Heewon Garden, which some call an encyclopedia of Korean gardening. She adds, I analyzed how our ancestors viewed nature and how they reflected this in their living spaces, their temples, their palaces. I also looked at how they viewed the land. Searching for the roots of these attitudes, she found them in the land itself. Because our land is different from Chinas and Japans, naturally our view of nature is different, she says. In particular, we have a lot of mountains, and if we just adjust the land a bit, we can see the surrounding scenery, to borrow it. This principle was put to work at

Heewon, where Jung first read the landscape, taking note of the mountains and the lovely reservoir, and then set about finding ways to utilize it. She says Heewon is not merely a Korean traditional gardenits an evolution of tradition. A lot of our history and tradition was cut off by the Japanese colonial period, the Korean War and afterwards, she says. Especially with gardening, there was no modernization process. In that regard, this place is very important. True to Korean gardening techniques, Jung chose not to copy Koreas other famous gardens. We couldnt just imitate Huwon or Soswaewon or Buyongdong, she says. We needed to make something that fit this building (the museum), this landscape and this age. To further take advantage of the landscape, she included a larger outer garden with the lake and mountains so that visitors from the city could better appreciate the beauty of the landscapes. The garden is also an exhibition space throughout the landscape are stone figures, Buddhist reliefs and other artistic works of masonry. Even the coffee shop, which has lovely views of the garden, is designed to blend in with the landscape and harkens back to a time when scholars sat in their pavilions with a cup of tea. Jung laments that some of Koreas more famous gardens are either overtouristed or are not as well maintained as they should be. Still, she recommends Seouls Seongnagwon Garden and Seokpajeong Villa as good examples of Korean gardens.

Borrowed Beauty
Landscape architect says a garden is more than whats inside the walls
Interview by Robert Koehler

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NOT JUST A WOmAN WRITER

Cheon Woon-young breaks the mold with a literary world all her own
Written by Kim Hyung-eun and Robert Koehler

s a writer, as somebody who gives birth to something, it was like self-reflection. And personally, as a woman who is past 40 and not a mother, it was like introspection. I still have much to say about mothers, both in themselves and as symbols. So says author Cheon Woon-young about her latest volume of short stories, As You Know, Too, Mother (Moonji Publishing Co., Ltd, 2013). Since the release of her first collection of short stories, The Needle (Changbi Publishers, 2001), Cheon has been provoking audiences and shattering stereotypes about female authors with her vivid imagery and raw and almost primal stories and depictions. With As You Know, Too, Mother, she tackles a number of issues, including the cause of evil, but most importantly, she examines the meaning of motherboth the literal and symbolic meanings of the wordand the impact that even bad mothers can have on this world.

but manyincluding the title workdeal with mothers and mother-figures, be them physical or symbolic mothers, or, as Cheon explains, a being that conceives and gives birth to something, a being that feeds and raises something, a being that educates and influences something. In particular, she wanted to see how even poor mothers can produce something good. She says, The mothers in the book might seem like bad mothers or mothers that had a bad influence, but I wanted to try thinking about how, ultimately, we get good seeds from these mothers.

Talking to People. Watching People.

Cheon says she finds her inspiration from life, both hers and those of others. Theres nothing as vivid, complex and mysterious as real life, she says. Shes always talking with other people, or at the very least observing them. When I write a novel, I shut myself inside alone, but Im constantly with people until the time I begin writing, she says. Likewise, when the words dont flow, she mixes with the masses, watching what they do. I sit for a while in one spot, she says. I watch quietly. People. Things. I just sit there. Theres nothing else I can do.

Good Seed from Bad Mothers

Being a collection of short stories published over the last four years, As You Know, Too, Mother did not find its inspiration from one specific source. In the case of full-length novels, you write with one purpose from start to finish, but in the case of short stories, you immediately write the stories that touch you when they do, says Cheon. So after you collect the short stories youve released, you also come to realize the theme you wanted at the time. Some of the stories began as explorations of the start of evil,
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I Thought You Were a Man

Literary critics as well as the general public have praised Cheon for breaking with the bourgeois sensibilities displayed by female writers of the 1990s to launch a grittier literary trend.
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The Needle

Ginger

As You Know, Too, Mother

I wonder if perhaps I receive such reviews because existing female writers usually write womens stories or because they tell their own stories more subtly, and my novels are different from that, says Cheon. Saying many readers seem to have a prejudice toward female writers, she says shes never really thought of herself as a female writer, let alone set out to create a whole new school of female literature. Ive never thought of myself as a female writer. Nor did I set out to create a new female aesthetic to erase the title of woman, she says. All I did was find the right voice when I had a story I wanted to tell. At any rate, Cheon is wary of public reviews. They become prisons, she says.

dialect spoken in the ethnic Korean region of northeast China. Now that I think of it again, I wonder how I did it, she says. It wouldve been impossible without the stamina of youth. She considers her most significant novel, however, to be Ginger (Changbi Publishers, 2011). This daring work tells the story of a torturerbased on a real and still very much alive individualwho tortured dissidents during Koreas military dictatorships of the 1970s and 80s. I had quite a hard time because its still ongoing history, she says. Its not something I could talk about rashly. Ginger also showed tension between what she wanted to say and what the story wanted to say, as she puts it. There were also times when she managed to frighten herself. Theres a scene where the torturer, immersed in his work, is beautifully romanticizing what hes doing, she says. As I wrote that, I saw myself enjoying the torture, too. I was frightened. The book took a while to finish, but once she completed it, she said she felt as if she had passed through a sort of gate. The most important thing was that through the process, I could realize what kind of person I was, she says. It also represented the start of a new direction in her writing. A flow that had begun with The Needle had slightly changed course with Ginger, she says. I really like the change in direction. I plan to go with the flow for the time being.

They Are All My Children

To ask Cheon which of her works she likes best is like asking a mother to choose her favorite child. Im attached to all my works for different reasons, she says. They are all my kids, the bad ones and the good ones. The Needle, for instance, is her eldest son, written in a white heat. Farewell, Circus (Munhakdongne Publishing Corp., 2005), on the other hand, required quite a bit of work. The novel, which deals with a Korean-Chinese person now living in Korea, required Cheon to travel back and forth between Korea and China. It was tough, but she did pick up the unique Korean
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y older brother held out the limp paper clown for the woman to take. After a moments hesitation, she took it. This was the woman my brother liked. He pretended to be uninterested, but had been watching everything. I started doubting again. All this woman is looking for is a marriage certificate and plane ticket to Korea. Behind those gentle features, she is hatching a clever scheme, no doubt. My brother spoke to me with his kind eyes. Dont doubt her. With his good-natured eyes, he told me that he didnt have anything to lose anyway. My brothers voice is a little . . . but other than that, hes good hearted, and the restaurant hes running right now is doing pretty well, too. Once you get used to his voice, its not that bad. Its not like he cant speak at all, you know . . . since he hurt his throat in that accident . . . I kept fumbling for words, like a child making one excuse after the other or a soldier who lost the will to fight. I stopped talking and looked at my brother. He grinned even wider and kept smiling like a fool. When he smiles, you can see the wrinkles in his throat. It makes him look older. I like this girl, my brother said in my ear. Her name was Hae-hwa. Lim Hae-hwa. My brother said her name was pretty. The woman laughed for the first time, maybe hearing what my brother said. He chuckled along with her. While my brother was laughing, I stole a glance at the womans eyes. The back of my head itched as if I had something to hide. The expression on her face didnt change at all. She wasnt the kind of person who showed fear or confusion easily. Her carefully composed face actually frightened me for some reason. My brother brought out the present he had purchased. It was a set of Korean cosmetics that we had been told was popular with Chinese women. The marriage broker had the men on the tour buy presents they would need if they

