If you’re an English teacher in the Gwangju/Jeollanam-do area, the Gwangju National Museum has opened up its “Sparkling Museum for Foreigners” to provide you with opportunities to experience Korean traditional culture.
On a related, and not nearly as ridiculously named note, the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts will soon begin accepting applications for the fall session of its Korean traditional music classes for foreigners.
Sphere: Related Content
14 Comments
Oh, wow. It’s a really bad idea to name a physical edifice after a marketing slogan. They change, you know — especially if they’re stupid. (And Korea Sparkling is definitely stupid.) Imagine if the Chicago Bears had to play at the “Army of One” stadium, or “Coke is It!” field. Just ridiculous. And so, we ridicule.
In HK we get a lot of that “Korea, Spahkeulling” TV ad. Before that it was “Soul of Asia, yada yada” on CNN Asia. Yaaaawwwwnnn
“Spakeulling” refers to the marble-mouthed pronunciation of that half-retard Rain?
Yessir.
Well, presumably the intended audience is also people who can’t articulate the word “sparkling” with any accuracy — i.e., Chinese. What do the Chinese think of this campaign?
But then again, if Chinese are to be reached, why advertise on Anglophone CNN? Maybe the Korean Tourism Organization is advertising mainly to itself.
Or at least to the Koreans. See? We are promoting Korea!
I haven’t asked my Chinese friends what they think of it — can’t be arsed really — but ads that are targeted to the Chinese, even in HK, are in Cantonese, period.
I’ll see this week if Spahkeulling is also gracing the Viêtnamese airwaves. Should be fun, since .kr is a major slave-master here.
“Coke is It!”
Whoa. Be careful Brendon, you’re showing your age!
(lol, and I just showed mine!)
Come and visit the land of your tormentors! That money you’ve earned, after bogus “deductions” and penalties? Give it to us!
“Maybe the Korean Tourism Organization is advertising mainly to itself.”
Considering that Arirang programming and most of the demonstrations in front of the US Embassy or Seoul Station seem to be exercises in masturbation, first and foremost, I think this may also be the case with KTO advertising.
You guys are too cynical. A “sparking” museum is a strange idea but do remember that “Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola” is in the Lincoln Center, in New York. That is pretty crass commercialism there though it is a venue for good musicians. Too many corporations are attempting to buy strap-ons for their swaggering libidos and the results are often bitter-sweet at best.
Korea could do without so much commercialism and non-sense that someone thinks they *must* have because such-and-such is a sign of a “developed” country. Korea just needs to be Korea, in the best sense.
I only wonder what would go into a “sparkling” museum to make it interesting.
Sparkling, sponsored by Moët & Chandon.
Actually, that’s not a bad Champagne at all.
I could get with that.
Judging from the corporate/government incest in the states and elsewhere, the world may not be to far from corporate sponsorship of a government anyhow. There is little difference between governments and the businesses they supposedly represent. It is a very Alvin Toffler kind of idea anyway.
I just wanted to plug the NC KTPA classes -’국악원’ is much easier to remember. I took the danso classes for a few sessions and the instructors were great, the program well-organized and special guests were knowledgable. If you’re in Seoul and have time, take the class.
Here in Andong we have the (excuse my non-Revised Romanization) “Jungtong MunHwa Kohntenjeu Pakmulgwan” with the lovely, ever so descriptive, English name of “Contents Museum”
It’s actually a “digital” collection of Andong culture.