Korea, as told by a Korean
I grew up with these stories — the history, the myths, the places most people never find. This is my way of sharing them
What I Write About
History, myths, language, and the places in between. Told by someone who actually grew up in Korea
There’s a side of Korea that doesn’t make it into guidebooks. That’s what this is about
Why Does Korea Still Call Itself a Tiger, When the Tigers Are Gone?
When Seoul hosted the Olympics in 1988, the mascot was a friendly little tiger named Hodori. Thirty years later, when the Winter Games came to Pyeongchang, the mascot was a white tiger named Soohorang. Korea’s national football team plays with a tiger on its crest. A goofy, wide-eyed tiger practically steals the show in one…
Meet the Korean Tiger God Hiding Inside Korea’s Buddhist Temples
Next time you visit a Buddhist temple in Korea, walk past the main hall — the big, golden, crowded one where everyone takes photos — and keep going. Head toward the back, where the ground starts to slope up into the trees. Sooner or later you’ll find a small, plain wooden building, easy to miss,…
Why Koreans Ask Your Age Before Your Name
Imagine this. You start a part-time job in Korea. There’s a new coworker who looks a little younger than you, so without really thinking about it, you start talking to them the way you’d talk to someone younger — casual, relaxed, maybe a little bit like a big sibling. Three days later, it comes out…
See what catches your eye
Begin with what draws you in: a forgotten story, a local saying, a hidden place, or a piece of Korean history.
