Month: April 2023

Gwangan Bridge Landscape Lighting Will Change For the First Time in Ten Years

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If you have been to Busan, I bet that you’ve crossed the Gwangan Bridge. The bridge does not only play an important role in connecting Haeundae to the Yongho-dong area, but it is also an important Busan landmark.

The city recently revealed a plan to change its landscape lighting for the first time in ten years.

They city will remove the current landscape lighting and install new lights from June to October of this year.

The city plans to spend 7 billion won to increase the number and colors of LED bulbs to create a more vivid look for the bridge. Once it is completed, it will look spectacular.

Just keep that in mind that the lighting operation will halt for the next six months or so. (Every night, there used to be a mini light show.)

Gwangalli M Drone Light Show (Line-up for May)

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Now that May is just around the corner, I would like to begin with what is scheduled for the Gwangalli M Drone Light Show next month.

For those who haven’t heard about the Gwangalli M Drone Light Show, it is a free attraction held in front of Gwangalli Beach twice every Saturday. Thousands of drones fill the night sky and feature a variety of themes throughout the week.

The themes for next month are a little bit more special since May marks the first anniversary of the light show. To celebrate its anniversary, the Suyeong-gu district held a vote last month which let citizens vote for their favorite drone shows. After the voting period ended, they picked the five most voted for themes.

The themes were as followed:

On May 6th, the show’s theme will be “marriage proposal.” A few lucky couples will have this opportunity to pop the question as drone write, “will you marry me?” in the sky.

The next week, Gwangalli Eobang Festival is scheduled to be held. In order to celebrate the local festival, drones will put on a related themed performance.

On May 20th, drones will decorate the sky with a magic theme.

On May 27th, the most voted for show will be held and 1,500 drones will decorate the sky. The organizer hasn’t revealed which theme won, so we will have the wait until the 27th to find out. That day, there will only be one show at 8 pm.

If you visit Busan during that weekend, you won’t want to miss the drone light show.

The Special Photo Exhibition at the Bokcheon Museum

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I would like to tell you about the special photo exhibition taking place at the Bokcheon Museum. This photo exhibition titled, “Memory of Busan,” is now showcasing photos of Busan’s history over the past 100 years (100년전, 부산의 단편).

What is special about this photo exhibition is that you can check out a lot of photos taken by Japanese researchers from the colonial era. Back then, it was said that Japanese researchers tried to leave some records and documents of various parts of Korea as part of the “Joseon Historic Site Investigation Project.” These were important documents that they developed into photos on glass dry plates.

Surprisingly, some 38,000 of these photos were kept by the National Museum of Korea. Some were even carefully selected to be displayed at the Bokcheon Museum.

Fyi, the photo exhibition started this week and will last until June 18th.

Speaking of the Bokcheon Museum, I admit that it is not one of the most well-known museums in Busan. I am sure that a lot of citizens are not aware of this museum, either. However, it is well worth the visit.

For example, even though it is in the middle of Dongnae city, it stretches from the Chungyeol Temple all the way to the Dongnae Fortress (동래읍성). It is so beautiful that you might think to yourself, “am I in Busan?”

There is even a tomb which is believed to contain someone of great power back in the 6th century.

If you are interested, please visit museum.busan.go.kr/bokcheon. The museum is open from 9 am to 6 pm every day except for Mondays and admission is free.

Asking Someone’s Age

Posted in Learn Korean Idioms, Living2 Comments

In Korea, people often ask other’s their age. This is because age often determines whether someone should speak formally or casually to another person. Age also determines how we call each other, labeling the person “oppa,” “unnie,” “noona” and others.

So today let’s learn some expressions about age.

1. 나이가 어떻게 되세요?

If you translate it word for word, it means “How is your age?”

If you ask this question to someone who is obviously way older than you, you can ask “연세가 어떻게 되세요?” “연세” is the formal Korean word to describe “age.”

2. 혹시

This is a very good expression to remember. It means “if you don’t mind me asking.” If you say “혹시” before what you ask, you may sound a little more polite. For example, “혹시, 나이가 어떻게 되세요?” means “if you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”

3. 무슨 띠세요?

It literally means, “What’s your zodiac sign?” Your zodiac animal is determined based on the year you were born. So people sometimes ask someone’s zodiac sign to figure out how old the person is.

4. 빠른 90이에요.

These days, kids born in the same year are in the same grade at school. But back then, kids born from March to the next February were in the same grade. So, kids born in January and February sometimes experienced an awkward situation where their “friends (those born in the same year)” were one grade lower and considered a “junior.”

So, people often use the expression, “I was born early that year.” It is a very cultural expression, right?

5. 5학년 1반 입니다~

It literally translates to “I am in fifth grade in class 1.”

But it means “I am 51 years old.”

This is not a common expression but I have seen some elderly people using it. When people feel shy about sharing their age, they may use this indirect way to describe how old they are.

National Fire Agency Kicking Off a Social Media Challenge

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I would like to tell you about a Busan-related event that you can participate in without coming to Busan.

National Fire Agency is kicking off a social media challenge in order to help support the hosting of the World Expo 2030.

Anyone can be a part of this. All you need to do is follow the National Fire Agency’s Instagram account (korea_fire_119) and film yourself cheering “Safe Busan! Well-prepared Fire Agency!” Don’t forget to tag @korea_fire_119 with the hashtag “say hi to the world (세계에 안부를 전해줘)” “소방청 119 AR 이벤트,” and “부산세계엑스포.”

This social media challenge will go on through April 28th. The Fire Agency will choose to award some cool prizes to the winners.

