Anyeong!

I love Korean’s pop culture; it’s refreshing and cute. There are so many reasons that I fell in love with it and that it happened almost without me knowing it. To start with, Korea has a wonderful mix of ancient culture and traditions; and an ultra-modern, high-tech society that changes both extremely fast and not at all.  More than any other country I’ve known, well, aside from Japan, Korea has been able to keep its culture while simultaneously modernizing into a G-20 nation almost overnight. And it’s thriving… not only in Asia but all over the world too.

Now talking about it, Hallyu wave is spreading Korean pop culture everywhere from Asia to the Western countries.  Hallyu, by the way, is the term which some Korean marketing genius probably came up with to increase tourism and raise the profile of Korea in the world. The term “Hallyu” means the love for Korean pop culture, or the appreciation of all things Korean. Hallyu began roughly 5 years ago when the rest of Asia discovered Korean soap operas. One of the breakthrough dramas was a series called Winter Sonata. After that, more Korean dramas saw their way to foreign shores and Korean films and music started to follow suit. And they dubbed this flow “The Korean Wave” or Hallyu.
Below are a pictures with my Filipino, Japanese and Korean friends, my most experiential Hallyu. ^^



Music
I love music and found several bands and singers that I enjoyed.  But what is it about Korean music that makes it very appealing? Is it the catchy beats? The idols’ good-looks and adorable personalities? Maybe the addictive dance moves, awesome props, and glitzy stage costumes? Or is it their over-reactive and overprotective fans? For me it’s everything and more!

A difference between American music and Korean music can be noted concerning the messages conveyed in the differing music cultures. Concepts relayed through in popular American hip-hop music often consist of money, sex, alcohol, drugs… etc. For example, Rihanna‘s song S&M: “Sex in the air, I don’t care, I love the smell of it”. Although I myself may not fully understand Hangul, I would say that KPop is more modest and innocent, a factor that reflects upon Korean culture.
My fascination with Korean pop music started with this video:
This is the all-time famous, all-time favorite JapKor boy group TVXQ, or Tohoshinki in Japan. I used to be a JPop fan (I love Arashi, WaT, Morning Musume, Ken Hirai, Yuna Ito and Teriyaki Boyz) but eventually converted into a KPop follower after I was introduced to JapKor artists like BoA and TVXQ.
Dramas & Movies
Though I’m not really into watching Koreanovelas, Korea produces some very entertaining TV shows – Protect the Boss will always be my favorite but there is something for everyone.   There are also tons of great flicks – and My Boyfriend is a Type B was the first I watched and still a favorite. Below is the trailer.

A lot of Korean dramas and movies deal with this subject of first love. I’ve heard that a lot of Koreans think your first love is the purest and truest love you’ll ever have. I don’t really know if a lot of Koreans think that actually, but the popular culture certainly does seem to be overwhelming them with this message.
If you’d like to watch KDramas, by the way, you can download them here. I have to warn you though, it can be addicting – really! You’ll think to yourself, “This is stupid. Why am I watching this?” But then you won’t be able to stop! Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Food
I love Korean food!  Aside from being healthy, It’s all so yummy.  Okay, it really helps that I like spicy food because a lot of Korean food is spicy but there’s something for everyone.  The meat… the veges. When you visit Korean restos, don’t be afraid to try something new.  My favorites include ddukboki, pajeon, kimchi of course, and bulgogi.
By the way, I worked before in a Japanese tourism magazine wherein I did some sales, marketing and editorial jobs.

Yup! That’s me in the lower left part! Haaaha! Anyway, my love for Korean food started around this time during our photo shoots and food tasting in different Korean restaurants. Below is a sample of Korean food tasting we did and that I photographed and layout.



Fashion
Korean fashion is more of the “clean and smooth” type not the dirty hot type of American fashion. K-fashion is a little safer and pretty much conforms to trends all the time. Koreans prefer to be VERY classy and tasteful but it can also go over the top. It’s undeniable that most Koreans have this crazy trend-driven style going on with them and some crazy layering as well as mix-matching. Ehem. Below is my photo entry during the Super Junior Super Show contest wherein in dressed up like Lee Donghae  of SuJu just to win concert tickets. Such a shame and such a desperate act, huh?! LOL