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BUSAN, South Korea - Busan City has produced English language editions of its Galmaetgil trail maps for foreign residents and tourists.  

The English language edition of the Galmaetgil trail map includes Trail #2 and #3, the two most popular of the 9 Galmaetgil trails according to the results of a citizens survey. Galmaetgil Trail #2 was voted by Busan citizens as their favorite trail, and connects to Galmaetgil Trail #1 via the Moontan Road path, which was designated as one of Busan's 'slow city' attractions along with the Bosu-dong Bookstore Alley this April and which takes walkers along a beautiful clifftop coastal footpath.

BUSAN, South Korea -- Busan City's 2012 Marine Sports Academy is up and running at 10 different venues, including the beaches of Nakdong River (Eulsukdo), Yeongdo (Korea Maritime University), Dadaepo and Haeundae, from April through October for seven months. Courses are open to anyone who would like to enjoy learning about any of 10 different sports, including dinghy sailing, windsurfing, canoeing, kayaking and rowing, from 9:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. daily (except Mondays).

The Marine Sports Academy, under the slogan "Let’s Enjoy Marine Sports", is aiming to open up the enjoyment of marine sports all year round to citizens of all ages.

BUSAN, South Korea - Danurim Center’ opened to the public at Hakjang-dong, Gaya-daero, 196beon-gil, 51, on April 23. With a total investment of 24.4 billion won, Busan City and Sasang-gu District built the 6-story multipurpose complex, covering a 6,520㎡ site, which includes sports, cultural, welfare and business support facilities.

Eight facilities, including a National Sports Center with swimming pool and gymnasium, a cultural center, a senior welfare center, a child care center, a business support center, a health promotion center, and a healthy family-support center, are planned for the complex.

For more information, please contact the Danurim Center at 051) 319-7330

Source: Busan City News

BUSAN, South Korea - BJFEZ singed a MOU with UCLA Medical/Nursing College to establish a branch campus.

On Friday, April 27, 2012 at UCLA campus (L.A. California), Commissioner Myeng-Keun Ha of BJFEZ Authority signed a MOU with UCLA medical/nursing college for the establishment of a branch campus at BJFEZ.

UCLA, recognized as one of the most prestigious universities (England/Times Higher Education ranks UCLA as Top 13 and U.S News & World Report rank UCLA as Top 25) in the world, is operating the best medical graduate program including the doctors’ degree program which ranks one of top ten in the USA.

After this MOU signing, both parties will embark on the establishment of branch campus of the institute here at Global campus town in Myeongji International City.

BUSAN, South Korea - Saha-gu District opened a Little League baseball field in the northern part of Eulsukdo Island, on April 27, 2012. 

A 7,819 square meter baseball field and 4,202 square meter artificial turf field, a baseball fence, two dugouts, a locker room and additional facilities are now ready for use.

Currently, Busan City has 11 little league baseball teams and 18 baseball teams in elementary and middle schools, with about 1,000 players. Till now, with only two Little League baseball fields, in Samnak Riverside Sports Park and Hwamyeong Ecological Park, there had been insufficient facilities for children to play baseball in Busan.  To celebrate the opening of the baseball field, the Saha-gu Little League baseball team and Buk-gu Little League baseball team played an exhibition game on the opening day.   

BUSAN, South Korea -- The Busan Cultural Contents Complex (BCC) opened in Centum City, Haeundae on April 30, 2012. With a total investment of over 31 billion won, the nine-story Busan Cultural Contents Complex building has a total floor space of 19,809 square meters.

The BCC consists of a co-production center equipped with a Solid State Drive-based super computer, culture technology, a joint research center for researching 3D stereo images, a digital contents exhibition hall and corporative leasing information center for companies related to digital image content, animation and games.

For more information, please contact the Film & Culture Industry Division at 051) 888-8124.

Source: Busan City News

BUSAN, South Korea -- A fire at a karaoke in Seomyeon Saturday night has tragically killed nine people. Among the dead include six Koreans and three foreigners, reported to be migrant workers from Sri Lanka. Twenty-five others were also injured.

The fire broke out early in the third floor of the six story building. Yonhap News Agency quoted police officials as saying that most of the victims died from inhaling toxic gases and smoke, which made it difficult for the people to find the exits.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but reports of a bang before the fire alluded to a circuit bursting. Over 20 fire trucks and 100 firefighters responded to the blaze, which they extinguished around 10 p.m.

BUSAN, South Korea -- Busan City plans to run a discovery program for the Haneul Madang rooftop garden at Busan City Hall, from March through November. 

The 3,659 square meter rooftop garden, built on the fourth floor roof of the City Hall building, consists of 6,872 trees of 36 different species and 13,314 flowers and herbs of 48 different species.

The program will run every day, Monday through Friday, from 9:30 a.m. until 12 noon. A guide will be there to explain about the various trees, flowers and ecology, as well as about rooftop gardening. The time schedule for the discovery program may be changed for groups.

BUSAN, South Korea - Dong-gu District will hold the Art and Craft Market every Friday until the end of November, from 2 p.m. until 7 p.m. It is called a 'free market' in Korean because it takes place in an open space not normally designated as a market area, such as on a street sidewalk or in the park.

A sure sign of its growing popularity since last year, a wider variety of handicrafts made by young artists with beads, leather, pressed flowers, and polymer clay will be introduced at the free market this year. 

In an art and craft market, local artists come to exhibit and sell their artworks to citizens who have come to buy or browse. The market often takes on the atmosphere of a festival, and is a place where artists and citizens can naturally communicate with each other.