PHOTOS: 2025 Small Business Convention opens with craftsmanship and passion on display SEOUL, October 31 (AJP) - The 2025 Korea Small Business Convention opened on October 31 at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Now in its 20th year, the convention is South Korea’s largest annual event dedicated to small business owners, aimed at elevating their social and economic standing while fostering communication and unity within the community. Held under the theme "Small Businesses Opening Today, Connecting Tomorrow’s Korea," this year’s event celebrates the achievements of entrepreneurs across the country and explores new drivers for growth. Over two days, the convention features an opening ceremony, skills competitions, exhibitions, and seminars. From October 31 to November 1, more than 1,540 small business owners from across the country are showcasing their skills and creativity in the 2025 Small Business Skills Championship. Organized by associations including the Korea Outdoor Advertising Association, the Korea Bakers Association, the Korea Makeup Artists Association, the Korea Florists Association, and the Korea Culinary Masters Association, the competition spans categories such as advertising design, baking, makeup, floral arrangements, and culinary arts. Contestants approached their craft with remarkable focus and sincerity. In an age when artificial intelligence is transforming industries, the passion expressed through their hands filled the venue with energy. Machines may evolve, but human touch and sincerity remain irreplaceable. The skill and dedication on display illuminated this year’s championship, reminding visitors that the beauty of human craftsmanship endures beyond time. 2025-11-03 17:30:07

PHOTOS: As APEC opens in Gyeongju, Seoul feels the buzz SEOUL, October 27 (AJP) - As the 33rd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit opened on Monday in Gyeongju, national attention has fixed on the gathering of world leaders. Though Gyeongju sits some 230 kilometers southeast of Seoul, the capital is equally swept up in the APEC fervor. Excitement over the high-profile event has spread across the country, with banners and displays promoting APEC visible throughout Seoul. At major landmarks such as Seoul Station and the Gwanghwamun area — frequented by foreign visitors — the atmosphere is charged with anticipation for the summit and its potential to elevate South Korea’s role on the global stage. 2025-10-27 17:48:25

TRAVEL: Seoul's literary escape SEOUL, October 23 (AJP) - On a crisp autumn day, the city air scrubbed clean by recent rain, I embarked on a literary journey high above the Korean capital. The destination: Inwangsan Mountain, a granite peak that has long served as both a defensive wall and a muse to artists. From its summit, the sprawling metropolis of Seoul was laid bare, a tapestry of modern ambition woven against an ancient landscape. Inwangsan has deep roots in Seoul's history, a vital section of the Hanyangdoseong, the city wall that has encircled the capital for centuries. Its picturesque slopes were famously captured in Gyeomjae Jeong Seon's 18th-century masterpiece, Inwangjesaekdo (Clearing after Rain on Mt. Inwang). Today, nestled among the trails are places like literary libraries and renovated outposts, spaces where history and narrative converge. The climb began near the bustling neighborhood of Seochon, following a roughly one-hour ascent from the tranquil Suseong-dong Valley in Jongno-gu. At the peak, against a backdrop of piercing blue sky, the entire panorama of Seoul unfolded. The view, stretching over the dense thicket of buildings, across the Han River, and culminating at Gwanaksan Mountain on the horizon, was breathtaking — a moment of serene detachment from the city's ceaseless rhythm below. A few days after reaching the summit, I returned to explore the literary sites along the mountain's periphery. The journey began at the Cheongun Literary Library, a quiet sanctuary reached by bus from the Gyeongbokgung Palace area. It is Jongno-gu's first public hanok library, a striking blend of tradition and modernity with its single-story wooden hanok structure above a Western-style basement. Inside, the open hanok doors framed the surrounding natural landscape like a masterful painting. Below, the basement shelves were lined with books, and citizens found quiet repose, some reading, others stepping out into the bamboo-filled inner courtyard. The pilgrimage continued to the nearby Yun Dong-ju Literary Museum, a tribute to one of Korea's most beloved poets. A figure of resistance during the Japanese colonial era, Yun Dong-ju is revered for his blend of resolute spirit and tender lyricism. The museum itself is a fascinating architectural conversion: a former water pressure station and water tanks repurposed to house exhibits detailing his life and work. From the traditional setting of the hanok library to this industrial-to-artistic metamorphosis, the journey vividly illustrated the evolving narrative of Korean literature. After the museum, a short climb led to the Poet's Hill, a spot the poet himself frequented. Here stands a stele inscribed with his representative work, "Seosi" (Prologue), offering a commanding view of the city — a view that must have both inspired and challenged the young poet. Further along the trail lies a library cafe. This cafe is a product of adaptive reuse, a former police sentry post transformed after the mountain’s full public opening in 2018. Easily accessible, it has become a popular gathering spot, with patrons drinking tea and enjoying the stunning, unobstructed cityscape. A mere 10-minute ascent from the bookstore revealed the Inwangsan Forest Shelter, another tranquil space born from the preservation of a former military outpost. Here, amidst the quiet sounds of wind, rustling leaves, and bird calls, citizens sat in the wooden structure, engaged in reading or quiet contemplation. The atmosphere, steeped in silence and surrounded by books, offered a palpable sense of peace. The Poet's Hill/ AJP Yoo Na-hyun In a hyper-modern society defined by speed, there is a clear yearning for moments of repose — a rise in what might be called "text hip" culture. While major public initiatives like the city's outdoor library event will conclude as the weather cools, the literary trail of Inwangsan offers a more intimate, year-round alternative. This pilgrimage along the mountain's culturally and historically rich perimeter provides a timeless view of Seoul, showcasing the capital’s ability to nurture quiet introspection within its dynamic core. It is a potent reminder that, even in a city of concrete and glass, the natural landscape and the human story remain intertwined. 2025-10-24 10:37:43

