Local retailers are busy preparing for foreign tourists who are expected to visit in large numbers this April as the COVID-19 pandemic subsides and travelers return around the globe. This month, in particular, will see several big holidays such as “Songkran,” the Thai New Year in Thailand and Good Friday in the Philippines, thereby offering travelers from Southeast Asia the opportunity to visit Korea.
Myeong-dong in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, is flourishing again with the return of foreign travellers, with many citing their love of K-dramas and K-pop as reasons to visit the area.
Several streetside eateries and stores in Myeong-dong, downtown Seoul, were demolished overnight following a monthslong dispute with a Chinese school located nearby. The vendors are crying foul over the school s move, arguing that it illegally tore down their property. But the school claims that the merchants had been doing business on their land without legal permits. On early Monday morning, owners of seven stores selling food and accessories along an alley of the shopping district were horrorstruck to see their stalls left in ruins.
Functioning as a tribute to the titular area of Seoul, "Cruel History of Myeong Dong" brought together three directors, Byeon Jang-ho, Choe In-hyeon and Im Kwon-taek creating a film that could be described as an omnibus, but actually implements a continuation in its story, with the narrator, Heo Dal-soo, functioning as the connecting tissue, Cruel History of Myeong Dong, Byeon Jang-ho, Choe In-hyeon, Choi Moo-ryong, Heo Jang-kang, Im Kwon-taek, Jang Dong-hwi, Kim Hee-ra, Park Nou-sik, Yoon Jung-hee