13 year old, Kim Hyeon-su, is the first Korean middle school student to ace the internet-based TOEFL test. Kim never attended private academies to learn English, but instead enjoyed studying at home for fun. Kim’s mother, having studied Hebrew, Greek and English herself, says it was clear that her daughter had an ability to pick up the language easily, when, at only 25 months, Kim was reading middle school level English books. An ambitious 13 year old, she wants to study English literature, marine biology, and psychology, and be a movie director. (more…)

With only about a month to go before the first decade of the 21st century finishes, the “best films of the decade” lists are already beginning to filter in. So I thought I would get in on the game and offer up my Top Ten favorites (with a few honourable mentions) of the past ten years. Of course, this list will surely change even as the decade completes, as I will continue to see new films from the 2000s in the years ahead and re-evaluate and re-watch the ones I have. But hopefully this list can provide a few recommendations of some of the best films produced in recent years. I chose to limit myself to one film per director. With all that said, here is the list. (more…)

The recently-opened Dream Forest has been on my list since it first opened, although it wasn’t until even more recently that the construction crews finished. Once the site of a theme park named ‘Dream Park’, 북서울꿈의숲 (buk-Seo-ul-ggum-ui-sup) has an appropriate English name of ‘Dream Forest’. The more developed part sits between two relatively small mountains, which have their own sets of walking trails worth checking out if you’re in the hiking mood. The Korea Herald did a report on this newly-opened area, which gives a lot of details about what to expect. (more…)

The Chosun Ilbo will catch the attention of  patiently-waiting iPhone enthusiasts this morning. It reports that the Korean launch of the will be iPhone next week. There is no official statement from KT, the official supplier of the Apple product in Korea, but industry insiders are saying that November 28th is the date. They are also saying that KT will start online reservations for the iPhone tomorrow. 150,000 units will be sold at first, ranging between w250,000 and w300,000. The article also mentions that both the 3GS  and 3G iPhone models will be available here. (more…)

Saturday’s fire in Busan has put national safety standards in the spotlight. The fire killed ten, including seven Japanese tourists, at a shooting range on the second floor of a five-storey building. The incident led to critcism from the Japanese government and media regarding Korea’s sub-standard safety regulations. The Korean government is responding quickly to protect Korea’s international image and the tourism industry here. Yesterday, Lee Myung-bak ordered his government to take measures to improve Korea’s safety standards. (more…)