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Can You Find Clothes Made In Korea At Seoul's Underground Shopping Malls?
Many tourists can't hide their surprises when they find this out! But it's not a big news to locals here and they are well aware of the fact. Not many factories manufacture clothes here due to high labour costs, which will drive up prices of clothes. @ MBC News The picture above is a home shopping broadcast of a company that deceived customers by saying that their clothes were made in Korea when in fact, they were made in China! Clothes made in Korea with similar designs and materials tend to be 3 to 5 times more expensive than those made in China. Essentially, you're paying more for the same product. Knowing this, locals have turned to more affordable options like underground shopping malls in the city. When shopping at these places, just know that the designs are from Korea and the physical products were actually manufactured in China. If you're really looking to buy clothes that were made in Korea, you want to go to department stores or domestic brand boutiques which come with a steeper price tag. Locals also shop at department stores for quality pieces that they plan on wearing long-term. @ Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Because the popularity and consumption of Korean fashion is high, there have been cases of con men replacing Chinese clothes made with Korean fashion styles to Korean labels. @Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Every year, the Korean police bust crimes related to switching labels. @ MBC News Desk And a shocking fact is that there are quite a few cases where clothes sold in the department stores are identical to those that are sold in Dongdaemun. Not only do some people change the labels, but they also replace clothes sold at Dongdaemun with brand labels. In conclusion, underground shopping malls, Myeongdong and Dongdaemun would be a safer option. And the problem of selling Chinese goods as Korean goods don't stop at just clothes. It also happens in food :( @ KBS News Every year, the Korean government launches an investigation to see if the country of origin for food and household goods are marked differently. For the year of 2016, the fine for violations relating to these amounted to 600M USD in total! @ Busan A restaurant's menu that says they use Korean beef when they actually use Australian beef. There is a substantial price difference between beef made in the two countries. Overall, we're glad that the government is taking measures to prevent scams of falsely indicating the country of origin of products and food sold here. Hopefully, more places will learn to do business ethically so we can all shop and eat in peace! If you are curious about Korea, you are more than welcome to leave us a message at ....
4 years ago
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Outbound Automatic Clearance
Now with the announcement of the South Korean government about this new service, foreigner visitors are officially allowed automatic clearance. It seems that the system was being tested at the time. However, there are some exceptions that may affect the passengers' application for automatic customs clearance. * Tourist visa holders that have exceeded their 90 day maximum limit. * Passport, fingerprint, face information and exit information provided at the time of entry * Bad records (misdemeanor, criminal) while in Korea * Under 17 years old For those who hold automatic customs clearance in Korea or a foreigner's registration card, the automatic clearance is available for use straight away. For a more convenient departure, take some time when you arrive to Korea to get through the automatic customs clearance at these locations: , 2nd Floor:Airport Railroad Branch Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Samseongdong City Airport Terminal, 2nd Floor Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Incheon International Airport Terminal 1, 3rd Floor, between check-in desks G and H Everyday from 7 am to 7 pm Incheon Inernational Airprot Terminal 2, 2nd Floor (One-Stop Public Service Zone, Government General Administrative Center) Everyday from 7 am to 7 pm Gimpo International Airport, 2nd Floor (Immigration Service Center) Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Busan Gimhae International Airport, International Terminal, 2nd Floor Monday to Friday, 7 am to 8 pm Daegu International Airport, 2nd Floor: Immigration Office Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Jeju International Airport, 3rd Floor:VIP Lounge Area Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Cheongju International Airport, East Passenger Terminal, 1st Floor : Airport Departure Office Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6 pm (mainly on site) Self-Service Clearance Notice * To apply for self-service customs clearance in Korea, you must apply after entry. * The validity period of self-service clearance is equivalent to the validity period of the passport. If you update your passport, you must re-apply for self-service clearance. * Customs declaration form must still be filled after the self-service clearance, but the immigration card does not have to be filled out. * You must be present in person during application for the purpose of taking photos and getting your fingerprints. This blog post is about Outbound Automatic Clearance. If you have questions about information not covered in the blog post, please email us at help@creatrip.com...
