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KMK: Korea Queer Festival 2013

Brian Dye — Sun, 19 May 2013 20:00:27 +0000

Summer returns to Korea and with it’s promise of sweet heat comes the arrival of Korea’s Queer Pride Festival. Each iteration the festival has some tagline like Queer Scandal, or Viva Queer, and this year it seems to be The Queer. I guess as in Year of the The Queer? Who knows? The byline is “The Queer by you, The Queer With you, The Queer in you (fill in your own joke here), the Queer Far from you. Yeah. Moving on. The past few years the festival has been held in the Jongno area along the Cheonggyecheon river walkway but this time the organizers have decided to move the parade portion of the event to Hondae. I think it’s a wise move. Hongdae bristles with excitement, energy, and artistry so the decision seems to be a perfect fit. If you check out the route it also looks more like an actual Parade rather than a perp walk escorted by Seoul police. Perusing the website reveals that the festival this year goes from June 1st to the 16th. This includes the Parade (June First), Numerous Club After Parties in Hongdae, Jongno, and Itaewon (June First), as well as a Film [...]

KMK: UMF Korea Electronic Musical Festival

Brian Dye — Sun, 12 May 2013 20:00:19 +0000

Ultra Music Festival comes again to Korea this time on June 14th and 15th at Seoul’s Olympic Stadium Complex. The infamous event’s line up includes Tommy Trash, Krewella, Roger Shah, Big Bad Nose, DJ Koo, Shinichi Osawa, Riot Gear, Fedde Legrand, Mauri Mora, Shut Da Mouth, Taku Takahashi, Sander Van Doorn, Beat Burger, Boy George, DJ Aki, as well as headliners Afrojack, Carl Cox, Armin Van Buren, Avicii, and Kaskade. There’s also special performances being lined up as well as many more acts to come. With a lineup that huge there’s sure to be someone you can get into and get your boogie on. UMF KOREA Tickets VIP Tickets Facebook Order your tickets early and get a discount on the price. © Brian Dye - visit us at Kiss My Kimchi. Or Click to Email Us If you are reading this without proper credit you are reading an UNAUTHORIZED FEED. Please send us an email.

KMK: 25 Best Things To Do In Seoul

Brian Dye — Sun, 05 May 2013 20:00:29 +0000

25 Best Things to do in Seoul In the six years since I’ve first come to Seoul I’ve seen the city change in a thousand ways and yet remain the same in others. As of late the media frenzy over North Korea’s antics has people all over the world concerned about their loved ones living here as well as dampening any likely musings on traveling to Korea. Well, I’d like to calm those fears by saying it’s life as usual here. Seoul’s a wonderful place to visit and its fast paced lifestyle that may whiz by if you don’t take the chance to stop and do some of the awesome things out there. So if you’re in Seoul for only a day or perhaps a week here are 25 of the best things you can do to see the sights and enjoy yourself. Day One: Go with a Bang! 1) Ipark Electronic Market & CGV4D movie 2) Norayangin Fish Market and Soju 3) Pc Bang, Noraebang, Jijmjilbang DVD bang, MultiRoom 4) Hongdae, Silent Disco, Shopping So, on your first big day out I suggest hitting up the electronics market in the morning. Anchored by the huge I-park store its one of the best spots [...]

KMK: Top Ten Obscure Apps for Expats in Korea

Brian Dye — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:00:28 +0000

On the heels of my recent post about the top ten apps for expats in Korea I thought I’d delve into the many apps that may not be on most people’s radar. Here are 10 apps for expats that while not as widely known as others still provide valuable information or countless hours of fun for expats living in Korea. 1. Club Mix (Iphone, Android) Club mix is an app that gives the low down on the events, djs, and parties happening at clubs throughout Seoul. It’s totally in Korean so you’ve got to have some hangeul language skills to make it work. 2. Melon (Iphone, Android) Melon’s app lets you get your karaoke on the go with featured lyrics. They have a 500.000 song collection as well as a top fifty by genre. Download or stream you decide. 3. Olleh TV (Iphone, Android) With Olleh TV you can watch movies, sports, and TV shows on your smart phone with over 40 live channels being streamed. Make sure you have unlimited data otherwise they can quickly add up! 4. Photo Wonder (Iphone, Android) Photo wonder is one of the top five photo and video apps available It’s going strong because [...]

KMK: Interview – DJ Paul Antoni

Brian Dye — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 20:00:50 +0000

Producer. Remixer. Dj. Paul Antoni slips and slides through Seoul’s burgeoning electronic music scene bent on banging beats to make the body move. A Chicagoan by birth he’s traveled the world and landed here in Seoul, South Korea. For folks not familiar with your music, how would you describe it? Good question Brian. I produce mainly House, Electro House, and Tech-Deep House for EMW. Privately, I produce more conventional styles for films, commercials, etc. Tell me about your craft. When did you first start mixing music? Do you mix as well as create your own beats? I am forever indebted to Sony for having developed a simple machine called “My First Sony Cassette Player TCM 400″ that changed my life forever. At 6 years old I found unending amusement and joy from capturing ANY sound by way of a simple microphone and then “cutting” or “mixing” sounds on cassette tapes. Thus started my love affair with sound and later music. And YES! I do indeed love to make my own beats. Actually percussion is my forte. I do not use drum samples, it is fun for me to play the drums. I do not want someone else to have all the [...]