ended up with one of the women, gifts for the bride and her parents. All of the men bought the same cosmetics set at the airport. The woman toyed with one corner of the packaging. My brother looked at me and gestured with his chin. Thats a present, so anyway, you can just have it. No pressure at all. When I was done talking, my brother nodded his head in an exaggerated way and then whispered something else in my ear. My brother says that this is fine with him. . . as long as its fine with you. The woman didnt reply. Perhaps she didnt like my brother? As my brothers smile kept getting bigger and as her silence kept stretching out longer, I gradually felt more and more uneasy. Do you think it would be okay if . . . we had the wedding before we go? The woman spoke with her eyes facing down. After she was done, she slowly lifted her head and gazed at my brother. Her face looked like she might start crying at any minute. Im the only child in the family. My parents arent happy with the idea of sending me off without a wedding. Anyway, were supposed to have an engagement ceremony before we go, right? If we cant do the wedding, it should be OK to take a picture of me in a floral veil, right? If nothing else, I should leave a picture behind when I go. . . The woman wasnt speaking to me, but to my brother. At last, I relaxed a little. My brother gave her a big smile instead of a response.
Excerpt, Farewell, Circus, p1718. In addition to the Korean original, the novel is available in French translation, too.

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just sit around the laboratory all day in a suit and tie, youll never get anywhere, he said. One of his professors then suggested that Kim go with him to Africa and help develop corn for the hungry. Kim, however, was intent on returning to his homeland to help the starving people there. After humbly refusing the offer and returning to Korea to start his research, the good doctor soon found that few were on his side.

Finding a Different Way

This time, the United Nations pleaded with him to go to Africa to do for the people there what he did for Korea. Agriculturalists from all over the globe had failed in more than 30 years of research to produce a proper hybrid that would flourish in the native soil, largely due to the indigenous weed, striga, nicknamed the devils plant, which made it impossible for any corn to grow. Kim, recognizing that complete resistance to nature was futile, developed a hybrid breed that would live in harmony with striga. His predecessors had simply tried to wipe it out entirely, and failed each time. Striga is native to Nigerian soil. You cant expect it to totally relinquish its home turf. You have to compromise a little. I made a corn that could live with striga instead of trying to rebel against it. The good doctor had succeeded again. Thanks to his work, thousands of people have been saved from mass starvation. Recommended by many for the Nobel Prize, Kim said his next dream is to develop corn to feed people in North Korea. To me, corn isnt only food, its hope. I believe it can be a means to achieve world peace.

Homegrown Success
Corn research was severely limited and most people in the field refused to even conduct further research on developing it, saying it was useless for Korea. Kim was not easily deterred, however. Convinced that a proper genetic hybrid of corn could be developed to feed more Koreans, he stuck to his research. In 1976, he developed Asias first hybrid breed of corn that could produce three times the volume of food corn provided at the time. News of Kims success reached agricultural experts all across the world. This humble man from the Korean provinces had accomplished a world first in his field, finding an effective and safe way to fight mass hunger in underdeveloped nations.
1. In 1976, Kim developed corn that produced three times the amount of food corn provided at the time. International Corn Foundation 2. Kim trains students at an agricultural school in Zimbabwe. International Corn Foundation

Dr. Kim Soon Kwon helps feed the world with his revolutionary corn research.

SEEDS D Of HOPE

Written by Felix Im

r. Kim Soon Kwon was born in 1945 to a family that farmed and fished for a living. Japanese occupation of Korea had just ended and the country would soon see its most tragic civil war. Growing up, Kim and his friends would often roam the countryside and hunt for frogs, pheasants and even grasshoppers; not for kicks, but for food. When he failed his high school exam, he had no choice but to help his dad work on the family farm. Kim eventually got into high school, however, and went on to attend university and graduate school, where he studied agricultural science to fulfill his dream of developing hybrid crops to make farming more efficient and to provide better, safer food for more people in need. Following

his professors advice, he applied for the Ph.D program at Seoul National University, but failed that exam, too. I was never the best student. It turns out I dont even have that high of an IQ, he said.

Eyes Opened
Nevertheless, Kim was apparently good enough for the University of Hawaii, where he studied thanks to a scholarship and received his doctorate in only three years. While there, he grew particularly fascinated by one professor who never hesitated to wear overalls and sneakers and jump into the field to conduct research. I realized then that you cant become a proper agricultural researcher if you dont jump into the cornfield yourself. If you

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Jeonju
Where traditional Korean charm and culinary delights collide
Written by Robert Koehler

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o appreciate Jeonjus charms, you must prepare to get lost. And bring your appetite with you. Jeonjuexemplified by the Jeonju Hanok Villageis a heady mix of picturesque alleyways, rustic Korean homes, old Confucian shrines, artisan workshops, historic gates and plenty of good food. Its even more charming in autumn, when the leaves change color and bathe the alleyways in wonderful hues of gold and crimson.

Elegant Korean Hanok homes and quaint alleyways of Jeonju Hanok Village. Jeonju City

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Catholic churches. Built by French missionaries in 1914, the mostly Romanesque brick structure is crowned by three Byzantine spires. Nobody will confuse it for the Hagia Sophia, but its spectacular nonetheless. The old brick rectory there is quite lovely, too.

Where to Eat Jeonjus best known bibimbap house is Gogung (T. 063251-3211), a taxi ride from Jeonjus Hanok Village. Closer to the village is Gajok Hoegwan (T. 063-284-0982), which is also highly recommended. This writer recommends Seongmidang (T. 063-273-0029), a smaller place hidden in an alley near Gajok Hoegwan. Its friendly, held in high esteem by locals and above all, does great food. Where to Stay Many of the homes in Jeonju Hanok Village double as guesthouses. Youll nd some real gems here. The nicest is Hakindang (T. 063-284-9929), a palatial estate built in 1905 by high-ranking royal court ofcial Baek Nak-jung. The homes architecture incorporates aspects of royal palace design. Korean independence activist Kim Koo (18761949) slept in what is now the VIP room. Another great place is Dongnagwon (T. 063-287-2040), a Hanok estate in an alleyway off Eunhaeng-ro. In addition to being a lodging facility, it also serves as a memorial to American missionary William McCleery Junkin, who conducted many religious and educational activities in Jeonju after coming to Korea in 1892. Getting There The KTX express train connects Jeonju with Seouls Yongsan Station (travel time: about 2 hrs, 10 min).

Quiet place to think

One of Bukchons most charming spotsespecially in autumnis the Jeonju Hyanggyo, the towns old Confucian school. Moved to its current spot in 1603, the school is a collection of graceful wood halls and centuries-old trees, perfect for a relaxing stroll. In autumn, the ginkgoes in the courtyard turn bright yellow; as the leaves fall, they create a beautiful golden carpet. As an added bonus, the school is relatively tourist-free, creating a tranquil space for contemplation.

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1. Jeonjus signiture dish, the bibimbap. KTO 2. Jeondong Catholic Cathedral, one of Koreas oldest and most beautiful Catholic churches 3. Yellow ginkgo leaves form a golden blanket over Jeonju Hyanggyo, a historic Confucian school. Jeonju City

Culinary capital of Korea

Many Korean foodies will tell you Koreas best cuisine can be had in Jeonju. The bread basket of Korea for centuries, the region produces some of Koreas best quality rice and foodstuffs. The ingredients are liberally combined into dishes that bewitch the senses. Jeonjus signature dish is Jeonju bibimbap, a bowl of rice mixed with 30 seasoned vegetables and other ingredients, including raw beef and tangy red pepper paste. A table full of side dishes accompanies each meal, the number and variety of which boggle the mind. Another Jeonju favorite is kongnamul gukbap, a soup of bean sprouts, anchovy broth and rice. Not only is it tasty, but makes for a great hangover remedy.