3 months ago
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Seoul Cat Lover Garden
trending place is also a cat-related one, a garden filled with cats! The cafe has over 100 resident felines, all with the freedom to roam freely inside and outside. All entrants are required to wash their hands before entry to protect the large number of cats. The place also offers blankets and storage services to put away bags and such, so visitors can interact with the mighty residents comfortably. Upon entering, you must sanitize your hand at the counter while listening to the rules. The most important thing to remember is to not bring any food into the place whatsoever for the cats' safety and bring your own snacks to feed them. Cat Lovers Garden also provides adoption services. Every day at 4pm, the employee will announce the feeding time. If you're around the garden at the time, you'll be able to catch the sight of over 100 cats enjoying their meals. Where else can you get a chance at such sighting? The entrance ticket covers one can of wet food. Also, keep in mind that there's a time limit of 2 hours on weekends and statutory holidays. Located close to Gimpo Airport, Cat Lovers Garden is 7 minutes by foot from Gaehwasan station exit 2 and 10 minutes by foot from Gaehwa station exit 1. If you're a cat lover in Seoul, you're really going to love this place! Personally, I think the garden felt a lot more comfortable because the cats and visitors were able to interact indoors and outdoors. Watching the cats sit under the sunlight and relax, I was glad I decided to visit this place. This blog post is about Seoul Cat Lover Garden. If you have questions about information not covered in the blog post, please email us at help@creatrip.com....
4 years ago
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Shocking True Stories In Korea Behind Drama Taxi Driver
gathered. This way of bowing is generally how people in a superior position bow. This angered many Koreans, who thought of his behavior as arrogant, not showing any real intention of repentance. Screenshots From Taxi Driver In real life, there were no vigilantes who abducted Cho Doo-soon after his release from prison. However, the Korean crowd still largely appreciated the fictional character being punished in Taxi Driver. THE SALT FARMS ON PURPLE ISLAND Screenshot From Taxi Driver Screenshot From Taxi Driver Another storyline in the drama is based on events that took place on the so called Purple Island in Jeolla Province. In the drama, disabled persons are trafficked and forced to work on a factory for salted seafood. They are being subjected to merciless working hours, violence, as well as having their private property embezzled by their employers. When a female worker finally manages to escape, she is taken back to the factory by a police officer. It turns out that he is in collusion with the owner of the enterprise. This plot is similar to real events that took place not so long ago. Purple Island In 2008 and 2012, two disabled men named Chae and Kim were deceived by an unregistered employment agency, and they were sold to salt farms on Purple Island. The workers on the farm were not allowed to sleep for more than five hours, being forced to do hard labor such as salt farming and construction work. The two men tried to escape several times without success, even being threated with death should they try to run away again. The place where the men were forced to work was a rural area, and many locals and even police officers turned a blind eye to the exploitation of workers on the farms. Ironically, a local police station nearby had praised for their excellent service not long ago, but later on it came to light that workers who tried to escape had been sent back to the farms again by police officers from the station. Screenshot from Taxi Driver The horrific condiions on the farms were exposed in 2014. The Deputy Speaker of the county as well as members of the local parliament were arrested on charges of exploatation and faliure to pay laborers who worked on their farms. The public were outraged to find out that even public officers can't always be trusted to protect the weak in society. The South Korean National Police Agency eventually decided to extend their investigation, and salt farms and facilities for the disabled throughout South Korea were investigated. They found that at least 100 workers, many of whom were disabled, had not been paid proper wages, and many more were either missing or unidentified. NEVER-ENDING BULLYING Screenshot From Taxi Driver Another theme in Taxi Driver is bullying, both in school and on the workplace. The drama tells the story of people who were tormented to the point where they lose their will to live. In one of the storylines, we get to follow a high school student who is looked down upon and bullied by his class mates because of him coming from a poor family. In Taxi Driver, the bullied student receives help from Rainbow Taxi Company in order to get revenge, thus achieving some kind of redemption. But what is bullying like in real life in Korea? How many end up ending their lives because there is no one to help them? Screenshot from Taxi Driver In fact, suicide accounts for 22.1% of deaths among teens in Korea. That means that among those who die at a young age, one fifth do so by committing suicide. It makes you wonder what kind of horrible everyday these teens had to suffer for them to chose their lives. Ahn Ye-Jin / Pyo Ye-jin The role of the female hacker Ahn Ye-Jin in Taxi Driver is played by Pyo Ye-jin. However, April member Lee Na-eun was originally casted to play the role. Lee Na-eun had to withdraw from the production after suspicions that she had been participating