Tips for Gay and Lbian Travelers South Korea | Frommer's

Contents:

• UTOPIA GUI TO SOUTH KOREA (2ND EDN): THE GAY AND LBIAN SCENE 7 CI INCLUDG SEOUL, PAN, TAEGU AND TAEJON
• TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS SOUTH KOREA
• QUEERG ROMEO AND JULIET SOUTH KOREA: HOMONORMATIVY AS GAY UTOPIAN FANTASY
• GAY SOUTH KOREA TRAVEL GUI
• IN THE MP WORLD OF K-POP, ’S HARD FOR STARS TO BE GAY
• GAY SOUTH KOREA

UTOPIA GUI TO SOUTH KOREA (2ND EDN): THE GAY AND LBIAN SCENE 7 CI INCLUDG SEOUL, PAN, TAEGU AND TAEJON

Special thanks to Andy, Ran H, Charl, blukytoday, Vergel, peterbxl1, ptloup, MARCELERIC, JasonBrill, Davidphotos, jon_guy1, PJack, flake51, brizner, Sixsense, jtsurf12, cyrc_84, nakedoz, GorillaCJ, Peter75, HKFatBoy, bigdaddy, cyrc_84, asialover31, hellopa, nahodo, dny1234, kimchiseoul, billii, christoffel1, ernst, yemen, Bottom4u, molpjs, nfed, KokAsianBear, mantoman500, hanggout, h2008bj, snoopy9904, Bill18062000, bigozibear, RiceBear, ojo, Texas2Step, Denny, joshnkorea, andy1988, mb2086, gaysoulpas, steven_g, BeGentle100, Jihoon, Jason, Alan, John, Tak Bac, Gr, Uan, Jason, Blukytoday, Auri, Eli, Leo, Jimmy, Elijah, J. More Seoul Listgs:General Informatn | Bars, Cabarets, Diss, Karaoke | Massage and SpasSouth Korea Gay & Lbian Rource Listgs by Cy:other ci and provc.

Special thanks to mansaoz, kimyong, PJack, MTguy, aznpoo, ernst, ernst, gaysoulpas, brizner, reoboy500, johnuis, alwaystravln, ABC, byungdohsuh, Jason, marcr, BrianT, JiHoon, barry_bonk, neosko, junrz, ryoo, Nena, grgo_nb, , laislili, chobapgirl, YKK, OrangeTaBomb, Ellisa, Melo, Star Kim, Rebecka, Allison D., Patrice H., Grace, Ple, Isabelle, Gq, MWK, David, Jack G., Sean, Marc R., Han-Su, Jimmy K., Chad, Mark, C. A popular children's TV show host was dismissed om his job when he beme the first celebry to proclaim his homosexualy to the public.

TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS SOUTH KOREA

ntent ratg system classifyg gay and lbian webs as "harmful media" and mandatg their blockage--all unr the guise of protectg youth. The Mistry acted after an April 2001 cisn by the Korean Informatn and Communitns Ethics Commtee (ICEC)--an officially pennt body wh wi censorship powers--which classified homosexualy unr the tegory of "obsceny and perversn" s "Creria for Incent Inter S. " Activists Korea trace the roots of this fn to a 1997 law that classifi scriptns of "homosexual love" as "harmful to youth.

The owner of, the first and largt gay webse Korea, received a notice statg that if did not immediately mark self as a 'harmful se' and stall filterg software to prevent youth accs, he would be penalized wh a fe of approximately US$10, 000 or two years imprisonment.

QUEERG ROMEO AND JULIET SOUTH KOREA: HOMONORMATIVY AS GAY UTOPIAN FANTASY

On January 10, 2002, affiliatn wh Lbian and Gay Alliance Agast Discrimatn (LGAAD) and the Lawyers for a Democratic Society filed the first lawsu agast Korean ernment for unnstutnally blockg accs.

A urt cisn was ma on Augt 14, 2002 that eedom of speech and exprsn were not applible regardg homosexualy, and allowed for outrageo penalti, cludg two year imprisonment, to be enforced. On April 2, 2003 the Korean Natnal Human Rights Protectn Commtee officially advised Korea's Youth Protectn Commtee to remove anti-gay language om the 1997 Youth Protectn Act that that unrpned the 2001 Mistry of Informatn and Communitns cisn. Unls you are a Karaoke addict the bt advice is to steer clear of karaoke-type 't miss readg this fascatg look at Gay and Lbian Life Korea.