Land of royalty
Jeonju is the ancestral home of the Jeonju Yi clan, the royal family of the Joseon Dynasty (13921910). The kings of Joseon ruled Korea for 500 largely stable years, overseeing some of the nations greatest cultural accomplishments including the invention of Hangeul, Koreas ingenious indigenous alphabet. Gyeonggijeon Shrine, located in the heart of the city, was founded in 1410 to pay tribute to the founder of the Joseon Dynasty, King Taejo. Most of the complex dates back to a 17thcentury reconstruction. The rustic halls and gnarled old trees make for a wonderful stroll. Dont miss its small bamboo forest, a popular photo-taking place.

and stores. Maps of the neighborhood are available at tourist information booths, but to really get a feel for it, just put on a pair of good walking shoes and explore.

Byzantine gem in southwest Korea

Not everything in Jeonjus Hanok Village is purely Korean, though. The villages easiest recognized landmarkindeed, its one of the few buildings here taller than one storyis Jeondong Catholic Cathedral, one of Koreas oldest and most beautiful

Seoul

Jeonju Hanok Village

The most popular tourist destination in Jeonju, however, is Jeonju Hanok Village, Koreas best known collection of traditional Korean houses outside of Seouls Bukchon district. Like those of Bukchon, Jeonjus traditional housesor Hanokdate from the early 20th century, when urbanization spurred new housing development. Unlike their country cousins, Jeonjus Hanok are densely packed along narrow alleys. Get a birds eye view of the village from Omokdae Pavilionits almost like a sea of black tile roofs. Many Hanok here are still homes, but many others have been transformed into restaurants, cafs, galleries, workshops
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Jeonju

Jejudo

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A gOLDEN gENERATION
Young Korean gymnasts leap into the big time
Written by Kim Tong-hyung

ang Hak-seon is running out of competitors and his coach is running out of superlatives. In October, the 21-year-old Yang became the first South Korean gymnast in 21 years to win back-to-back gold medals at the world championships, dominating the vault competition in Antwerp, Belgium. This made national team coach Joo Young-sam wonder whether Yangs talent will hit a ceiling. I was rooting for him on the sidelines, but really, he won all by himself and the enjoyment is all his, Joo told reporters. He wasnt in ideal physical condition, and there was also the pressure of everyone talking that a gold medal would be inevitable. But he braved through it, practiced hard and even prepared a new technique. He earned his medal and Im proud of him. In Antwerp, Yang was not close to top physical form due to back pain and having tweaked his neck in practice. Still, even at less than 100 percent, he was comfortably better than everyone else in the building. The outcome was made more predictable by North Koreas Ri Se-gwang, who had been considered Yangs closest rival but checked out early after a disappointing preliminary round. Yang cruised through the preliminary and took care of business in the final, pulling off his famous Yang1, a handspring triple twist named after him, on his first attempt. He then executed a Lopez, a one-and-a-half back somersault and three twists, on his second to score 15.553 points overall. American Steven Legendre took the silver with 15.249 points and Britains Kristian Thomas the bronze with 15.233. In praising Yang for his triumph in Belgium, the South Korean media also expressed disappointment that he did not showcase his new move, the Yang-2, or a Tsukahara triple with an extra half turn. He has pledged to make his next namesake vault, and his competitors like Ri could bring out

the South Koreans best next time. Yang wasnt in good condition and the other players didnt get high scores, so there was no reason for him to attempt the Yang-2 this time, said Kim Dae-won, vice president of the Korea Gymnastics Association. Perhaps Yang will need the Yang-2 in next years Asian Games, where he could be competing against Ri.

Young Talent Emerges

Bringing home his countrys first Olympic gold in gymnastics in London last year, Yang is widely considered the most talented gymnast to come out of South Korea. He is considered to have eclipsed Yoo Ok-ryul, who topped the vault competitions in the 1991 and 1992 world championships. Whether Yang is the countrys most dominant athlete in any sport is debatable, as that argument would probably favor Kim Yu-na, who reigns with authority in womens figure skating. But unlike Kim, Yang gets routines named after him. Yang is the biggest name among a group of gifted South Korean gymnasts who have inspired talk of a golden

generation in the countrys gymnastics. Kim Hee-hoon, 22, is the countrys next-best talent in the vault, while Park Min-soo, 19, showed his potential by finishing 22nd in the individual allround in Antwerp in his first major international event. On the womens side, Sung Ji-hye, 17, who won silver in the 2012 Asian Championships all-round, is generating the most excitement. She finished 34th in the individual all-round in Antwerp with 52.065 points, leading to speculation that she could emerge as a medal hopeful in the 2016 Olympics in Rio given her talent and learning curve. It was precisely 10 years ago when South Korea announced itself as a world gymnastics power, with Kim Dae-un winning the silver medal and Yang Tae-young the bronze in the mens all-round at the 2004 Athens Olympics. That memory is bittersweet for South Korea, however. Kim should have been the mens all-around champion, but the judges would not correct a mistake they made and American Paul Hamm ended up with the gold. Fortunately, the new vault king, Yang, gives himself a wider margin of error, precluding any judging controversies.

1. Yang Hak-seon won Koreas rst gold in gymnastics at the 2012 London Olympics. 2. Yang performs his famous Yang-1 on the vault at the 2013 Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia.

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E N T E R TA I N M E N T

JAZZING UP ARIRANG
Vocalist Nah Youn-sun moves European audiences with Korean folk tune
Written by Yim Seung-hye

When I tell my friends in Korea about this experience [of foreign audiences getting teary-eyed while listening to Arirang], they dont believe me. But they really cry. Thats the charm of this traditional folk song, she said. Being born to musical parentsNahs mother is one of Koreas first generation of musical actresses and her father is a classic vocalistit seems natural for Nah to have gone into music. She insists, however, that everything has been coincidental. Nah majored in French in college and her first job was as a copywriter at a public relations company. But after just eight months, she left her job and stayed home for months wondering what to do with her life. Then a close friend suggested she audition for a musical since she knew that Nah enjoyed singing. But as Nah knew how difficult things are for a musical actress by watching her mother, she was hesitant to set foot in the industry. But I thought its better to do something than nothing, so I auditioned and got a part in the musical Subway Line No. 1,

said Nah. After performing on stage, she said she wanted to study more and decided on jazz after a friends suggestion. Nah spoke a little French and was a big fan of chansons, lyric-driven French songs, so she boarded a plane to Paris at the fairly late age of 26 to study a musical genre that she said she knew nothing about. Since leaving for France in 1995, Nah has studied at the CIM Jazz School and the National Music Institute of Beauvais as well as the Nadia and Lili Boulanger Conservatory. In March, she released her eighth album, Lento, which includes her jazzy rendition of Arirang. In early October, the singer performed at the Jarasum International Jazz Festival in Korea and then left for Europe for a tour of Germany.

1. Jazz singer Nah Youn-suns performances of the Korean folk song Arirang have moved European audiences. Nah Youn-sun 2. Nah performs before a packed Thtre du Chtelet in Paris, France on March 25, 2013. Nah Youn-sun

azz singers usually do not make their audience sob after listening to their songs, unless they are at a jazz bar and people in the seats have had one too many cocktails. This certainly does not occur at legendary venues like the Thtre du Chtelet in Paris. However, Nah Youn-sun brings a flood of tears to her audiences eyes whenever she sings Arirang, a Korean traditional folk song. Its odd enough to make audiences sob in a jazz concert, but Nah, 43, sings what is considered Koreas second national anthem in almost all of her concerts. Koreans grew familiar with the singer after seeing her at President Park Geun-hyes inauguration, where she sang Arirang Fantasy with veteran singer Insooni, musical actress Choi Jung-won and pansori master Ahn Sook-seon. Nah, however, has a large following in France and across Europe. She was named a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government and ranks high on European jazz charts. She has performed on more than 200 stages in
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25 countries and despite being on foreign soil, Nah has won fans on the continent with a jazzy version of her motherlands classic tune, Arirang. Youd be surprised to know that I didnt come up with the idea of singing Arirang in our repertoire. My guitarist Ulf Wakenius told me one day that he knew a Korean song and played it on his guitar. It was Arirang, and I was surprised that he knew it, she said. As Nah was looking for a Korean song to sing at her concerts, she asked her guitarist if he could play the tune. He confidently said yes, and then asked if she could sing the song, to which she said, What do you mean if I can sing it? Nearly everyone in Korea can.

