Korea in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - The Korean invasion has finally marked its territory in Parkmall Mandaue. From clothes, make-up, songs, and of course - food - the Korean culture was experienced by Cebuanos and visiting Koreans alike from August 20-25, 2012 as Parkmall celebrated its first observance of Cebu-Korea Friendship Week.

The event was organized by Parkmall with the assistance of the Cebu Korean Association. From their opening day on Monday to their closing night on Saturday, different presentations were featured every 4:30 to 5:30 PM and 6 to 8 PM on the last day. The event was free of charge.

Throughout the week, a stage was set up and arranged seats for the audience. Korean music videos were projected while concessionaires who sold Korean food, clothes and accessories neatly displayed their goods in stalls. Free tasting of samples were also offered to everyone in the vicinity.

In an interview, Niña Mahinay, Events Organizer and Marketing Consultant of Parkmall, said the Koreans are the "biggest foreign market in Cebu and Parkmall really wants to build a strong relationship with them." According to her, there are about 1,000 Koreans who arrive in Cebu daily.

The Cebu City government declared Korea Day to be on the first Saturday of October. However, aside from the fact that Parkmall is already fully booked in October (with their anniversary and re-launching), Parkmall opted to have the Korean-Friendship Week in August. "It's in line with their Liberation Day, on August 15, and that day is the day when they were freed. It's their independence day from the Japanese. So as they commemorate their journey to freedom, we would also like to give them a reason to celebrate," she added. Parkmall wants to strengthen friendship ties with the Koreans.

The event which ran for a week was unlike other mall celebrations that only last for a weekend. Mahinay said "we want it to be a whole week to make it worthwhile."

True enough, it opened on a Monday afternoon with a song number by a Korean student named Se Young Yang. Luce Hair Café was supposed to give a Korean hairstyling demonstration, but because Luce was sick, the demonstration was cancelled.

The next day, Pearl Sarcauga, Chief Executive Officer of Dolled Up Make Up Studio offered tips and a free demonstration on how to apply Korean-style make-up.

On Wednesday, Han Joon Lee, owner of Topokki Man, showed the audience how to make a Topokki or a spicy rice cake. While cooking, Lee also gave a brief history lesson on how Topokki started as a royal family's snack and why there are variations of the popular Korean snack. A free sample was given to the audience at the end of the demonstration.

On Thursday, instead of another demonstration, Parkmall presented a free film showing of the Korean romantic-comedy movie "My Sassy Girl." Due to unforeseen reasons, HongTang cancelled their supposed cooking demonstration on how to make Korean-style sweet and sour pork.

On Friday, Lee once more gave a cooking demonstration. This time, he showed the audience how to make a Bibimbap. This is a signature Korean dish that's basically a mixture of rice, meat, vegetables, egg, and chili powder or paste.

On the last day of the weeklong celebration, there was a K-pop dance performance.

Next year, Mahinay plans to turn the dance performance into a dance competition and to give more space for the Korean market. She also mentioned that next year, there will be no more last-minute change of plans. (FREEMAN)