GAY SOUTH KOREA TRAVEL GUI

The olst and only gay men's rights anizatn Korea, Chgai is a succsor of Chodong-hoe, the first homosexual activist group the untry, anized 1993. Chgai has served as a shelter for Korean gay men, who have no official or public voice of their own, and as an arena for stggle agast all prejudice and opprsn directed at homosexuals.

This group seeks to abolish discrimatn agast sexual mori; foster operatn among mory groups; tablish an alliance agast opprsn of workers; tablish shields agast illegal vtigatn of gay bars and biased news reportg about sexual mori; and to strengthen HIV/AIDS tn aimed at youth. A gay jjimjilbang (sleepg/cisg facily) and has one large room, seven private rooms, one middle-sized room, DVD room, showers, small lounge, rt room. A good spa (que gay, discreet) is loted between and parallel to Kum Nam No and Art St (Art St is mentned may tourist pamphlets).

IN THE MP WORLD OF K-POP, ’S HARD FOR STARS TO BE GAY

Kkaji is small: there are about 16 statns four rooms (none private or wh doors) and three puters wh Net unr a TV playg gay vios. Special thanks to Ross, Travelg Gay, jtsurf12, spartanalum, PJack, gymtoy, Chichubby3rd, byungdohsuh, Demian71, boyboy1976, Gabrielkr, njbear1965, rayrrr, geme, cyrc_84, sglenote, KokAsianBear, themeant, FloridaBoy, bigozibear, ratte, Specter, Byungdohsuh, Graeme, Ken, Jyong, Robbie, Louis Y., John S., Charlie, and David! Seoul has hundreds of gay bars spread around a handful of neighborhoods, but most tourists bee faiar wh Itaewon, a foreigner-iendly enclave that seems to have people om every untry on the pla wanrg around, along wh many Amerin and Korean soldiers.

The clientele is VERY mixed both as to orientatn (gay, lez, bi, straight, other) as well as ethnicy, wh beg the one of the most popular LGBTQ night spots for foreigners Korea. Jongno is Seoul's biggt gay enclave, wh more than a hundred clubs and venu loted the center of Seoul the Nagwon Dong neighborhood to the north and east of Topkol Park (Inpennce Park).

GAY SOUTH KOREA

But, Jongno is changg wh the tim and newer addns to the gay neighborhood tend to be larger, more open and more ternatnal outlook. In the eveng, the lan and alleys of this nsely packed, low-rise area, bee filled wh food tents, tipsy salarymen, and thoands of gay men gog to and om their favore havens. But if you're alone, try some of the bars listed below where you'll be at ease wh a more ternatnal gay bar system and iendly, English-speakg staff to wele you.

Korean, English and Che languag are spoken here, so, for foreign visors, 's a good place to get updated rmatn about gay culture Korea. Utopia Gui to South Korea (2nd Edn): The Gay and Lbian Scene 7 Ci Includg Seoul, Pan, Taegu and TaejonUtopia has assembled this newly expand and updated Send Edn of the first ever travel gui to gay and lbian life South Korea. Although an creasg number of Koreans are g out of the closet every day, most gays and lbians keep their orientatn a secret om their fai and -workers, even as younger generatns bee more tolerant than their parents.

Public display of physil affectn between same-sex iends is actually more mon than between heterosexual, Ban, and Daegu have gay neighborhoods wh clubs, bars, and snas, but they generally mata a low profile.

The historil rerd ntas no mentn of homosexualy among the lower class, but the oral tradn of Korean folklore, there are many stori about anal terurse between men. Footnote 2 In the weddg ceremony held outdoors downtown Seoul as a prott agast homophobia, a middle-aged Christian man raid the stage and threw a bucket of human faec, clarg himself God's msenger agast homosexualy. The two shows serve cril attentn as the first Shakpeare productns to foreground the issue of homosexualy the Korean theatre, a manner different om those that played wh gay subtexts, transvtism or genr bendg, such as Theatre Gabyun's Trans Twelfth Night (dir.

