The foods consumed at the Brown Bag Lunch presentation were nothing like traditional Korean cuisine, which was mentioned in the in presentation.

In celebration of International Education Week, the Office of International Programs sponsored a Brown Bag Lunch presentation about Korea Wednesday afternoon.

Hyung-Chan Kim, assistant professor in apparel, textiles and interior design; and Junehee Kwon, assistant professor in hospitality management and dietetics — both Korea natives – talked about the traditional side of Korean culture.

Kim said when most people think of Korea today, they immediately think of North Korea and its current political situations, but he said he wanted people to understand the traditional Korean culture.

"Korea has a lot of good things," Kim said. "That's why I'd like to explain my country."

Kim said Korea is one of the oldest continuous civilizations in the world, reaching back 5,000 years, and has a very rich, traditional culture because of this history.

Much of the information given in the presentation focused on South Korea, but Kim said North Korea has a very similar culture.

Kim discussed the geography and topography of the region and said most of Korea's culture stems from China. Kim also explained the alphabet used in Korea, called Hangul, which King Sejong created in 1443.

Kim discussed the lifestyle of Korea, emphasizing the importance of a balance between good and ill or the yin and yang.

Kwon described the geography of Korea as having "beautiful mountains and colors," but he talked mainly about traditional Korean food.

He said food culture goes back about 1,000 to 1,500 years, and is influenced by religion, provinces, social classes and foreign countries. She said traditional staple foods were rice, leafy vegetables, various fish and meat such as pork, goat, beef and dog.

Kwon showed several videos that demonstrated how traditional dishes were made and how several basic spices, like Jang, can help prevent cancers and kill bacteria.

Megan Grossenbacher, freshman in political science, said she enjoyed learning about the culture and did not know much about the region before the presentation.

"You don't hear a lot about Korea typically," she said. "You only really hear about North Korea."

Both Kim and Kwon stressed the importance of exposing students to other cultures. Kim said with globalization growing so quickly, there will be even fewer boundaries in the future, and students need to learn about various cultural issues.

At the end of the lecture, Kim talked about the next study abroad opportunity involving Korea. For the summer of 2010, from May 18-31, Kim is organizing a trip to Korea, giving students an opportunity to experience non-Western culture.

While there, students will visit two Korean universities and several tourist attractions and spend a day in a traditional Korean home. The study abroad trip is open to anyone, and interested students should contact Kim at hckim@ksu.edu.