Bringing audiences to tears

Nah and her band have since been performing Arirang in nearly all of their shows. Every time, she says she is surprised to see audiences shedding tears while listening despite being unable to understand the lyrics and the meaning behind the song.

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SPECIAL ISSUE

irst held in 2001, the Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale (GICB) is one of the most prestigious events in the world of ceramics, bringing together artists and enthusiasts for a 51-day celebration of the ceramic arts. Under the theme, Community: With Me, With You, With Us, this years biennale features stimulating exhibits by top ceramic artists from both Korea and overseas. In particular, the event presents an opportunity to discover transformations in the ceramics community vis-a-vis art and in everyday life.

INVitED ARtiStS, INtERNAtiONAL INVitAtiONAL COmPEtitiON Park Je-duck, Lee Hun-chung, Lee Hwa-jin, Hahn Ai-kyu and Han Young-sil (Korea); Christ Antemann, Beth Lo, Albert Pfarr and Jeanne Quinn (United States); Li Xiaofeng and Huang Chunping (China); Takashi Hinoda and Toshio Oh (Japan); Lee Yong Ming (Taiwan); Vipoo Srivilasa (Australia/Thailand), Debashis Pal (Bangladesh); Neil Forrest (Canada); Isabel Cisneros (Venezuela); Kukuli Velarde (Peru/United States); Keka Ruiz-Tagle (Chile); Clare Twomey (United Kingdom); Johan Creten (Belgium); Milan Kunc (Czech Republic); Isabel Ferrand (Portugal/Netherlands); Varda Yatom (Israel); Wilma Cruise (South Africa); and Moyo Okediji (Nigeria).

Building a community
Since Hongik University professor Lee I-chin took over as director in 2012, the biennale, now in its seventh year, has refocused on the concept of sharing. Namely, as an internationally recognized event, it was now time for the Korean ceramics scene to give back. The goal this year is to share the biennale with as many people around the world as possible, including young artists, ceramic educators, curators and specialists. Event organizers will also reach out to groups that have been ignored or discriminated against. The GICB 2013s main event, the International Invitational Competition, features more than 50 works by 27 artists from 18 nations. The competition has just one award, the grand prize, which comes with a sum of USD 20,000. The special exhibition of the GICB 2013, Hot Rookies, is an omnibus exhibit featuring works by 20 young artists, defined as artists under the age of 40, from eight nations. The theme of this exhibit is Paradoxical Aesthetics. All the works address issues of todays materialistic neo-capitalist society, including alienation and resistance. In keeping with the biennales objective of sharing and community-building, a special feature exhibit will comprise works by Koreas disabled community. The National Ceramic Competition for the Disabled features 60 pieces by 50 artists. the International Invitational Competition. The second part of the Mentoring Camp, the Traditional Korean Ceramic Camp, focuses on the history and aesthetics of Korean ceramics. The workshop event is related to food and ceramics focused on encouraging participants to abandon disposable wares in favor of those of ceramics. Another hands-on program, Clay Workshop, Healing Camp, seeks to help participants overcome their emotional scars through ceramic art. This family event has extended a particular welcome to minorities and other neglected classes of society. The biennale also includes a series of academic events, including an International Ceramic Symposium (Sept. 2728 and Oct. 24), and discussions between artists and art critics including the Talks by Artists program, a series of talks by well-known artists aimed at the general public.

1. Some of the works invited to the 2013 Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale. KOCEF 2. Glass blowing at the 2013 Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale. KOCEF

One of the ceramic worlds biggest events, the 2013 Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale refocuses on sharing and community
Written by Robert Koehler

REAchINg OUT ThROUgh CERAmIcS

Sharing knowledge
The GICB 2013 has added Mentoring Camp and Talks by Artists programs to help spread information and knowledge about the ceramic arts. The camp is a three-part workshop, beginning with a short-term residency program and forum workshop, the International Ceramic Camp, featuring invited artists from
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CURRENT KOREA

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1. Dad, Where Are You Going? MBC 2. Grandpas Over Flowers tvN 3. Vietnamese fans ock to see the recording of Running Man, a popular Korean reality show. SBS

KOREAN REALITY ShOwS

The Korean Wave scores yet another hit
Written by Kim Hyung-eun

In the first season, the elderly actors traveled to Europe, and in the second they explored Taiwan. Upon arrival in the island country, where Korean dramas and stars are quite popular, the grandpas unexpectedly found hundreds of fans and dozens of broadcasters waiting for them. It was really surprising that the grandpas became a leading force in Hallyu, a CJ source said, referring to the booming popularity of Korean pop culture overseas, also known as the Korean Wave.

Social trends
The explosive popularity of the three reality programs is directly related to social trends in the country. Grandpas Over Flowers reflects Koreas rapidly aging society. Statistics Korea projects that by 2030, a fourth of the population will be aged 65 or older, and by 2050, the country will be among the worlds oldest societies, with 37 percent as senior citizens. Dad, Where Are You Going? shows the growing trend in Korea for both the mother and the father to share the burden of childrearing as more women seek to continue their careers after marriage and having given birth. 1 Night, 2 Days has spurred interest in outdoor activities. Outdoor gear brands now take up the best spots at Korean department stores and in newspaper ads. Koreas entertainment industry also seems to have the full support of its government. The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced in October that they plan to raise content exports from USD 4.8 billion to 10 billion by 2017. President Park Geun-hye said on Sept. 3, Broadcast content is the key to the ecosystem of a creative media industry, adding, I hope to see a virtuous circle in which competitive content gets its values recognized, investment is made and more competitive content is created. [] I pledge my full support to ease regulations and to develop the technologies.

Star producer
Among other Korean reality shows that have earned export deals, Dad, Where Are You Going? will have its format exported to Chinas Hunan Satellite TV in April. 1 Night, 2 Days clinched a similar contract with Chinas Sichuan Satellite TV. Both, Grandpas Over Flowers, and, 1 Night, 2 Days, are the brainchildren of producer Na Young-seok. 1 Night, 2 Days aired on KBS, becoming one of the countrys most popular shows in history. Grandpas Over Flowers was Nas first show for CJ E&M, whither he moved after leaving KBS last year. Na is now directing four veteran actressesYoon Yu-jeong, Kim Ja-ok, Kim Hee-ae and Lee Mi-yeonon a trip. After directing four actors on two trips for Grandpas over Flowers, he has invited the four actresses to film a show tentatively named, Actresses.

one are the days when Korean entertainment shows were considered mere copies of formats from abroad. Producers of hit reality shows in Korea have nowadays inked export deals with many Asian countries, proving their competitiveness in the overseas market. The cable channel TvNs Grandpas Over Flowers features Korean celebrities in their 70s backpacking around Europe and other countries. MBCs Dad, Where Are You Going? has famous fathers bonding with their children on trips, breaking the stereotype of Korean mothers being the primary caregivers. KBSs 1 Night, 2 Days, a long-running outdoor reality show, is credited with starting a camping boom in Korea.

