November 2009 events

November offers plenty of events, although some of them will shift inside thanks to the weather. Thanks goes to korea4expats.com and Visit Korea, (BONUS: a PDF with many more events!).
  • 1st - 21st: The 9th Seoul Performing Arts Festival - continuing from October, the SPAF continues at eight venues across Seoul. The English website offers good information about where to go and how to get there - along with a breakdown of how much dance, drama, music, and images within each performance.
  • 1st - 25th: The Seoul Grand Sale - for some reason English teachers aren't precisely the prime demographic, but check out the website, print off some online coupons, or pick up one of their coupon books at a tourist information center.
  • 5th - 7th: Global Healthcare and Medical Travel Expo - it sounds a bit nerdy, but if you're interested in seeing what sort of medical tourism advances Korea has to offer, this is the place to check it out. COEX - free to get if you pre-register.
  • 5th - 8th: The opera Carmen comes to Seoul - Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre will perform along with the Korean Symphony Orchestra and the CBS Children's Chorus will appear. Break out the won, however - the cheap seats cost 50,000 won and go up to 250,000 won for the VIP seats. Check out the Seoul Arts Center for more information.
  • 6th - 15th: The Choenamdan Bangeo Festival - if you've been meaning to check out Jeju-do, this festival celebrates the Bangeo fish. Don't miss the yeongwangmaji gut, an exorcism ceremony for the safety of fishermen and female divers. The official website is in Korean, but Visit Korea has some helpful information.
  • 10th - 15th: Tango Seduction, Chungmu Art Hall. Look no further for a date-worthy evening of dancing. Tickets are 44,000-88,000 won; Call 02) 318-4304 for more.
  • 11th: Opening Ceremony for the 'Visit Korea Year', after all. If you're wondering about the site, click here for a post about it. If you're interested, check out the Cheonggyecheon area from 7-9pm; the same area will feature the Seoul Lantern Festival from the 11th-15th.
  • 11th: Happy Pepero Day! Nope, not really an 'event', but if you wonder why your kids are handing out little Pepero / pocky sticks, now you know. Although now defunct, this blog offers some interesting videos if the holiday sounds intriguing.
  • 11th: A wine class starts today and goes for 6 weeks, led by a wine consultant named Pierre Mettelin. It costs 90,000 won and is sponsored by the Seorae Global Village Center; call 02-2155-8915 or email [email protected].
  • 11th - 15th: The 6th Gunsan International Migratory Bird Festival, held at Gunsan Migratory Bird Observatory in Jeollabuk-do. The English website offers plenty of information, but it's funny that the local festivals page doesn't list it... Try giving them a call at 063-453-7213.
  • 14th-15th: If you don't do enough walking already, the Hi Seoul World Walking Festival will offer a chance for your legs to move like they were meant to. Choose from the 12km, 15km, or 30km course. Seoul Plaza & Hangang Park; 5,000 won, online registration required, but good luck on the Korean-only website. Why oh why does a WORLD WALKING FESTIVAL only get promoted in Korean? You can try calling (02) 544-2069 instead.
  • 20th - 22nd: Paju Jangdan Soybean Festival - the standard formula for Korean food festivals applies well here: take a food Korea is proud of, add characters in a suit, and offer classes in how to make some various things from the chosen food. The English website has more specifics, and I know you're all just dying to try Korean soybeans.
  • 26th: American Thanksgiving - to celebrate in Seoul, pick up a turkey at the Haddon House, Hannam Mart, or Costco. Seoul Eats offers some excellent information on several Thanksgiving buffets and dinners - some on Thursday and some on Saturday.
  • 26th - 29th: Speaking of food, the foodies will be coming out for the 4th annual Seoul International Fancy Food Festival AND The 8th Seoul Int’l Café Show 2009 at the COEX mall. 5,000 won gets you in, while these two websites are both in English, just in case you didn't know where the COEX mall is. A bonus: the Korean Barista Championship is supposed to be around the area.


Creative Commons License © Chris Backe - 2009