Seoul’s Street Arts Festival (서울 거리예술 축제) returns October 5–9, 2025, from 12:00–21:00, across Cheonggyecheon, Seoul Plaza, and downtown Seoul. Discover live 퍼포먼스 (performances), mural art, acrobatics, and interactive 워크숍 (workshops) where visitors can paint, dance, or join shadow-puppet shows.
Seoul has launched “정신 편의점” (mind convenience stores)—pop‑up spaces where people can relax, sip instant noodles, enjoy a foot spa, and find on‑site 상담 (counseling).
With nearly 40 % of households now single‐person, these soothing pop-up refuges (mind convenience stores) help to ease 외로움 (loneliness) in a stigma‑free, welcoming environment.
In districts like Dongdaemun, locals frequent them to unwind between work or errands. Through massage chairs and supportive peer listeners, these stores offer a cozy corner for mental health care—combining convenience (편의) with compassion (공감). A creative, caring addition to Seoul’s vibrant urban life.
Facts:
“In Seoul, home to nearly 10 million people, single-person households have surged from 16% to nearly 40% of all homes in just over two decades.” Here’s a link to the study.
Vocabulary
정신 편의점 (mind convenience store) jeongsin pyeonui-jeom
상담 (counseling) sangdam
외로움 (loneliness) ui-loum
편의 (convenience) pyeonui
공감 (empathy/compassion) gonggam
Related Articles
-Bored alone and nothing to do
-Person who eats alone
-To be emotional
South Korea’s stock market is slowly becoming the top pick in emerging markets (신흥시장, sinheung sijang) for the next decade.
Thanks to cutting-edge 기술 (gisul) technology stocks tied to the AI boom and a strong push for 기업 개혁 (gieop gaehyeok) corporate reforms, investors are taking notice.
Morningstar Wealth recently highlighted that these forces give Korean equities a durable 성장 (seongjang) growth edge. Morningstar is now projecting returns of 11–12% annually in USD over the next decade — a standout figure among both emerging and broader Asian markets — according to Mark Preskett, senior portfolio manager at Morningstar Wealth. With global investors growing bullish, Korean stocks 한국 주식 (hanguk jusik) could shine brighter than ever.
Related articles:
-Personal debt and credit part one, part two, and part three
South Korea is facing a serious brain drain (두뇌 유출), as many professors (교수들) at Seoul National University and other top institutions leave for overseas (해외) jobs. In 2025 alone, 56 professors started new careers abroad—many citing better research funding (연구 자금), work–life balance (일과 삶의 균형), and international collaboration (국제 협력). These trends highlight challenges in Korea’s academic system.
You’ll often hear 교수 이탈 (professor’s departure) or 우수 인재 유출 (top talent outflow) in news about academia.
Continue reading
Pet ownership in Korea has reached a record 15.46 million people (반려인), nearly 30% of the population.
Around 5.91 million households (가구) now have pets, mostly dogs (강아지) and cats (고양이). However, over 80% of pets are left home alone (혼자 집에 있음) for nearly 6 hours daily. This rise in pet culture (반려동물 문화) is changing how Koreans live and spend.
According to the Ministry of Labor, South Korea’s average monthly wage reached ₩3.97 million in April 2025 (~$2,900 USD), up 2.7% from 2024. However, real wages—adjusted for inflation—barely grew, showing just a 0.6% increase. Income gaps remain wide as financial workers earned over ₩7 million (~$5100USD/month), while restaurant and hotel staff earned around ₩2.18 million (~1600USD/month). Minimum wage in South Korea is 10,030Won (~$7.35USD) per hour.
South Korea is forecasted to welcome over 20 million foreign tourists this year—surpassing the previous high of ~16.4 million tourists in 2024. This boom is expected to generate around $20.2 billion in revenue, accounting for approximately 2.5% of national consumer spending. This data comes from a report by the Hyundai Research Institute.
Continue reading