Deals inked
For starters, Grandpas Over Flowers, one of the biggest surprise hits of the year, is finding plenty of interest around Asia, with export deals signed with channels in Taiwan and Hong Kong. A spokesperson at CJ E&Ms global content team said in September, The show has been sold to Taiwans largest cable channel EBC and Hong Kongs largest private broadcaster TVB, and this came after only three episodes were aired, adding, Its rare to sell a program before it completes its run. CJ E&M, a broadcast affiliate of CJ, one of Koreas largest conglomerates, owns the channel that aired the show, TvN, and produced it.

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SUMMIT DIPLOMACY

INNOVATION, OPENNESS, INVESTmENT

President Park stresses creative industries, reducing barriers at APEC
resident Park Geun-hye spent early October in Southeast Asia. She attended: the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Meeting in Bali, Indonesia, Oct. 68; the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) +3 Summit, the 16th Korea-ASEAN Summit and the eighth East Asia Summit in Brunei, Oct. 810; and paid a state visit to Indonesia, Oct. 1012.

Park delivered a speech on APECs Role in Strengthening the Multilateral Trading System. She said, A free trade policy is the most efficient and has the lowest cost. It can help with economic revitalization and job creation and can improve consumer welfare, all without having to shoulder a financial burden. President Park stressed the importance of harmonizing macroeconomic and monetary policies to bring about a global

economic recovery. She added that the mutual opening of economies was important for recovery, citing Koreas own recovery from two financial crises. To promote free trade, she emphasized a stronger multilateral trading system based on World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements, a response to protectionism and the coordination of regional integration. Warning against protectionism, she urged APEC members to move forward toward regional integration. All countries need to make an effort so that discussions on regional integration can move forward in a transparent manner within APEC, she said. This will help realize the goal of a multilateral free trade area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP), one of the long-term goals of APEC. In the meetings second session on Oct. 8, President Park proposed boosting private infrastructure investment, voicing support for the Indonesia-sponsored APEC Framework on Connectivity and the APEC Multi-year Plan on Infrastructure Development and Investment. Stressing the importance of infrastructure, she said, It takes large long-term investment to build infrastructure. There is a limit to public finances. So it is necessary to promote the private sectors involvement in infrastructure investment. She asked multilateral development banks like the World Bank and the Asia Development Bank to cooperate in removing barriers faced by private investment.

1. President Park delivers a keynote address during the APEC CEO Summit on Oct. 6. 2. President Park meets with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. 3. Participants at APEC Indonesia 2013 pose for a commemoration photo.

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APEC Meetings
President Park was on the Indonesian island of Bali to attend the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting from Oct. 68. She delivered a keynote address entitled, The Business of

Innovation: Why Does It Matter? to the APEC CEO Summit on Oct. 6. In it, she said she believes that a creative economy is key to an innovative paradigm that can help bring economic growth, not just to Korea, but to all nations, through mutual opening and cooperation. To reach that goal, she stressed the need to overcome the barriers of regulation, finance, education and international borders. This was the second time for the president to speak at a global gathering about the importance of the creative economy. The first was at the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, in September. In the first session of the APEC Leaders Meeting, President

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SUMMIT DIPLOMACY

SOUThEAST ASIAN DIPLOmAcY

Korea boosts ties with Southeast Asia and Oceania during presidential visits to Brunei, Indonesia
pon the conclusion of the APEC Leaders Meeting, President Park Geunhye traveled to Brunei to attend the ASEAN +3 Summit, the 16th Korea-ASEAN Summit and the eighth East Asia Summit. On Oct. 9, she held bilateral summits with the leaders of Brunei, Singapore, Australia and Myanmar and discussed matters of mutual interest. At the East Asia Summit (EAS) on Oct. 10,

President Park discussed climate change, disaster control, food and energy security and cooperation among East Asian countries. She backed the Brunei-sponsored declaration of the 8th East Asia Summit on Food Security, and emphasized the need to jointly respond to natural disasters, especially in the face of climate change. As an example of such efforts, she cited the ASEAN Regional Forum Disaster Relief Exercise, a joint disaster rescue drill
1. President Park and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono hold extended summit talks in Jakarta, Oct. 12. 2. President Park meets with Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei at Brunei International Convention Center, Oct. 9. 3. President Park shakes hands with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Brunei on Oct. 9.

held by Korea and Thailand in May. Also on Oct 10, President Park attended the ASEAN+3 Summit, where she praised the progress ASEAN has made in member cooperation, including the launch of the Chiang Mai Initiative, the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office and the ASEAN+3 Emergency Rice Reserve. She also welcomed the scheduled 2020 launch of the East Asian Community. To boost physical, institutional and people-to-people links within ASEAN, she expressed interest in building an East Asia single window trade facilitation system to create communication channels between universities across the region. Participating leaders at the ASEAN+3 Summit, meanwhile, welcomed President Parks Northeast Asian peace initiative.

Summit with Indonesian President Yudhoyono

After the ASEAN +3 Summit, President Park flew to Indonesia for a state visit from Oct. 1012, highlighted by a bilateral summit with Indonesian

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President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Jakarta. In their talks, the two leaders agreed to conclude a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA), a form of free trade pact, by years end. President Park said, A Korea-Indonesia comprehensive economic partnership agreement will contribute to achieving the trade volume goal [of boosting trade from USD 30 billion last year to USD 100 billion by 2020] and institutionalize economic cooperation between the two countries. We agreed to conclude negotiations by years end. Bilateral trade has doubled since 2007 and Indonesia is Koreas largest target for investment in Southeast Asia. In particular, both countries have grown closer through defense industry projects and both leaders agreed to expand this cooperation. President Yudhoyono and I agreed to cooperate closely to expand South Korean companies' participation in new defense industry projects while ensuring that existing defense cooperation projects, such as the export of Korean-made advanced trainer jets and submarines, move forward smoothly, President Park said.
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POLICY REVIEW

LESS ThORNS, MORE TALk

Government moves to ease regulations and promote communication
Written by Shin Yesol

welcomed by animators, especially at a time when animated content is taking off within the Korean entertainment industry. Likewise, regulations used to prevent factories from building temporary warehouses to store their raw materials. Companies resorted to covering raw materials with canvas, meaning that the materials frequently got wet in the rain or snow. Many others built structures with panel roofs, fully knowing that it was illegal. Now, factory owners can build warehouses with walls and roofs made of plastic and other synthetic resins. Regulatory reform has also impacted hiring. Prior to July 2013, Korean companies had to keep the percentage of foreign staff to under 20 percent of their workforce, though hightech companies and certain blue-chip exporters were allowed to hire up to half. This proved burdensome for small and medium-size exporters. A staff of 10 meant a company could hire at most two foreigners. That limit no longer applies to small and medium-size companies if they can show that they need specialized foreign staff. To see these regulations in action, consider the example of Kim Dae-yeol, a medicinal herb and fruit grower in the East Sea coastal town of Gangneung. The Korea Forest Service operates a program to help small-scale herbal producers who lack a sales network. The program also allows smallscale producers to share information. Unfortunately for Kim, the rules said an applicant had to be under the age of 50 to join. Earlier this year, however, the age limit was raised to 55, and Kim was allowed to join the program. In addition to financial support, he also benefits from cultivation know-how,

distribution information and even training programs. Regulatory reform is also making Korea safer. Lee Jae-jun, an office worker in the southern Seoul suburb of Seongnam, was recently the victim of a phishing scam that resulted in a phone bill of about USD 250,000. This was because regulations did not require that a user approve a cell phone payment before it was made. In September, however, the government revised regulations so that users first need to approve payments before they are made.

