On July 28th, the first day of his Summer holiday, Korean President Moon Jae-in visited UNESCO World Heritage Site Bongjeong temple, one of seven Korean temples on the list. Despite being a Catholic, Moon – who has a baptismal name of Timothy, meaning a man who serves God – has a large amount of interest in and respect for Buddhist culture. Prior to his visit to Bongjeong Temple, President Moon has also visited the other six temples on the UNESCO list: Tongdo Temple, Buseok Temple, Beopju Temple, Magok Temple, Seonam Temple, and Daeheung Temple, where he studied for the bar exam as a student. Having spent so much time in Buddhist temples, Moon has developed great affection for the tea served by monks. At a meeting of senior staff and aides held on August 10 last year, he proclaimed “Let’s introduce some tea!” before introducing them Gokwoo Tea, a type of green tea made by Daeheung Temple, where he studied for the bar. In order to promote the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, he even blended
During Moon Jae-in’s state visit to India, First Lady Kim Jung-sook was taken on a tour of the tomb of Humayun, second emperor of the Mughal Empire known for his patience and peaceful personality. However, what caught the most attention of reporters during this visit was the orange bag hanging from the shoulder of Kim’s Senior Private Secretary. This bag was given to the President and First Lady by the PyeongChang Olympics Organizing Committee and volunteers, and was made by recycling banners from the games in the hopes of reducing waste. It seems like through her choice of bag, the First Lady will be bringing a lot more attention to the practice of reducing waste by recycling items originally intended for one-time use.
A microorganism has been discovered in Korean sea salt that can survive in temperatures exceeding 66 degrees Celsius. What’s more, this salt is a main ingredient in Kimchi, hence why the discovery was made by a research team at Korea’s World Insitutute of Kimchi. Director of the institute, Ha Jae-ho, stated, "this study has a lot of meaning as we have found new materials that are capable of surviving and multiplying in extreme environments, making them highly valuable for industrial use”. Whereas most other microorganisms can only survive between temperatures of 35 and 45 degrees Celsius and within relatively low concentrations of salt, this newly discovered organism, designated as CBA1119, thrives in high temperatures and environments with saline levels of 20% or more, which is why they are often found in fermented foods such as kimchi and salted fish. As exciting as this discovery is, further research is required to learn exactly how CBA1119 can survive in such harsh conditions as th
On June 30th, during the 42nd session of the World Heritage Committee, it was unanimously decided to add seven South Korean Buddhist temples that date back as far as the seventh century to the UNESCO World Heritage List, bringing the country’s total number of heritage sites to thirteen. The seven temples are Beopju Temple on Mt. Songni, Tongdo Temple on Mt. Yeongchuk, Buseok Temple on Mt. Bonghwang, Bongjeong Temple on Mt. Cheondeung, Magok Temple on Mt. Taehwa, Seonam Temple on Mt. Jogye, and Daeheung Temple on Mt. Duryun. An official from the Korean Cultural Heritage Administration said, "since their establishment, the temples have continued the tradition of Korean Buddhism that is both religious and deeply rooted in people's lives,” while a statement released by UNESCO emphasized “these mountain monasteries are sacred places, which have survived as living centers of faith and daily religious practice to the present." As a result of the temples’ addition to the list, the committe
Whanki Kim (1913-1974) was a Korean painter best known for his softly colored abstractions, merging traditional Korean subject matter with a Western style. Studying Fine Art in Japan during the mid-1930s, upon his return to Korea he quickly established himself as a pioneer of abstract painting, and later travels to Paris and New York led him to develop a sense of pride in Korean art and its unique qualities. Describing his work, Kim explained, “There's beauty in my art, and this beauty comes from having lived in the Korean countryside”. In 1992, the Whanki Museum was established in Jongno-gu in Seoul, and holds the majority of his work. 이 작품보러 홍콩 왔는데 층고가 낮아 90도 거꾸로 걸려있네. 잼나다. ㅋㅋ 수화작품은 확실히 울림이 있음 #김환기#서울옥션 자유(@lovemarylin)님의 공유 게시물님, 2018 5월 25 12:38오전 PDT #김환기 #여름달밤 #KimWhanki #WhankiKim #moonlightinsummer 1961 Oil on canvas #김환기 #달두개 #KimWhanki #WhankiKim #twomoons 1961 Oil on canvas #덕수궁 #덕수궁미술관 @
Lee Geum-ja is a 63-year old woman born with dwarfism, who stands at 102cm tall and 32kg. For the past ten years, Lee has been collects discarded paper cups and milk packets, and selling them to raise money for helping the needy and paying scholarships to students from low-income families. "As you can see, I am a small person about one meter tall”, she said in one speech, “but I've collected as many as five tons of paper cups in a year […] I was like an abandoned paper cup myself, but since I started collecting paper cups to help others, I have been treated like a human. When I see abandoned paper cups being used for scholarships, I feel proud that even someone as small as me can share something.” Lee’s parents died when she was still young, and over time, she lost contact with her siblings. She made a living completing odd jobs and chores at other people’s homes before going home to her apartment provided to her as a basic welfare beneficiary. In 2018, a member of her local villag
