Friday, June 19, 2009

Korean Trivia

1. There are several franchises of convenience stores quite popular and visible around Korea. Name three of them that don't have a number in the names.

2. Seoul has several wonderful palaces, dating back to the Joseon Dynasty. Name two of them.
3. The KTX is the fastest train in Korea, but could use some work on the seats. As of today, how much does it cost to ride the KTX from Seoul to Busan on the weekend? (Consider your answer correct if it's 3,000 over or under)

4. The Seoul subway system is the most extensive in Korea, and one of the largest and longest in the world. What is the most expensive paper ticket you can buy for the longest trip on the subway system (not including the AREX train)? Bonus points: how long will that trip take? (Consider your answer correct if you're 300 won over or under, and plus or minus 5 minutes)

5. Name three K-pop bands or singers with English names.

6. Hangeul (or hangul) is considered one of Korea's greatest inventions, whether or not it was invented by King Sejong or someone else. How many consonants are there? (No peeking at your keyboard! Be sure to include the double consonants too.)

7. What is Dongdaemun famous for?

8. Who or what is a Haptic?

9. The Korean political system is a mess - but can you name the two major Korean political parties? (Bonus points if you name more than two!)

10. There's been some talk about bringing Korean food to the tables of people worldwide. What is the Korean term for Korean food?

11. Who or what is a Ghana?

12. The Seoul subway system is always growing, and the newer subway maps show the planned lines as well as the current ones. Including the currently planned subway lines and/or extensions, name one of two subway stations that will eventually be a hub to four different lines?

13. What's so special about orange taxis and red buses? (One point each)

14. Name three Korean banks. (Banks headquartered in other countries don't count!)

15. Name three of Korea's provinces OTHER than Gyeonggi-do.


Trivia answers for round 1:

1. Buy the Way, Family Mart, and Mini Stop were three that came to my mind.
2. Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, and Deoksugung are the most tourist friendly, but Gyeonghuigung is also nice.
3. 47,900 won during the week, or 51,200 won during the weekend. Use Korail's website to search for yourself.
4. A 3,600 won ticket will take you from Soyosan to Sinchang, and it'll take you 218 minutes - over 3 1/2 hours on a subway. It's 3,500 won if you use your T-Money card. Source: http://www.smrt.co.kr/Train/Subwaymap/Eng/Subwaymap.jsp
5. TVXQ, Super Junior, Big Bang, Epik High, SS501, Wonder Girls, Rain, Se7en, Jewelry... the list goes on and on on this Wikipedia page
6. 19 (including ㅇ, which can mean 'ng'). If you guessed 18 give yourself half-credit.
7. Shopping!
8. A type of touch-screen cell phone.
9. The Grand National Party and the Democratic Party. Give yourself half-credit if you guessed the United Democratic Party (the former name of the Democratic Party that changed their name as of July 2008). Give yourself an extra point if you also knew about the Liberty Forward Party, the Pro-Park Alliance, the Democratic Labor Party, or the Creative Korea Party (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_South_Korea)
10. hansik
11. a chocolate candy bar, kind of like a Snickers.
12. Wangsimni - current subways that run here are the Jungang line, line 2, and line 5. It will also serve as the northern terminus for the Bundang line once extended. Give yourself a point if you thought of Gongdeok. Line 5 and 6 run through here, and according to current plans the AREX train and the Gyeongui line will both run through here... eventually.
13. Orange taxis were recently started as a more foreigner-friendly option; red buses transport you to other cities and areas around Gyeonggi-do.
14. Hana, Shinhan, Woori, and KEB are the larger ones. Minus one point if you named Citibank, minus two points for AIG.
15. Well, there's Jeju-do, Gangwon-do, Chungcheongbuk-do, Chungcheongnam-do, Jeollabuk-do, Jeollanam-do, Gyeongsangbuk-do, and Gyeongsangnam-do. You win the gold star if you could name them all without peeking at a map.

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