Generally in Korea, girls would give chocolate/candy to the guys they like on Valentine’s Day (Feb 14th) and in return for the chocolate, guys would give girls presents on White Day (March 14th). For those who received nothing on either Valentine’s Day or White Day, Black Day was created. Black Day is an unofficial holiday…
Exhibit: “Waiting for Flowers” (“꽃을 기다립니다”)
Last year (2019), there were diverse exhibitions, performances, and lectures held throughout Korea to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the March 1st Movement. “Waiting for Flowers” (“꽃을 기다립니다”) was a memorial exhibition for Korean citizens and tourists to pay their respects to independence fighters. The exhibition displays the names of 15,179 independence fighters and was…
Eating Out One Last Time Amid NY’s COVID-19 Outbreak
After New Yorkers ignored COVID-19 precautionary warnings against eating out, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an Executive Order on Monday, March 16, limiting all NYC bars and restaurants to offer only delivery and takeout services. Effective starting at 8 p.m. that night, my sister and I decided to eat out one last time since we didn’t…
Let Me Introduce Myself and This Blog~
I’m Korean-American but I didn’t really know anything about my heritage until I went to college. I grew up in a predominantly white neighborhood and learned close to nothing about Korea. I always learned about China and Japan in history classes and whenever I questioned why we never learned about Korea, I was told it…
Experience: Crane Machines, Anam
While studying abroad at Korea University in 2016, I became addicted to something… Really addicted…to crane machines!! There are a lot of arcades in Korea, especially around movie theaters or college neighborhoods. After eating out, round 2 can be for more food and alcohol or to go to the arcades. I preferred going to the…
Site: Starfield Library (별마당 도서관)
Starfield Library (별마당 도서관) is a must-go-to tourist spot/photo-zone for visitors and bookworms! Located in the center of COEX Mall, Asia’s largest underground shopping center, Starfield Library has over 50,000 titles with physical books, magazines, and iPads with e-books available. They even have a section dedicated to foreign books and famous authors. The library also…
Company: Cokoyam
While at KCON LA’19, I saw a small group of people giving away chocopies and cards. I also got some chocopies and a business card and learned a little about their e-business. They were from Cokoyam, a Korean food and products delivery service for college students and U.S. soldiers, who might have a hard time…
Recipe: Pork Kimchi Jjim (김치찜)
While I was waiting for my name stamps to be made in Insadong, I went into this cute side alleyway to find a place to eat. I got their Ripe Kimchi Jjim (묵은지 김치찜) and it was SO good but unfortunately TOO spicy for me… That’s why when my mom said we had to make…
Shopping: Homemade Name Stamp, Insadong
Insadong, one of Seoul’s most favorite tourist attraction where you can experience authentic and traditional Korean culture. The streets are filled with different shops selling traditional gift items, like keychains, pottery, clothing, etc. Insadong is known for its shopping, specifically souvenir shopping. And one unique souvenir that you can get here is homemade name stamps!…
Food: Baskin-Robbins
Baskin-Robbins is an American chain of ice cream and cake specialty shops founded in 1945. It is American BUT Baskin-Robbins in Korea are completely different from the ones in America, and frankly in my opinion, way better! Korean Baskin-Robbins have unique flavors with equally unique names. Their most iconic flavors are “Mom is an Alien…
koreaNerd MK 