PHOTOS: A full-on field day under clear Autumn skies SEOUL, October 17 (AJP) - "Sweeping victory, Blue Team! Cheer on, White Team!" On a clear, blue Autumn Friday, children's laughter filled an elementary school playground in Jungnang District Seoul. In Korea, schools traditionally hold a field day once a year, usually in spring or autumn. The event features a variety of games and, at times, class performances. Families join in the festivities, making it one of the biggest events of the school year — an experience familiar to nearly every Korean elementary student. Yet in recent years, fewer children have had the chance to experience it. Once considered a major community celebration, field days have gradually faded as the nation’s falling birth rate sharply reduced student numbers. Some schools, especially in rural areas facing population decline, have even stopped holding the event altogether. The field day with full-on participation from lower grade students in the morning and higher grade students in the afternoon bustled with anticipation with parents joining in. Around 300 students played games in the first half, and the same number in the second. Participants gave it their best, with determined attitudes. Even outside of matches they cheered on the contestants, cheering nearly as competitively as the contestants themselves. Roaring victory howls and deep sighs were heard as each game concluded, yet all gave hearty congratulations and encouragement to both sides afterwards. A relay race celebrated the grand finale of the morning half of the field day, lower grade students returning to classes with bright grins under warm Fall sunshine. May the children keep their joyful smile and cherish their moments for long. Students cheer on contestants at a field day held at an elementary school in Jungnang District Seoul, Oct. 17, 2025. AJP Yoo Na-hyun 2025-10-19 09:46:20

PHOTOS: Sajikdan, tracing the roots of Joseon SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) - On Oct. 11, 2025, calm autumn air filled Sajikdan in Seoul’s Jongno District. Seoul, the capital of the 500-year Joseon Dynasty and the heart of modern Korea, is known for Gyeongbokgung Palace. Yet few people realize that equally important sites stand on both sides of it — Jongmyo and Sajik. The phrase often heard in historical dramas, “Your Majesty, protect Jongmyo and Sajik,” refers to these two sacred places. The history of Joseon began with Jongmyo and Sajik. When King Taejo Yi Seong-gye founded the dynasty and moved the capital to Hanyang, he built Jongmyo to the east of Gyeongbokgung and Sajik to the west. Jongmyo and Sajik symbolized the foundation and prosperity of the state. Jongmyo was a shrine for the spirits of past kings and queens, while Sajik was an altar to the gods of land and grain. Jongmyo represented political stability through royal lineage, and Sajik symbolized agricultural abundance, the core of the people’s livelihood. Offering rituals to pray for good harvests and the peace of the people was a vital duty of the nation. Sajikdan consists of two main parts: the altar grounds and the Jeonsacheong area. At the center of the altar site stand two main altars — the eastern altar for the god of land and the western altar for the god of grain. Surrounding them are double stone walls, reflecting the ancestors’ will to preserve sacred boundaries. A red gate called *Hongsalmun* marks the outer wall, and the ceremonial pathway, *Hyangchuk-ro*, carries an air of dignity as it leads toward the altars. Outside the main altar area lies Jeonsacheong, where everything related to the Sajik Daeje — the state ritual to the gods of land and grain — was managed. The building was destroyed during the Japanese occupation but was restored in 2022. Inside, the simple yet refined ritual utensils and offerings reveal the devotion of the people who prayed for the peace and prosperity of the nation. While the Jongmyo Jerye and its accompanying music were designated as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2001 and are widely known, the Sajik Daeje remains less familiar. The Sajik Daeje is a national ritual dedicated to the deities of earth and grain. It was as significant as the Jongmyo rites during the Joseon period, but was abolished during Japanese rule. In 1988, ahead of the Seoul Olympics, the restoration of Sajikdan began, and the Sajik Daeje was revived. The ceremony is now held every year in late September. Through 500 years of history, Sajikdan has endured countless hardships. It was damaged during the Japanese invasions of the late 16th century and repaired under King Gwanghae, but in 1922 the Japanese authorities dismantled the auxiliary facilities and turned the site into Sajik Park. Sajik altars once stood across the country, but most were destroyed during the colonial era. Today, few have been restored to their original form. Sajikdan is designated as Historic Site No. 121 and listed as a national treasure, though public awareness remains limited. The restoration of Anyangcheong, the incense and prayer archive, is now underway and will be completed by 2027. As K-culture continues to draw global attention, from K-pop to traditional arts, sites like Sajikdan remind us that beneath Korea’s modern culture lies a much older heritage — the enduring spirit and faith that shaped the nation’s roots. The Sajik Daeje ceremony held at night. Jongyakwon Main Gate of Sajikdan. AJP Yoo Na-hyun 2025-10-15 11:17:28