Regulatory Control Tower Created

In September, the Joint Regulatory Reform Bureau was opened as a regulatory control tower linking the government with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Businesses. The goal of the bureau is to remove regulatory factors that cause inconvenience and hence resolve difficulties for investment expansion and job creation. This and the government promotion effort are part of a larger campaign launched in May, to pull thorns from beneath fingernails, to boost economic activity among small and medium-size businesses. The government says bad regulations must be removed so that smaller businesses can grow and that social underdogs can make it. So far, 1,133 such thorns have been identified; more than 200 have been corrected through regulatory reform. According to the Bank of Korea, if 10 percent of government regulations are relaxed, it would boost productivity by 0.3 percent.

he Prime Ministers Office of Korea is pushing a series of measures to allow businesses and individuals to more easily find and make use of administrative services through regulatory reform. The actions are part of a larger effort to promote public awareness of government efforts to reform regulations and implement the Park Geun-hye administrations Government 3.0 Paradigm. As a start, Seoul has begun publishing a collection of regulatory reforms to benefit the public, entitled, Regulatory Reform Talk Talk. The first volume, Removing the Thorns and Growing Hope, looks at 43 examples from 23 government ministries and departments. Divided into two parts, Economic Revival and Public Happiness and Cultural Enrichment, the

book uses illustrations and storytelling so that companies and individuals can make better use of it.

Rationalizing Regulations
The regulatory reform efforts cover a wide range of areas. In the economic sector, many of the blind spots that had previously plagued Koreas regulatory system have been corrected, creating opportunities for previously overlooked groups. For instance, cartoonists and animators had been left out of the governments investment recognition project for start-ups as both investment amount and project returns in this sector were low. As a result, animators had a tough time finding investment regardless of whether or not they had a good idea. The inclusion of animation into the program has been

1. Gripin CEO Yun Jeong-jin. Yuns one-man company manufactures mobile phone accessories. Recently reformed regulations expanded eligibility for benets for oneman creative companies from 22 industries to 28, including accessories. Gripin 2. Seo Jeong-cheol of ofce furniture manufacturer KOAS. Changes in Public Procurement Service regulations now exempt from separate quality screenings companies with certied internal quality control systems such as KOAS. Kim Hyeon-dong, JoongAng Ilbo Sisa Media

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CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY

Expanding Offshore Wind Turbines

Korea goes to the seas in search of energy and minerals
Written by Sohn Tae-soo

s part of the Korean governments plans to promote cutting-edge technology to reap economic gains, the nation is researching power generation offshore and exploring deep-sea resources. The state-run Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) has expanded offshore wind power generation off the coast of Jejudo. It has also begun operation of a power-generating turbine by using osmotic pressure from salt water. Most recently, the government also tested the maneuverability of its first deep-sea mining robot after decades of research. The national project of offshore wind power generation has moved a step forward through the construction of a 2-megawatt offshore wind turbine, the first of its kind in the nation. The Jeju Global Research Center (JGRC), an affiliate of KIER, is in charge of the project. Approximately 1.5 kilometers from the Jejudo shore,

1. MineRo, a Korean-built deep sea mining robot, enters the water for a maneuverability test. 2. Korean Institute of Ocean Science and Technology researchers pose for a photo after the successful testing of the MineRo. Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology

Wind farm on southern island of Jejudo.

the wind turbine stands 70 meters above sea level and has three blades with a rotor diameter of 72 meters. Offshore wind power can make use of favorable wind speeds, and unlike land-based wind farms, they face little opposition from local residents. The institute will also build a 10-gigawatt floating offshore wind turbine complex by 2030 in close collaboration with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. When the complex is completed, wind power is expected to reduce the emission of 380 tons of carbon dioxide annually. The JGRC has been focusing on generating electricity through the use of osmotic pressure produced between fresh water (with low salinity) and salt water (high salinity). When researchers establish a thin layer of semi-permeable material, the membrane, between fresh water and salt water, water (as a chemical solvent) moves from the former to the latter and naturally produces pressure tantamount to the power of water falling directly from a height of 240 meters. Researchers say that because seawater is unlimited, the potential to generate electricity from it is enormous, adding that it is eco-friendly and requires no fossil fuels. The JGRC is focusing on building a power plant that can utilize differences in salinity as an effective energy-saving system. If successful, this will be one of the most promising next-generation methods of power generation for a power-

addicted nation. Korea suffered three blackouts last year due to low power reserves.

Deep-sea Mining Robot Tested

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has conducted the countrys first test of a deep-sea mining robot, which experts say could enable the mining of resources in the Pacific Ocean worth billions of dollars. In July this year, the Korean-built robot MineRo finished a maneuverability test at a depth of 1,370 meters in waters 130 kilometers off Pohang, a port city along the nations southeastern coast. The 25-ton MineRo, whose name is a compound of mineral and robot, weighs just nine tons when underwater. With the test, the nation has obtained key domestic technology for submarine navigation and for the exploration of manganese ore in deep waters. By 2015 the government will also develop cutting-edge technologies required for extracting and refining metals, according to ministry officials. In 2002, Korea acquired exclusive rights to explore a maritime zone in the Pacific Ocean some 2,000 kilometers southeast of Hawaii. Known as the Clarion-Clipperton zone, the area reportedly stores an estimated 560 million tons of manganese ore deposits valued at US$370 billion.
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GLOBAL KOREA

raising consciousness about volunteer work, they are greatly helping to spread a volunteer culture, and we're grateful to them for that. It feels great each time I see students who wanted to do volunteer work but didn't have the chance, building good memories, broadening their experience, changing their ways of thinking and developing new dreams for the future, she says.

earthquake and other projects in Brazil, the Czech Republic, Turkey and Malawi. Now in its 11th year, the program sent teams to China, India, Malaysia and Indonesia this summer.

Building a new future

These projects are more than just about bricks and mortar; they have had a profound effect on the lives of those involved. If theres one thing were even more proud of than the homes weve built around the world, it's the change weve brought about in people, says Shin. What makes us most proud is when we hear the stories of families whose parents find new motivation in life when they move into a newly built house and start harboring new hope for the future as their children start to perform better at school and find emotional stability over the years, and the stories of volunteers who get teary-eyed as they tell us that they started out wanting to help others but ended up gaining more for themselves. The HFHK is looking to help more child-led households, senior citizens living alone, multicultural families and singleparent households in Korea, as well as expand the country's role in providing housing assistance to developing countries and areas hit by natural disasters. Shin says, Habitat is about building houses of hope that transform the lives of all those involved.

Corporate support
Steelmaker POSCO, one of Korea's largest conglomerates, has run BeyondPOSCO Global Youth Volunteers since 2007. Its overseas volunteer work in conjunction with the HFHK has been conducted in countries generally considered strategic partners by POSCO, such as Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. Earlier this year, the company sent a team of around 100 student volunteers to the Indian village of Bawana, northwest of New Delhi, for a house-building project that marked its sixth year. The volunteers took part in all stages of construction, from preparing foundations to painting walls. This years 12day project was of significance because it was in Bawana that Beyond volunteers built their first homes in 2008. Kia Motors runs the Happy Move Global Youth Volunteer Corps, another major youth volunteer program that sends around 1,000 college students to developing countries during university vacations. Previous projects have included rebuilding a village in Chinas Sichuan Province after the devastating 2008

BUILDING HOUSES OF HOPE

Habitat for Human Korea teams up with corporate giants for global projects
Written by Ben Jackson

s the scope and variety of Koreas official development assistance increase, the country's nonprofit organizations and private sector are also doing their part to share their resources and expertise abroad. Over the last 10 years, collaborations among NGOs, major conglomerates and young volunteers have begun producing results both at home and overseas. Among the various programs, efforts to provide housing for those in need have been particularly successful.

