Park Shin-hye, Yoo Yeon-seok shows off chemistry

Actress Park Shin-hye and actor Yoo Yeon-seok showed off their chemistry in a magazine shoot. In photos taken for the magazine Ceci, Park and Yoo changed into an elegant and intimate couple.  (CeCi)The photos will cover the front page of the magazine in Korea, Thailand and China.  (CeCi)More photos are available in the magazine’s August issue. (khnews@heraldcorp.com)

July 14, 2014

Beach getaways less than an hour from Incheon International Airport

Incheon International Airport is not just a gateway to Seoul and other major Asian cities, it is aslo a gateway to clean sandy beaches along Korea’s west coast. Less than an hour from the airport by bus, there are stretches of sandy beaches. Their surrounding areas make ideal vacation spots for those looking for quick and affordable trips away from the bustling cities of Seoul and Incheon.The Korea Railroad Corporation runs the Airport Express Train and the West Sea Beach Train, which provide da

TravelJuly 13, 2014

Georgian film wins top prize at Czech festival

Georgian director George Ovashvili holds the main prize, the Crystal Globe, for his film “Corn Island” at the 49th International Film Festival in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, Saturday. (AP-Yonhap)PRAGUE (AFP) ― Georgian film “Corn Island” won the $25,000 Crystal Globe for best movie at the Czech film festival in the western spa city of Karlovy Vary on Saturday.The film directed by George Ovashvili is a psychological drama about an old man and his granddaughter living on an island on a river sep

FilmJuly 13, 2014

Peering behind people’s social networking masks

Art duo Kang Ji-yun and Jang Gun-hee take on an unusual quest to follow the traces of a man they call Mr. K solely based on his updates on a social networking site.The two artists travel to the gym Mr. K exercises at, a coffee shop he frequents and the apartment complex he lives in, as they put together a video montage. Thanks to the updates he posts every hour, they find the man they’ve never met at a coffee shop. But they never confront him. They simply peek through the window to get a glimpse

PerformanceJuly 13, 2014

[Band Uprising] Staring at the faces of Genius

As the Korean music market begins to receive more international recognition, the local band scene is looking to rise up and represent the next generation of Korean music. This is the 20th installment of a series of interviews with Korean rock, acoustic and alternative bands. ― Ed.With their defiant and “stick it to the man” underground rock ’n’ roll vibe, the members of the Busan-based rock band Genius take their lackadaisical, yet party-hard personalities and translate them into headbanging mus

PerformanceJuly 13, 2014

Reliving the glory days of g.o.d.

Though they may be a bit older, a tad less agile and no longer today’s average K-pop idols, the five reunited stars of g.o.d. are more popular, passionate and, most importantly, happier than ever before.“Everyone said it would be impossible. But right now, the five members of g.o.d. are once again standing together in front of you. It is like a wonderful miracle. And you guys are the ones who made this miracle happen,” said Son Ho-young as g.o.d. kicked off the Seoul leg of its 15th anniversary

July 13, 2014

EXO boasts simple yet chic looks

Korean boy idol group EXO boasted Thursday simple yet chic looks at the airport. The group left for Taipei for its Asia tour. EXO-M member Tao Tao showed off an all-black look with a colorful bracelet and earphones.  (OSEN)EXO-M member ChenChen wore a T-shirt with a unique design.  (OSEN)EXO-M member Lay Lay wore a simple look, but carried a purple black bag to add some color.  (OSEN)EXO-K member D.O. D.O. sported a simple casual look with a denim and white shirt.  (OSEN)EXO-K member Chanyeol Ch

July 13, 2014

[Weekender] Bookstores struggle for survival

Korea’s oldest bookstore in Seoul, Jongno Books, was a landmark in terms of numbers of customers and its symbolic significance as the trove and exchange of knowledge. The five-story bookstore was the only large bookstore in Seoul until Kyobo Book Center opened in the 1980s. It was also a popular meeting spot where people browsed books while waiting. Since the 1980s, two new large bookstores, Kyobo and Youngpoong, mounted a tough challenge to Jongno Books, taking a large chunk of its customers, a

CultureJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Korea in need of ‘reading movement’

After publishing over 3,000 books in the 39 years of his publishing career, Kim Eoun-ho, president of Hangilsa, one of Korea’s leading publishing houses, believes publishing a book is an act of asking how one should live. Kim attempted to answer this deep probing life question by publishing his own book, “The Forest of Books, Sound of Books.” The book is compiled from his handwritten journals from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 in 2013, centering on his day-to-day life as a publisher, and stories about 800 d

CultureJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Used books defy market woes

