Friday, October 25, 2013

Korea to get 1st nude beach

Read it here: http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/24/travel/south-korea-nude-beach/

Korea will open the first nude beach by 2017. They are creating a nude beach hoping that it will boost tourism to the beaches on the east coast.

A nude beach has been proposed in the past, but the idea was struck down by the public.

The beach will be located in the Gangwon province.The exact location of the beach has not been chosen yet. They are also thinking about catering the beach to foreigners since they are more comfortable at a nude beach than Koreans would be. Koreans are scared that someone will find out.


Saturday, October 19, 2013

Gangnam Style Police in South Korea

Read the article here: http://travel.yahoo.com/blogs/compass/south-korean-police-protecting-tourists-gangnam-style-221717147.html

South Korea has 101 new police officers who wear outfits inspired by Psy's "Gangnam Style". The costumes for the police were designed by the same person who designed Psy's costumes.

They will be wearing berets, double breasted bright blue jackets, slim cut pants, and dark glasses.

The police will be there to assist tourists with translations in English, Chinese and Japanese. They will also help make sure tourists don't get ripped off.

They hope that the tourism police force will become a tourist attraction just like Gangnam.


Thursday, October 17, 2013

Seoul Taxi fares increased on October 12

On October 12, 2013 the Seoul taxi fares were increased. The fares increased 10% for the regular taxi and 4.3% for the deluxe taxi.

The Regular Taxi went up from 2400 won (@$2.40 usd) up to 3000 won (@$3.00 usd). There will be a 100 won charge for every 142 meters after the initial fare. There is also a 100 won per 35 seconds to idle.

The Deluxe/Van went up from 4,500 won (@$4.50 usd) up to 5000 won (@$5.00 usd). The 200 won per 164 meters remains the same. There is also a 200 won per 39 seconds of idle.

**The conversion to USD is only a rough estimate. The amount fluctuates based on the exchange rates.





New Rules in South Korea for Mixed Marriages

Next year the South Korean government will be implementing new regulations for foreigners who want to marry Koreans. The foreign spouse will have to speak basic Korean. The Korean spouse will have to make at least $1,500 a month.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

First Curved Smartphone released in South Korea

Read the article here: http://news.yahoo.com/worlds-first-curved-smartphone-hits-south-korea-market-111004975.html

Samsung released the first curved smartphone in South Korea this week. The Galaxy Round is a 5.7 inch smartphone that is curved to fit the curve of the user's hand.

The phone runs on the Android platform and costs around 1.08 million won (approximately $1,000).

The phone screen is made of plastic (instead of glass) which makes the phone lighter. The phone weighs 154 grams (0.33 pounds).

Samsung hasn't announced when the phone will be available in other countries.