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I'd Pressed This Button a Dozen Times Before I Actually Looked at It I was staying in a serviced apartment in Mapo for two weeks before I noticed anything strange about the elevator. My flo…
Read moreThe Missing Fourth Floor in So Many Korean Buildings, ExplainedIf you have watched Netflix's Kingdom, you have already seen a gat. Rows of them, actually, bobbing through candlelit palace halls while zombies close in. What the show does not tell you i…
Read moreGat: The Translucent Black Hat That Defined Joseon StatusA Joseon noblewoman is about to leave for a wedding. Her hanbok is already tied, her hair already pinned. Before she steps outside, she reaches for one more thing, a small silk tassel, and faste…
Read moreNorigae: The Joseon Ornament With Symbols Sewn InsideShe Ran After Me Down the Street I'd left ten thousand won folded under my plate at a barbecue place in Euljiro, paid at the counter, and made it about half a block before I heard someone c…
Read moreTipping in Korea Can Backfire Into an Awkward MomentThe Map Never Warned Me About This I got cocky about the Seoul subway on day two. The colored lines on the map looked so tidy, every transfer marked with the same small circle, like switching f…
Read moreThe Seoul Subway Transfer That Looks Easy on the Map and Isn'tA king who designed an alphabet before breakfast. A single man who mapped an entire country on foot. Two painters who could not have looked at Joseon life more differently. And a filing system s…
Read moreJoseon Dynasty: The Inventions, Art, and Secrets of Everyday LifeLive box office and drama charts, updated daily.
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