Korea’s bookstore industry is in the doldrums, as dismal sales continue to force many sellers out of business. But at least one bookstore is expanding, defying the broader market downturn. That is Aladdin Used Books ― a used-book franchise of online seller Aladdin. The company, which runs 19 shops, has chalked up an average 30 percent annual growth in sales, said company spokesperson Jo Sun-ah. Aladdin Used Books is not the typical small, “crammed to the ceiling” kind of shop. Rather, it is the

CultureJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Mega stores seek to connect with readers

In an effort to overcome a decline in sales, and the profoundly dwindling public interest in reading, Korea’s two largest book retailers Kyobo Book Center and Yes 24 set out their own unique strategies. For Kyobo, Korea’s largest book chain with 14 branches nationwide, it is tailored book consulting service. At the core of this service are a new breed of professionals called “book masters,” who find books that customers are looking for, make recommendations based on their preferences and manage

BooksJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Small, unique booksellers survive competition

Generally speaking, price and brand power matter most in the bookstore business. These factors have earned price-competitive chains the lion’s share of the market, while the small, independent bookstores continue to wither.In reality, the mom-and-pop shops are more embattled than what we see in rom-com films like “You’ve Got Mail” and “Notting Hill.”But not all of the neighborhood bookshops are losing out. Some are staving off the competition through differentiation strategies. Your Mind Your Mi

BooksJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Independent bookshops cater to English readers

Whether looking for the timeless literary classics from Brontë or Fitzgerald, or prefering to check out Danielle Steel’s newest tale of high society crisis or the next mentally disturbing nightmare sequence of Stephen King, Seoul has a couple of well-established bookstores to accommodate all of your English book needs.While it may be no longer that difficult to track down physical copies of the latest English-language publications in the “Foreign Section” at any Seoul’s big chain book establishm

CultureJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Calendar

Pop musicg.o.d. 15th Anniversary Reunion Concert: The newly reunited ’90s K-pop idol group g.o.d. will be embarking on a nationwide concert tour starting in July. After more than 12 years apart, the five original members of g.o.d. made their highly anticipated comeback in May with their newest single “The Lone Duckling.” The K-pop veterans are slated to hold two concerts, on July 12 and 13, at the Jamsil Sport Complex’s Auxiliary Stadium in Seoul, before moving on to Gwangju, Busan, Daegu and Da

CultureJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Box Office

Santa Barbara (Korea)Opening July 17Romance. Directed by Cho Sung-kyuWhen naïve music director Jung-woo (Lee Sang-yoon) meets a talented creative director Soo-kyung (Yoon Jin-seo) to work on an advertisement project together, at first, they do not get along very well because of striking differences in personalities. But one day, they happen to find similarities in three things: movie taste, a love for wine, and longing for Santa Barbara in the U.S. With these similarities, they grow closer. Howe

FilmJuly 11, 2014

[Weekender] Eyelike: f(x) reaffirms funk with ‘Red Light’

f(x) reaffirms funk with ‘Red Light’f(x) “Red Light”(KT Music)K-pop girl group f(x), known for their innovative and funky style, has returned with yet another album filled with unique sounds ― this time, funky as usual with an added touch of electro-pop.The group’s new 11-track studio album “Red Light” opens with an eponymous lead single featuring diverse electric sounds behind a pop melody, all embellished with a dose of hip-hop. “Red Light” begins with some ominous clock-ticking and the member

PerformanceJuly 11, 2014

Chaz Ebert reflects on her late husband, Roger

By Mark Olsen, Los Angeles TimesThe documentary “Life Itself” is about the life, career, death and legacy of film critic Roger Ebert but, as the title implies, also much more. It is about the role of work and love and passion and ideas in the living of one’s life, all the things that come together to make each of us who we are. An adaptation of Ebert’s 2011 memoir of the same name ― a New York Times review called it “the best thing Mr. Ebert has ever written” ― the movie is directed by fellow Ch

FilmJuly 11, 2014

Park service calls development plans a major threat to Grand Canyon

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Arizona ― At the rim of the Grand Canyon, busloads of Chinese tourists jostled on a recent day with 20-something backpackers and an Amish family with rambunctious boys in suspenders and straw hats, all eager for a prime viewing spot.They gazed out on a dizzying sight of receding canyons and sheer rock walls, with the Colorado River cutting through the canyon floor more than a kilometer down.Generations of park managers have tried to preserve that natural vista, but of

TravelJuly 11, 2014

French presidents’ holiday retreat open to public

PARIS (AP) ― It’s an old fortress on a tiny island, surrounded by pine trees and the turquoise waters of the Mediterranean Sea: The Fort de Bregancon has been the very private holiday retreat of French leaders for decades. And now it’s open to the public. Socialist President Francois Hollande has decided to break with tradition and to show it to the masses for the first time instead of vacationing there, as a symbol of a toned-down presidential lifestyle in tough economic times. The stylish vill

TravelJuly 11, 2014