Try Secret Love Affair (by Kim Hee Ae and Yoo Ah In). It was sensational in Korea when it was aired. It's provoking yet depicted the dark side of the rich/elite class in Korean society quite realistically. And it's a plus if you like to listen to the classical music. :) Temptation is also about infidelity but more a typical kind of K soap drama.

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Try the free movies and see how your kids like them. I was going to subscribe to BrainPop Jr. through TestingMom but my DS showed very little interest in it. We found the narrator's voice and the beeping sound a bit annoying. Great concept but not worth the price for what we'd get.

Yeah, I don't even bother with those soap dramas. Didn't want to see Lee Ji Ah in it, either. I think the worst soap drama was Princess Aurora. 150 episodes and an absolutely absurd and crazy story line... I mean, really a total mess. Couldn't believe it was so popular among Korean ajummas... They all hated and bashed it but couldn't stop watching it, lol.

Your post really made me laugh out loud hard. :smilielol5: You guys are all so funny. Oh my, Big's ending was one of the biggest disappointing moments in my whole K-drama watching years. Think it almost topped the most terrible ending of the old K drama "Lovers in Paris" (that everything happened was just a daydream) in K drama history. Such a #$%^& stupid drama, lol. BTW, you all know Lee Min Jung is the wife of Lee Byung Hun, right? I'm 34 and you all know more about the recent K pop than I do, haha. The only GD's song I know is Crooked and I liked EXO's Growl M/V but that's all since like 2010. I can't keep up any more, lol. And it's quite sad to realize those idols once used be Oppas and then peers to me, and now I'm not sure I can even be a Noona to them any more, probably more an Ajumma. :crying: lol Below are a few examples of the K hip hop/pop from 90s and early 2000s that I'm more used to. The first one is by Psy. The last song is what we used to dance with in a group in middle school like you did with Michael Jackson's Thriller. Time flies... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOS1QmgZqN8

I personally think All In was his best TV drama, and Masquerade (on Netflix. I strongly recommend it.), Joint Security Area (2000) and Bungee Jumping of Their Own (2000) were his top 3 movies. Not sure if you can find the latter two movies with English sub.\ Yes, Jang Dong Gun and his wife Go So Young are called the Korean version of the Brangelina couple. Jang's nick name in Korea is the Arabic Prince because of his appearance. ;) I enjoyed A Gentlemen's Dignity but he looked much older than I remember (in 40s now). He was really popular in 90s and early 2000s.

dp

LOL Old habits die hard. ;)

Lee Byung Hun was in G.I. Joe 1&2 and will star in Terminator: Genesis. Choi Min Shik (from Old Boy) is in Luc Besson's Lucy. Rain did a few movies, too. The major obstacle for Korean actors to enter Hollywood is the language barrier. And I think flower boys don't appeal much in the U.S.? (I'm actually pleasantly surprised to see so many of you like the actors like Lee Min Ho.) :) Regarding the shoes, Koreans don't wear shoes inside the house and rarely even wear indoor slippers. I love walking around with bare feet in house. :D In all Korean houses/apartments, there is a little room for putting on/off shoes at the entrance and we just sit on the floor next to it. But my American DH put a little chair there. ;) (We don't wear shoes in our American house, either.) Until like 1970s Koreans used to sit and sleep on the floor all the time and sofa, tables, chairs and beds are relatively new to the Korean culture. It makes more sense as Koreans use floor heating instead of the air heater in the winter time. And, thus, keeping the floor absolutely clean is important to us. The floor is usually either wooden or linoleum (no carpets), and we vacuum and mop/steam cleaning it thoroughly everyday. To me, it's frankly a bit hard to understand how some Americans let their babies crawl around on the floor where they walk around with their shoes on. :eek: And it could be a little awkward to ask our guests who are not used to this custom to take their shoes off when they enter our house. Repairmen usually refuse to do so...

LOL I should've done the same instead of using my real name...

It is my first name. And I sortof look like my avatar.

There are many good (but a bit dated) bloody and depressing Korean movies both on Netflix or Amazon (that I've hesitated to recommend here). I Saw The Devil is the most gory and The Silenced is the saddest one, IMO. New World, Rough Cut, Don't Cry Mommy, The Berlin File and The Thieves are good, too. For romantic comedy movies, I recommend My Sassy Girl, Baby and Me, My Dear Desperado, The Art of Seduction, Marrying the Mafia, My Girlfriend is an Agent and 200 Pounds Beauty on Amazon.

Below is the trailer of Hyun Bin's most recent movie. Haven't seen it but looks pretty good. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxBBeP0LZdQ For Lee Min Ho, my vote is definitely The Heirs if you haven't watched it. :) Oh, he used to date the female main actress (Lee Min Young) in City Hunter but they broke up. Think The Great Doctor got the better reviews than City Hunter.

Think he gets beaten up (and beats up) most in the movie Rough Cut (2008). Kang Ji Hwan is in this movie, too. It was good.

You crack me up. :smilielol5:

Thank you so much for taking time and effort into sharing, Jenny. Your detailed reply is greatly appreciated. You've done an amazing job! :)

I'm interested in hearing about the academic routes (curricula/programs) and extracurricular activities your children took before they went to college. :)

My favorite show is "The Return of Superman (슈í¼ë§¨ì´ ëŒì•„왔다)." It's about celebrity dads struggling to take care of babies while moms are away. You might find it interesting to see how Koreans do differently in parenting and baby care.

Wow, I'm impressed with your impeccable spelling in Korean names, lol. Yes, the Confucian culture in Korea has been rapidly changing under the influence of the Western culture and media, and women's voices are becoming bigger and stronger, even in the real life.

Forgot about Kong Hyojin! She's such an unique actress. Not considered beautiful by Korean standards but her natural and good acting magnifies her charm. Her nickname in Korea is "Kong-vely (Kong + lovely)" and she is the indisputable present queen of Korean romantic comedy shows after Kim Sun Ah. OH, SHE IS DATING LEE JIN WOOK NOW!!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrrr........... :cursing: :tongue_smilie:

Tough women are not usually popular in the Korean culture. Ha Ji Won is the only Korean actress I can think of who can perform the role of bads$$ female warrior well (and maybe Jeon Ji Hyun?), but she still needs to look somewhat feminine and vulnerable at the same time in order to gain popularity. Yeah, the same old weepy and tragic parts of K dramas even turn Koreans off sometimes. Maybe that's why many American TV shows are doing so well in Korea. :)

We are a military family, too. :) We currently live in a big city on the East Coast so it's fairly easy to get the Korean indigrients and authentic food from one of the three H Marts near by. I would suggest yor DS try for an exchange program in one of the major universities in Seoul, if possible. He'll have a great year! :)

Haha, I'd be glad to! Watch out the spiciness ;)

Beef seaweed soup is really good (but unfortunately my American DH doesn't eat anything seaweed...). It's a birthday dish in Korea (not the cake). My 2yo is a seaweed girl, who has to have either seaweed soup or seaweed paper sheets at every meal. :)

Beef Bulgogi is pretty easy to make. :) Add some sliced onion, sliced carrot, 4TS soy sauce, 2TS sugar, 1TS minced garlic, 2TS chopped green onion, 1ts ginger powder, 1ts black pepper, 0.5TS sesame oil and 0.5TS roasted sesame seeds to one pack of Trader Joe's Shaved Beef, mix them all and then grill it on the pan.