KMK: JW Mariott Wine Buffet

Brian Dye — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 20:00:56 +0000

If you’re anything like me then you adore a fine glass of wine. I may not be on the level of some connoisseurs who can tell you the notes and undertones with such precision that they must have a palette from the gods or a wine class in their background, but I know what I like and I loved what I found at the J.W. Mariott’s Wine Buffet. Situated in the lower level’s of the hotel awaits Bar Rouge. It’s an apt name for a swanky spot that exudes the romantic dark secrets of some hidden Parisian boudoir. The mood immediately reflects itself in the lavish cornucopia of foods and wine on hand for you to sample at your leisure. A dizzying array of cheeses in one corner, a delectable selection of sushi and sashimi in another, smoked salmon,cold cuts of sausage, duck breast, ham, chorizo, turkey breast and so much more as if plucked straight from a delicatessen to tickle your tongue. And I haven’t even started on the wine. Wine awaits, from over four continents, boasting an array of forty varieties ranging from refreshingly subtle whites to bold reds thoughtfully chosen to please a wide spectrum of tastes. Even a novices like me as well [...]

KMK: Don Charly

Brian Dye — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 20:00:56 +0000

Six years ago there was practically no sign of Mexican food anywhere in Seoul. Sure, there were one or two out there, whom shall not be named, but on the whole the scene south of the border in Seoul looked bleak. Now, you can’t walk a block without seeing some new twist on Mexican food enticing you to enter. More often than not it’s not worth it. Thankfully, Don Charly flips the script and delivers as close as can be Mexican grub. Located by Noksapyeong Station in the Gyeongridan neighborhood it’s fast becoming the go to spot for hearty, filling, and tasty Mexican. Sure, the prices can be a wee bit high, but after you taste what Carlos Molina is cooking you’ll feel it’s worth it. Let me warn you that the place is small. Maybe that’s why the menu is limited to tacos and tortas (Mexican sandwiches), but I don’t believe you need a large menu if you do what you do better than the competition. Poor Taco Senorita across the street doesn’t stand a chance. First, Don Charly offers up corn or flour tortillas and uses cilantro and both salsa verde and salsa roja. He offers five different types of [...]

KMK: MangoPlate

Joyce Kong — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 20:00:34 +0000

For the past 7 months, I’ve been trying out this thing called working. By trying out, I mean that there’s been zero room for anything else in my life, and this includes my poor cat who now hates me and tried to piss on me the other night. So my current job stems from annoying experiences as an expat, namely eatin. Is anyone surprised? I mean… I do like to eat. What I always found frustrating is the path of discovery for restaurants Most good meals I’ve had in Korea found their way to my face through haphazard happenstance. There’s never been one single way, or even a few solid ways, of discovering a good restaurant A Facebook post here. A magazine article there. A random conversation. With no organized method of how I came across these tasty tidbits of info, I felt something like an ant feeling around without antennas. I used to succumb to the monotony of 참치김밥 (tuna kimbap) or whatever for long stretches where trying new places seemed like a lot of work. It’s strange how a sudden fear of commitment would wash over me as I kind of tried [...]

KMK: St. Patrick’s Day 2013

Brian Dye — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 20:00:41 +0000

What’s the Craic? Well unfortunately you might have missed it, because it all went down last Saturday. Yup, another year, and another Saint Patrick’s day has come and gone with a celebratory green blur. The last time I attended the festival was way back in 2008 when I had an afro and the event took place down by the Cheongyecheon stream walkway. This time, however, a series of random events brought me smack dab in the middle of the festivals relatively new spot outside Sindorim station. Situated right in the shadow of D-Cube City the plaza proved to be an ideal venue for Irish folk and Irish-philes to frolic in the hide and seek sun while whiling away the afternoon with music, merriment, and a steady supply of booze. On hand for entertainment the musical and dancing antics of folks like Olivia Houck, Sweet Murphy’s Fancy, Tap Pung, Donna Cullen and tons of others brought the flair of traditional and modern Ireland to the stage. People in the audience laughed, danced, and generally had a grand old time. The crowd boast an international mix of people from all corners of the globe along all ages from grandparents to toddlers [...]

KMK: Dancing 선생님 (Teacher)

Brian Dye — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 20:00:59 +0000

As of late most of my partying has been happening in Itaewon. I’ve got no beef against “da won” but a man can only take so much of the same before it becomes a bit redundant. Sure, you can throw in a trip to the new Gold Bar but when I know the night is headed for Queen, Soho, and the hill every night there needs to be some change.So, when my bud Rebecca suggested Hongdae for her Birthday Celebrations I immediately clicked join and eager for some new scenery and different beats. We started the night at Vinyl (which everyone should) then walked over to Dancing 선생님 (teacher). Hip. Chic. Modern. Those are the words that sum up this place best. You walk up to the entrance of glass walls that showcase a bar outlined in ever shifting neon colors and chrome balls reflecting the on going action. Admittedly the main draw, for me, was the promise of shirtless bar tenders as the night progressed but besides that Dancing 선생님 clearly has it’s act together. Once inside we were given the choice of a table with set menu options or regular seating on the floor. Take the tables. You’ll probably wind [...]