Footnote 6 Durg the rearch, what stck me as most remarkable was the oppose dience rpons to the two shows, which took different approach to the issue of homosexualy. LAS's Juliet and Juliet, which was rather nservative gay wh s exprsn of most sexual display and sire for monogamo marriage, was hailed as a rare ‘female queer theatre’; Yohangza's Romeo and Juliet, which approximated a queer theatre wh s mp athetics fyg sexual taboo, was nounced as a near-pornographic ‘anti-queer’ ic show.

Furthermore, the dream of livg an ordary life Juliet and Juliet would be subject to the charge of homonormativy, which is a highly problematized ncept current queer disurs for s plicy wh neo-liberal polics as well as margalizatn of other non-heteronormative sexuali.

As a lerary cric traed Wtern theori, I found this reversed receptn rather trigug, which seems to reveal the gap between Korean gay realy and Wtern queer theory.

Footnote 7 This say also terrogat whether the Wtern-centric ncept of homonormativy is aquate to expla the specific ntext of South Korean queers, who are subject to the iology of faism that nstantly puts them unr erasure. The homonormative dream Juliet and Juliet, I will argue, is closer to Richard's Burt's ncept of homonormativy as a ‘gay utopian fantasy’ than to Lisa Duggan's policized new homonormativy mentned above. Fally, I ll for the need to velop alternative ncepts and posive vobulari to give voice to the lived experience and aspiratn of sexual mori, who are not yet ‘enjoyg’ the post-gay era.

Footnote 10 LAS members, who have long been terted the human rights issue of sexual mori, transform Shakpeare's play to a tragedy of same-sex love to al wh homophobia and hate Korean society.

Their love is forbidn not bee of the faial fd but for the homophobia ‘Verona, where people nnot accept same-sex love, and … homosexuals are punished wh banishment by law’, as JulietM remds JulietC scene iv. While some dienc plaed about the unpromisg homophobic words the play, homophobia is forcibly challenged throughout the play, pecially the scene of the Juliets’ g out. Tybalt's reactn to JulietM, nigratg her as dirty, ugly and crazy, reprents a typil view about homosexualy of nservative Koreans.

Although Juliet and Juliet follows the tragic trajectory of Shakpeare's origal, Han adds an gen epilogue to highlight homophobia.

The epilogue criqu the graed homophobia society by showg how the Juliets’ love is rejected and distorted even after their ath. Agast the rtrat of such a homophobic, patriarchal society, Juliet and Juliet prents the growth of two women through love, th highlightg femist issu as well. Footnote 14 JulietM, who has been ‘hidg [herself] to get along wh people’, rigned to the fate of beg closeted homophobic Verona and jt ‘ntent wh lookg at JulietC’ even though she marri another man, tak urage to e out for love: ‘And I don't want to hi.

It seems to ‘do exactly the reverse of what queer theory do’, as Richard Burt not of some gay and lbian spoffs of Romeo and Juliet, which ‘take a heterosexual married uple to be the norm and measure of succsful, happy same-sex erotic relatns’ rather than stabilizg genr inty and subvertg stutnal marriage.

Footnote 21 Burt reads the adaptatns ‘a gay utopian fantasy whereby a no longer forbidn practice of gay male or lbian sex is reprented as “normal”’: a dream of what he lls ‘homonormativy’.

Footnote 22 Homonormativy, Burt pots out, is often regard as ‘antiqueer’: ‘queer theory celebrat public, anonymo sex and explic reprentatns of gay and lbian sexualy, while liberal and nservative gay mentators celebrate gay marriage and prefer most reprentatns of gay and lbian sex’.

Footnote 28 Lisa Duggan also criciz right-wg support for gay marriage as ‘a strategy for privatizg gay polics and culture for the new neoliberal world orr’, dubbg the ‘new homonormativy’: is ‘a polics that do not ntt domant heteronormative assumptns and stutns but upholds and stas them while promisg the possibily of a mobilized gay nstuency and a privatized, policized gay culture anchored domticy and nsumptn’. The utopian fantasy of the uple Juliet and Juliet seems to f to Duggan's notn of the new homonormativy, although the rrponnce is only partial, as I will elaborate later, due to the gap between the cultural ntexts of South Korea and the Uned Stat.

Acrdg to Ju, the Korean Queer Theatre Ftival is only terted promotg queer pri, takg the inty of homosexuals for granted as fixed.