Programs at Busan Safety & Experience Center

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April is almost coming to an end. Do you have any plans for the month of May?

There are a lot of special days in May, right? That includes Labor Day, Children’s Day, Parents’ Day, and Teacher’s Day. Since Children’s Day falls on Friday, I am pretty sure that a lot of people will go on a mini trip to make the most of their long weekend.

If you are planning on bringing your kids to Busan next month, you should consider taking them to “Busan Safety & Experience Center” (119 안전체험관).

It is so much fun! When I took my kids, they were able to learn important safety procedures, but it a fun way. They learned how to use a fire extinguisher and how to escape a burning building.

Programs like those are offered daily, but during the month of May, they will run special programs that involve your whole family. Some magic shows and recitals are also scheduled on May 5th and May 20th.

To participate in these programs, a reservation must be made online before April 30th. Visit 119.busan.go.kr. to reserve your spot.

2 Instagrammable Desserts in Haeundae You Must Try

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You can’t complete your Busan trip without trying these desserts. They are not only tasty, but also Instagrammable.

1. 호랑이 젤라떡 (Tiger Gela Rice Cake)

I remember people standing in line during the winter to try “호랑이 젤라떡,” and I never understood why people wanted ice cream in the winter. Now I get it.

호랑이 젤라떡 literally translates to Tiger Gela Rice Cake. As you may guess by its name, they serve rice cakes with Italian gelato inside.

Many visitors take photos of their desserts, one with the tiger mascot in the background and the other with the ocean.

In Korean supermarkets, you can find the ice cream called “찰떡 아이스 (Rice Cake Ice).” This Tiger Gela Rice Cake is similar to that, but WAY BETTER.

You can choose between organic Jeju malcha, cherry, coffee cinnamon, roasted pistachio and Haeundae salt & milk flavors.

Hours of operation: 11:00 am – 10:00 pm (Daily except for Tuesday)

5:00 pm – 6:10 pm Break Time

Where: Dalmaji-gil 62, 38, Busan

Directions: The store is located at Mipo, which is the end of Haeundae Beach. If you don’t mind walking, I would recommend traveling from the Haeundae subway station.

2. 시노베 (Synnove)

If you are visiting Busan as a tourist, then you will probably be spending a lot of time in Haeundae. While you’re here, don’t forget to visit Synnove where you can try a brown cheese waffle.

I admit, there are not many types of cheese available in Korea. We didn’t even know about brown cheese until recently when Synnove went viral.

The CEO, Eom Jeonmi not only imported the Norwegian brown cheese, but also created the popular brown cheese waffle.

Hours of operation: 11:00 am – 8:00 pm daily

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm Break Time

Where: 35 Gunam-ro, 29 beon-gil, Haeundae, Busan

[This is NOT a sponsored post]

Gijang Anchovy Festival

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If you happen to visit Busan next weekend, you should consider visiting the Gijang-gun area to check out the Gijang Anchovy Festival.

The festival will be held in Daebyeon Port in the Gijang-gun district from this coming Friday, April 21st to next Sunday, April 23rd. Daebyeon may sound like a funny name to those who speak Korean, but it is the name of the town. This town is well-known as a fishing village.

I’ve been to the Gijang Anchovy Festival before. If you go, you can find the whole strip packed with booths. These booths lines along the street and sell everything related to anchovies. They have everything from fresh anchovies to dried anchovies, to fermented ones, to fish sauce.

Since the town of Daebyeon Port is located on the outskirts of Busan in Gijang, I would recommend driving there. There is plenty of parking.

Although, if you wish to use public transportation, remember that bus number 181 travels all the way from Hauendae Station to Daebyeon Port.

Kpop Dream Concert [Dates & Prices]

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For those who are not familiar with the “Kpop Dream Concert,” it is one of the largest Kpop events in Korea. This event began in 1995 under the sponsor of HD Hyundai Oil-Bank. That means that this year marks the 29th anniversary.

Up until now, it had been held in Seoul, but this year, the HD Hyundai group has decided to hold the concert here in Busan in support of the city hosting the 2030 World Expo Busan. Yay!

The Kpop Dream Concert is scheduled for May 27th and the venue will be the Asia Stadium in the Yeonje-gu District.

The price of tickets is expected to cost between 10,000 won and 50,000 won, depending on where you sit. The catch is that you will not be the only one waiting for the tickets to go on sale! It is no surprise that a lot of people will be buying tickets as soon as the sale goes live.

So, the question is: When can you buy a ticket to the Dream Concert?

According to the organizers, ticket sales will start during the first week of May, but we don’t know the exact date yet.

I will update you when I know more specific information.

Anyways, if you are a big fan of Kpop, mark your calendars! I hope you can make it!

The Busan Science Festival

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Did you know that April is science month? Well, it is!

Moreover, April 21st is marked as “Science Day.”

To mark science month, a lot of festivals and events centered around science will take place in Korea. Busan is no exception.

For one, Busan National Science Museum located in the Gijang-gun District holds some special exhibitions this month. For example, on April 21st, exhibition halls and parking will be free. The exhibitions will open until 8:30 pm so people can come visit after work.

On April 23rd, “Fun- Fun Science Magic Show” will be performed to celebrate National Science Day. The performances will do three shows on April 23rd in first floor conference room.

Also, the Busan Science Festival will celebrate its 22nd anniversary this year at the Bexco on April 22nd and 23rd with the theme, “the World Expo, Shining with Science.” The Busan National Science Museum will also open a booth at the Bexco during the Busan Science Festival. They will showcase the inventions that were introduced from the previous world expos.