Subtle scents waft through the air in a tiny alley in Seoul’s northwestern Yeonnam-dong. The source is Yvonne Morgun, an artisan candle shop that offers candle making classes for tourists and locals, and its own line of carefully concocted fragrances.The shop’s owner Lee Myung-seong, who majored in Western painting, infuses every item in the shop with her own sensibility -- a mix of coziness and elegance. Each candle glass, label and fragrance has been tailored by Lee. Dried flowers, embroidered

Culture March 12, 2018

Last month, the white tiger Soohorang received global attention for his adorable antics as the PyeongChang Winter Olympics mascot.The position will now be handed over to the black bear Bandabi, the official mascot for the PyeongChang Paralympic Games that run from Friday to March 18. A whimsical video featuring the two mascots was uploaded on to the official PyeongChang Instagram account Wednesday. Soohorang was spotted giving instructions and tips on how to captivate audiences with cute gesture

Olympic Games March 9, 2018

“Spring is the time of plans and projects,” Tolstoy wrote in “Anna Karenina.” For centuries, people have recognized spring as a time of renewal and cleaning up the various parts of life that have fallen into disarray over the past year. The concept of “spring cleaning” is prevalent in many countries, including South Korea. 　In recent years, the idea of decluttering both the physical and psychological aspects of life has emerged as a new lifestyle trend. 　“I had everything I needed, but because I

Culture March 9, 2018

The PyeongChang Winter Olympics has come and gone with a bang -- Korean athletes reaped a total of 17 medals and were showered with camera flashes at every turn. But the excitement isn’t over yet. Equal in intensity but admittedly smaller in its scale of crowds and media coverage, the Paralympic Games kicked off on Friday.Cho Sei-hon, who has photographed every Paralympics since 2008, said he feels a particular affinity for the event. 　To the photographer’s eyes, Paralympic athletes’ wheelchairs

Olympic Games March 9, 2018

Team Korea House, a facility that promotes the country and offers support for international athletes and guests, reopened its doors Friday for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Paralympics.The house, which received some 200,000 visitors during the Winter Olympics from Feb. 9-25, has renovated its interior for the Paralympics, which run from Friday to March 18. On its first floor, an exhibit titled “Touring Korea in 360 degrees” shows photos and other works promoting Korea’s tourist attractions. An exp

Olympic Games March 9, 2018

Graduation and school entrance season, which comes around in March in Korea, has arrived. The record-breaking cold temperatures are slowly fading away as spring creeps up.Along with the change in seasons, people are flocking to the flower market in Yangjae-dong, southeastern Seoul. The Yangjae Flower Market is the largest in Korea, a hub of some 120 wholesale and retail stores, an auction house and greenhouses that sell all sorts of flowers, succulents and bouquet-making material.Customers can b

Culture March 4, 2018

Writers, consultants and public speakers, among others, will have to pay more taxes for their work starting from April, according to revised tax laws.Currently, a 4.4 percent withholding tax is applied to fees for speeches, consulting and contribution articles. The rate will rise to 6.6 percent starting from April 1, and further go up to 8.8 percent in 2019. In addition, only 70 percent of fees derived from paid speeches, books and consulting will be deemed as expenses starting from April. The p

Economy Feb. 28, 2018

Seoul is full of novel indoor attractions for foreign tourists, from board game cafes and escape rooms to one-person karaoke booths. One of the most comforting of these sites might be the sheep cafe Thanks Nature, located just in front of Hongik University in the Hongdae district. Owner Lee Kwang-ho brushes the one-year-old ewe Sugar on Feb. 23 at his cafe Thanks Nature in Hongdae, Seoul. (Rumy Doo/The Korea Herald)The cafe, sitting in a sunken garden-like lower story, houses in its outdoors enc

Culture Feb. 28, 2018

When YouTuber Josh Carrott, better known here as the Korean Englishman, appeared onstage with his creative partner Ollie Kendal, the crowd erupted into cheers. The two English nationals, famous for their video content that introduces Korean culture to foreigners, frolicked around onstage. They brought audience members into the spotlight, handed out snacks and hosted a 15-minute performance with showmanship. 　Magician Nicky followed with a live magic show, bringing audience members onto the stage

People Feb. 26, 2018

When South Korea’s first curling rink was completed in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province in 2006, little could the county administration that backed its construction expect the unfamiliar facility to produce Olympic medal winners in the sport a dozen years later. The story of how the Korean women’s curling team came about has now become known worldwide. In 2007, classmates Kim Yeong-mi, whose name has reverberated through the curling venue at PyeongChang and global media outlets in the past wee

Olympic Games Feb. 25, 2018

Veteran actor Jo Min-ki was adamant about his innocence, at least until Tuesday when he confronted a slew of sexual misconduct allegations. Will Entertainment, the agency representing the embattled actor, even threatened to take strong legal action against those who spread “groundless rumors” about the alleged sexual misdeeds Jo committed while he was teaching at a local college.On Wednesday, Jo flipped his “innocent victim” position as further accounts surfaced, detailing his nearly decadelong

Television Feb. 21, 2018

With five days left of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Korea’s teams are faring well overall, most recently gaining two more silver medals.Korea’s ace female speedskater Lee Sang-hwa won her third Olympic medal on Sunday in the women’s 500-meter event wrought with emotion. Claiming the silver, Lee fell just short of pulling off a three-time consecutive Olympic gold streak but received thunderous support from the crowd.Cha Min-kyu clinched a surprise silver in men’s speedskating 500 on Monday, c

Olympic Games Feb. 20, 2018

While global visitors may want to take home their own souvenirs of the lovable PyeongChang Winter Olympics mascot Soohorang, it may become harder to procure the stuffed tigers as they are sold out in most online shops.A wide array of products were originally available, featuring the round-faced white tiger wearing Korean traditional costume, riding sleds, perched atop headbands, hanging from keychains and emblazoned on fluffy blankets. However, the official online store has sold out of nearly al

Olympic Games Feb. 18, 2018

South Korean speedskater Lee Sang-hwa was seen training Saturday at the Gangneung Oval, a day before her attempt at her third Olympic gold medal.　Lee will compete in the women’s 500 meter speedskating event at Gangneung Oval in the sub-host city of Gangneung on Sunday. 　The two-time Olympic champion decided to turn her full focus to the 500m race, dropping out of Wednesday’s 1,000m event in order to concentrate on Sunday’s competition.　Lee is the current 500m world record holder at 36.36 seconds

Olympic Games Feb. 18, 2018

President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook were spotted locked in a tight embrace while watching the PyeongChang Winter Olympics short track speedskating games Saturday.The presidential couple entered the Gangneung Ice Arena around 7 p.m. just before the women’s 1,500 meter short track preliminaries began. Moon and Kim in particular gasped and cheered with each turn of events, showing regret when Korea’s Shim Suk-hee, one of the strongest gold medal favorites, was eliminated from medal c

Politics Feb. 18, 2018