Lia Kim, co-founder of 1MILLION Dance Studio, poses at her studio in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul, February 21. (Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk) Dancer/Choreographer Lia Kim never imagined achieving international stardom when she co-founded 1MILLION Dance Studio in 2014. When YouTube started to become a platform that allowed people to make it big in pretty much any field, Kim jumped on board by uploading videos with her dance crew.   The number of subscribers grew

Kkaennip jangajji (pickled perilla leaves) often requires two people to separate the leaves. This situation has caused heated (but never serious) debates in Korea in recent years. (Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk)   In recent years Koreans, especially young ones, have been engaged in debates over hypothetical situations, mostly involving a person, his/her romantic partner and a friend of the same gender as the person.   The debates revolve around questions li

President Yoon Suk Yeol checks a “barrier-free” kiosk during the AI TECH+ exhibition at the Kimdaejung Convention Center in Gwangju, September 28, 2022. The kiosk, developed by a local IT company, offers features for the visually impaired such as enlarged buttons and audio guides, and the height of the control panels can be lowered for people in wheelchairs. (Korea Times file)   The Ministry of Health and Welfare recently finalized its five-year policy roadmap for people with

Visitors take pictures of falling cherry blossoms during the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival in Changwon, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, April 5, 2019. (Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul) After a long, cold winter, most outdoor activities in Korea begin in spring. Flower blossoms, seasonal delicacies, cultural programs and other attractions lure people out into the warm weather. Spring is also one of the two seasons – the other being fall – when the most regional festivals are held across

Actor Kim Soo-hyun, right, poses with President Yoon Suk Yeol during the Taxpayers’ Day event at COEX in Seoul, March 3, after being named this year’s model taxpayer. (Courtesy of the Office of the President) As part of its strategy to inspire more members of the public to take action, the Korean government regularly appoints celebrities to serve as messengers for its policies.   Celebrity endorsements are a powerful tactic that government agencies use to draw attent

Visitors attending the annual Korean International Art Fair (KIAF) in Seoul (Courtesy of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) Travelers to Korea fill itineraries with their own areas of interest – some may want to immerse themselves in traditional culture by donning Hanbok and visiting palaces, some may crave street food or fine dining and others may seek beautiful scenery in mountains or on a beach.   All of these itineraries become more enriching and colorful whe

Dongdong e-Nature Playground inside the Gangdong Children Center, a kids’ café-like facility run by the Gangdong-gu Office in eastern Seoul (Courtesy of Gangdong-gu Office) Korea’s birth rate is one of the lowest in the world. The nation’s total fertility rate, the average number of babies a woman bears between the ages of 15 and 49, has stayed below 1 and consistently fallen since registering 0.98 in 2018. It was 0.92 in 2019, 0.84 in 2020 and 0.81 in 2021.   Reasons