Multilateral partnerships
Habitat for Humanity Korea (HFHK) is at the forefront of efforts to provide proper shelter to
40

families in Korea and abroad. Dedicated to making adequate, affordable shelter as well as eliminating substandard housing and homelessness, the organization was incorporated in 1995 and has provided essential help to more than 3,000 families in Korea and 7,000 abroad with help from sponsors and volunteers. We are supported by many organizations including the Korea Housing Guarantee, POSCO, Kookmin Bank and Binggrae, says Shin Ye-eun, Public Relations and Communications Manager at the HFHK. Shin is particularly appreciative of corporations sponsoring youth volunteer programs. By providing large-scale support and systematically

1, 3. Volunteers with POSCOs Beyond program in India Habitat for Humanity Korea 2. Kia Motors Happy Move Global Youth Volunteer Corps in China Habitat for Humanity Korea

3 41

G R E AT K O R E A N

YI I
Written by Felix Im

Leading Confucian scholar and statesman worked to modernize Confucian thought

ave you ever wondered about the faces that grace Korean currency? Youve probably peered at the face of Yi I on the KRW 5,000 bill several times without realizing who he was or what he did. Also known by his pen name of Yulgok, Yi is often remembered as one of the most prominent Confucian scholars of the Joseon Dynasty, responsible for modernizing traditional Confucian thought, turning it into practical policies that streamlined the central and provincial governments.

Trusted by Royalty
Upon entering the government sector, Yi went to work as an administrator checking and balancing King Seonjos executive decisions. After serving as a document official for Chinas Ming Dynasty, he began to write and edit royal historical documents, including the prominent Myeongjong Annals. Yi eventually held many offices and continually wrote treatises on royal policy and the application of Confucian ideals to practical politics. He presented these documents to the royal court as administrative guides. One of his most widely known works is the Dongho Mundap, which described Yis thoughts on an ideal and righteous government. His wide range of political experience gave him expertise in a number of administrative areas and earned him the trust of the king, whose court called on him several times for his services.

Born to Be a Scholar
Born to a government official father and an accomplished calligraphist mother, Yi was a highly gifted scholar from an early age. He was known to have started writing poetry and literary works at age 8, at which point he had learned the basics of the Confucian classics. He passed his first civil service exam at 13 with the intent of starting a career as a civil administrator. With the sudden death of his mother when he was 16, however, he secluded himself in the mountains next to her grave for three years under a common practice of the times called simyo to honor the death of a parent. He studied Buddhism all the while. At 20, after composing a detailed work of personal self-reflection, he returned to normal life, continued his Confucian studies, and got married at 22. Clearly, Yis time spent away from society had no detrimental effect on his scholarly abilities, which he proved by passing all of his civil service exams (conducted in several stages) with top honors nine consecutive times. Over this period, he composed the highly praised thesis, Cheondochaek, Book on the Way to Heaven, on Confucian philosophys relation to politics. This was eventually considered a great literary work by later Confucian scholars.

his personal philosophy while constantly writing. Always thinking of the welfare and wisdom of future generations, he also wrote works on the education of his disciples and successors. After an erratic period of leaving office and then being recalled to duty by the royal court, he left his final post as coordinator of national security and military operations in 1583. He died the following year in Seoul at age 48. Part of the controversy that surrounded Yi and his ideals stemmed from his long-held conviction of building a proper continental army to defend against foreign invasion, something that many officials considered unlikely at the time. Yi, however, was convinced that the Japanese were an imminent threat, and was vindictated when the Imjin War erupted in 1592 soon after his death.

Internal Disagreement
The royal court, however, was a tumultuous arena with a complex structure and unpredictable politics. On numerous occasions, internal political conflict prompted Yi to leave his official duties and flee to the countryside and resume his scholarly interests. During these times, he reflected on and developed

Yi in Daily Life
In addition to his face being on the KRW 5,000 note, Yi has also been commemorated in modern times. Yulgok-ro is a street in central Seoul named after his pseudonym Yulgok. The Yulgok Project, which sought to modernize the South Korean Military, was also named after Yi due to his keen sense of national security and defense.

1 42

1. Portrait of Yi I 2. Yis childhood home of Ojukheon in Gangneung, Gangwon-do

43

M Y

K O R E A

AutuMN CoLoRS
When the skies turn blue and the hillsides crimson, Korea is at its best
Written by Curtis File Illustrated by kim Yoon-Myong

ny expat that has lived in Korea for more than a month has undoubtedly been treated to one or more short lectures on the countrys four distinct seasons. Along with Korean food, the weather and seasons are favored topics for taxi and water cooler small talk, especially among the older generation. Though seemingly an odd point of pride at first, it begins to make sense when considering the degree to which Korean culture revolves around the seasons. Recreation, cuisine and holidays are all related to seasonal change. While every time of the year brings new activities to explore, there is perhaps no better time to see the country than in fall. The crisp autumn air is refreshment from the hellish humidity of the summer monsoon months. I first arrived in Korea just as fall was beginning. In a matter of a few weeks, I was invited to my first real autumn experience in Korea: a hike up Mt. Dobongsan on the outskirts of northern Seoul for a day of viewing danpung, or the changing of the leaves. It was in that season that I found my love for Koreas natural beauty. Though I heard that Korea had a strong hiking community and had imagined that the mountain trails would attract a healthy handful of outdoor enthusiasts, I wasnt quite prepared for the crowds that flocked to the tiny town that day. Hoards of people filled the restaurant stalls at the base of the mountain serving every manner of Korean specialties, from salted fish to steamed silkworm larvae. It wasnt just the crowds I wasnt prepared for though. Coming from the Canadian countryside, I am used to colorful falls and beautiful scenery, but I still could not have imagined

the view on the hike up those rocks. The entire mountain face was covered in vibrant red, orange and yellow hues that rolled out over the hills into the distance. From the peak, I could see where small farms tucked into valleys met the edge of the city. It is still among the most beautiful views of Korea I can remember.

Outdoor Community
Equally surprising was the spirit of the outdoor community. Hiking may be an allages activity, but in Korea, the rule seems to be the older, the better. While I was redfaced and gasping for air, more than one couple past their 70s flew by me without breaking a sweat. The fall spirit of love and generosity was alive and well. One couple even pulled me aside to share barbecue duck and makgeolli, or Korean rice beer, near the peak. In no time at all, I had fallen in love with Koreas autumn nature and was looking to explore more areas of the country. That same year, I took a cruise on Chungjuho Lake in Chungcheongbuk-do. Though the hills were much smaller, the scenery was no less impressive. The crowd on the two-hour cruise was much smaller and quieter, consisting of a few expat teachers and Korean families. The ride from the city of Chungju to Danyang passes through small valleys and islets, some vacant, some settled with cozy farmhouses. Unlike the mountains in Seoul that inevitably meet the concrete of the city, the autumn in Chungju seems to have no limit. The red and orange foliage seems to stretch out in all directions, making it a perfect getaway for city dwellers in need of a break from traffic and neon lights or casual tourists looking to see a different side of the peninsula.
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44

MULTICULTURAL KOREA

ver the years, countless people have landed on Korean shores to work or play. Some stay a short while, others never leave, and some become Korean citizens. Russian native and Korean football club Busan IPark goalkeeper coach originally came for work but ended up taking an oath to the Korean motherland. Like all who did so before him, Sarychev was obliged to choose a Korean name after getting his Korean citizenship in 2000. Yet the man who rose to national stardom in the 1990s by defending the goal for several championship teams in Korea had his official name chosen for him by his fans. Not long after he first suited up, Koreans recognized that Sarychev's talent for keeping the ball out of the net was, well, divine. Thus he was soon dubbed Shin Eui-son, which means hand of God in English. It wasnt what I picked, I saw it on TV one day next to my Russian name, he recalls. All the fans called me Shin Eui-son, Shin Eui-son. When I applied for citizenship later, the head coach said, This names very good for you. And so it stuck.

To tackle the situation, the league implemented a strict policy designed to phase out foreign goalkeepers. They made a rule especially for foreign goalkeepers, Sarychev says. In 1996, foreign goalkeepers could only play in 70 percent of the games. In 1997, it was 50 percent and in 1998, we could play no more than ten games.

