This weekend my wife is in South Korea, where she’ll eat delicious food, get a Korean massage and do some sightseeing on the island of Cheju with a friend. The Korean Peninsula is just a 90 minute Taepodong missile flight hop from Narita to Seoul — the bus trip to the airport from Gunma actually takes longer — and many Japanese travel there to sample the exotic culture and shop for bargains, or perhaps visit a place from their favorite Korean drama. The past ten years have really been a cultural renaissance for the two countries, thanks to Korea ending an official ban on all forms of Japanese culture including comics, music and animation, and there’s a lot more exchange of popular culture across the Sea of Japan these days. Quite a few Korean television stars and professional athletes are household names in Japan, and when hot K-Pop boy bands like Touhou Shinki arrive at Narita Airport, there are hundreds of screaming fans waiting for them. At J-List we’re firm believers in the concept of “World Peace through Shared Popular Culture,” so we approve of this free sharing of ideas very much.
South Korea is a popular destination for Japanese tourists.