in school bullying. Considering that the drama deals extensively with bullying, the irony of Lee Na-eun departing because of such allegations was not lost on the audience. ABUSING BOSSES & WORKPLACE VIOLENCE *The video clip below may cause discomfort A later storyline in Taxi Driver deals with workplace violence against employees by their own boss. WeDisk Chairman Yang Jin-ho (Source: DailySmart) Without a doubt, this is based on the outrageous behavior of the chairman of WeDisk, Yang Jin-ho, in 2018. In October 2018, Yang Jin-ho's violence against an employee was exposed after a movie clip was leaked. In the clip, he is seen repeatedly slapping an employee, even ordering his subordinate to drop to his knees and apologize. At a company dinner, Yang Jin-ho is also reported to have forced a handful of garlic into an employee's mouth, and ordering others to eat spicy chili sauce. He even had managers go to hair salons to dye their hair to colors of his liking. Leaked video footage of WeDisk's chairman Although Taxi Driver exaggerates the events, just knowing that similar cases of workplace abuse take place is a source of distress to many Koreans. According to a survey conducted by Korea Psychological Association, more than one out of ten office workers reported that they were bullied almost every day. Five out of six workers said that they experienced abuse at least once a month. Another survey from 2017 showed that 70% of all office workers in Korea have had experience of being bullied or abused. Screenshot from Taxi Driver Although legislation that explicitly prohibits workplace bullying was passed in 2019, there is no doubt that many still experience abuse and bullying at work. How many are suffering every day without getting help from the likes of Rainbow Taxi Company? The storyline about workplace related bullying also dealt with sexual exploitation and blackmailing. This is very similar to the "Nth Room" case which sent shockwaves through South Korea last year. In this article we took a look at the real events behind the storylines in SBS' latest hit drama Taxi Driver. Although some events are exaggerated in the drama, it's still shocking to find out that they are based on real-life incidents. Let's hope that justice will be served to the wicked, and that the services provided by Rainbow Taxi Company won't be needed in the future....
3 years ago
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Gisa Sikdang | The History Of The Taxi Driver's Restaurant In Korea
common things people expected from these places were sufficient parking, affordable prices, fast service, extended business hours, and single person servings of delicious food. Since patrons were mainly taxi drivers, you would not see a lot of drinking at these restaurants. If you were to ask a taxi driver where the best place to eat was, the answer would vary based on drivers' preferences, but any recommendation was bound to be good. Source: Insight Due to the irregular working hours of taxi drivers, restaurants catering to them would open earlier and close later than other restaurants, sometimes even staying open 24 hours a day. Drivers would often be in a hurry to eat, so quick service was a vital aspect of these eateries. If the food and service weren't good, the cab drivers would not go back, and word would spread quickly. GISA SIKDANG FOOD Source: Siksin Since taxi drivers would eat alone most of the time, meals were portioned for one person, rather than two or more as is common in many Korean restaurants. Common menu options included pork belly, fried pork cutlet, spicy fried squid, and bibimbap. The most popular item quickly became dwaeji bulbaek (돼지불백), or marinated grilled pork. This dish was served with lettuce leaf wraps and various toppings and condiments such as garlic, kimchi, peppers, and hot pepper paste. Because of the extreme popularity of dwaeji bulbaek, some gisa sikdangs even came to be considered gourmet. There were also some restaurants that used a buffet system and calculated price based on the number of people. HOW THE GISA SIKDANG HAS CHANGED The gisa sikdang is considered uniquely Korean, serving Korean dishes. Most dishes were meat and rice based rather than soup based since drivers would not have many opportunities for bathroom breaks throughout the day. In the past, gisa sikdangs even offered special services for taxi drivers such as car washes, driving gloves, medicine for stomach issues due to their abnormal eating schedules, and coin-op coffee. Unfortunately, due to the rising cost of rent over time, many gisa sikdangs have gone out of business. In places like Hapjeong where there were once many, they are now scarce, though if you look closely, you can find a few that are still operating like they used to. THE GISA SIKDANG TODAY In Yeonnam-dong near Hongdae, there is Gamnamujib Gisa Sikdang (감나무집기사식당), one of the most famous gisa sikdangs in Seoul. It rose to fame after appearing on the TV show Infinite Challenge (무한도전), so if you decide to go at a regular meal time, be prepared for a bit of a wait. These days, gisa sikdangs are no longer primarily frequented by cab drivers. Because of their affordability and convenience, many working professionals will stop in for a quick and delicious meal. With the development and improvement of public transit and the continuously rising cost of living, it may become harder to find these types of restaurants as demand for them has dwindled. This has been just a brief summary of the history of the gisa sikdang in Korea. We hope you learned something new today! If you have a chance, be sure to stop by a gisa sikdang for a tasty and affordable meal....
3 years ago
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