Becoming a Korean national

This didnt bode well for Sarychev, who had yet to receive Korean citizenship and whose life here depended on having a job. In 1999, the LG Cheetahs (now FC Seoul) asked him to coach the teams goalkeepers. That decision would have a profound effect on Sarychevs future. After a year coaching, the LG (head) coach asked me, How would you like to play goalkeeper? Maybe you want to play again? Sarychev says. I asked him how, and he said I should take Korean citizenship. I thought he was joking. The coach wasnt. So in 2000, after cramming for the test under the tutelage of LG-appointed instructors, Sarychev officially became Shin Eui-son, a naturalized Korean citizen. With that technicality out of the way, he took to the field as the teams goalie and lead them to the championship his first year in front of the net. He retired four years later, and after stints coaching teams including Goyang Daekyo Womens FC and the national under-20 team, he settled in Gimhae, just outside of Busan, not far from IParks training facility. As for his future in Korea, its day by day for Gods hand. I wake up today, I think about tomorrow, I wake up tomorrow, I think about the next day. Thats my life.
47

Starting a trend
Born and raised in Tajikistan, the 53-year-old Sarychev was a standout right out of high school, playing professionally at age 18 for his hometown team and then for the Soviet pro team CSKA Moscow. It wasnt until 1992 that Sarychev, along with his wife and two children, came to Korea to play for the Seoul-based club Ilhwa Chunma. It was an unusual move for a Korean team to hire a foreign keeper, as most clubs with foreign talent generally choose strikers or midfielders to lead them down the field. The gamble paid off. In Sarychevs first year, Ilhwa took second in the K-League Cup before going on to win three consecutive league titles. Coaches around the league took notice. Other teams started thinking, What is Ilhwa doing, theyre winning everything in Korea. Maybe its better to buy one goalkeeper and win everything, says Sarychev. In 1996, almost every club bought a foreign goalkeeper. The trend alarmed Korean soccers governing body, which feared an inability to develop Korean goalies for international play. For the Korean soccer federation, this was a headache because if you hire a foreign goalkeeper, who will play for the Korean national team? This was a big problem, Sarychev says.

The Hand of God

Russian-born goalkeeper coach Valeri Sarychev adds multicultural touch to Korean soccer
Written by Bobby McGill Photographed by Peter DeMarco

46

Tales FrOm KOrea

An Upright man
According to the Samguksagi, written in 1145, King Hyeokgeose ruled for 60 years from 57 BCE to 4 CE. Go Ungi, a professor of Korean studies at Yonsei Unversity in Seoul, says few historical documents about King Hyeokgeoses reign remain but a few notable passages in the Samguksagi mention his work and show his character. In the 30th year of his reign, he defeated troops from nearby Nangnang. An anecdote says that after observing that the Nangnang forces did not lock their doors at night, he told his men, Those people dont steal from each other, which means the country is a country of morality. This shows that he was a big enough man to respect even his enemy. Also during his reign, the king of the nearby region of Mahan died, and one of King Hyeokgeoses officials suggested the invasion of Mahan. But according to one passage, King Hyeokgeose said, To take others misfortunes as our fortune is not a wise move, indicating his upright nature. The Silla founder died at age 72 and his funeral was held around the present-day stream of Namcheon in Gyeongju.

Silla remembered

Pak Hyeokgeose
the founder of the Silla kingdom was respected and courageous
Written by Kim Hyung-eun Illustrated by Shim Soo-keun

foundation, so KOREA takes a look at the life and achievements of King Hyeokgeose and at the kingdom he founded.

Born in a large egg

Before Silla was established, people in Gyeongju, which later became the Silla capital, had no king. They lived scattered across six villages, each with its own chief. One day, they concluded in a meeting that with no king or kingdom, running the villages would be hard. As they sought a virtuous man to serve as king, they saw a light near a well. A white horse was bowing there. When the village chiefs ran toward it, the horse ascended to the skies and a large egg appeared where the horse had been bowing. The egg broke when they touched it, and a young boy was hatched. The village chiefs considered this a sign and named the boy Pak Hyeokgeose; bak after egg and hyeokgeose meaning, someone who will rule the world with bright light. They raised him to be king.

H
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e became king when he was 12 years old. He was a compassionate and wise ruler who founded one of the strongest, wealthiest and most flamboyant kingdoms in the history of the Korean Peninsula. Pak Hyeokgeose (69 BCE4 CE), known as King Hyeokgeose, founded the Silla Kingdom (57 BCE935 CE), one of the three kingdoms during the Three Kingdoms era (57 BCE668 CE) that later unified the peninsula.

Besides the unification of the three kingdoms, the Silla era is well-known for its artistic achievement and cultural freedom as well as for the flourishing of Buddhism and broad international ties. This is why when Koreans think of Silla, sumptuous gold accessories, explicitly portrayed clay dolls, precious Buddhist temples, pagodas and artwork are the first things that pop into their heads. The year 2013 marks the 2,070th anniversary of Sillas

Some two millenia later, the culture of Paks kingdom is now captivating a global audience. New York will be offered a glimpse into the kingdom of Silla this fall in an exhibition hosted by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Titled Silla: Koreas Golden Kingdom, the event will feature some 100 Silla relics from Nov. 4 to Feb. 23. The Met will be the first Western museum to have an exhibition exclusively of Silla works. Thomas P. Campbell, director and CEO of the Met, said the show is expected to be one of the most significant displays of Korean art at the Met in more than 40 years. He added that it will transform the public perception of Korean culture and also place the works of Silla on par with the worlds greatest artistic achievements.

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Autumn colors at Baegyangsa Temple, Jangseong KTO

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Don't Eat Cold Foods

There is a great temperature difference between day and night in autumn in Korea. Mingming seems to have a cold. Let's learn some Korean expressions at a hospital.

ultures can differ in the way they prepare for winter. For Koreans, one of their earliest winter preparations takes place during gimjang, the season for making large quantities of the countrys best known food, kimchi. Kimchi is a necessity in almost all Korean meals, so making large enough quantities of this spicy red fermented cabbage dish to last through the coldest months of the year is one of the years most important seasonal rituals. Gimjang usually starts in mid-November and ends in early December, depending on the weather. Kimchi boasts dozens of varieties ranging from radish to cucumber, but cabbage kimchi is the most common. A family of four usually uses 20 to 30 heads of napa cabbage for gimjang kimchi, but grandmothers in the countryside need far more since they like to make kimchi for their children who live in the city. The traditional way to store kimchi is in earthenware jars buried in the ground, up to the jars neck to prevent freezing. Nowadays, however, most people use kimchi refrigerators at home, even in the countryside.

01 03

?
eotteoke osyeotseumnikka?

02

, .
ne, mogi apeugo gichimi nayo.

What's the problem?

My neck hurts and I'm coughing.

. . .
yeori simhajin anayo. mokgamgiimnida. chan eumsigeul meokji maseyo.

04 05
.*
babeul meogeun hue yageul deuseyo.

?
yageun eonje meogeoyo?

When should I take medicine?

It's not a fever, it's a sore throat. Don't eat cold foods.

Take it after you eat.

* is an honorific form of

This is used with an action verb stem indicating not to do something.

Lets practice!
Try to give advice to your friend as shown in the example below.

This is used with an action verb stem and indicates ending of the action in the first clause and the subsequent result in the second clause. Verb stems ending in a vowel take - , and verb stems ending in a consonant take - .

-()

chan eumsigeul meokda To eat cold foods.

.
chan eumsigeul meokji maseyo.

nuneul bibida

Gimjang
Written by Yim Seung-hye Photograph courtesy of the Korean Food Institute, Sookmyung Women's University

To rub eyes

heorireul guburida To bend down

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