A foreign dignitary escaped Korea without wearing hanbok, but is photographed in a kimono. Oh no she di'in.

Kang Kyung-hee laments in the Chosun Ilbo that a French official's visit to Korea last month got barely a mention in a French magazine. Moreover, the article was all about her trip to Japan.

A full-page magazine photograph of a high-profile French woman smiling and wearing a kimono reflects the aspiration for Japanese culture to spread among the French people. In the trendy neighborhoods of Paris, it is common to see diners eating sushi with clumsily handled chopsticks, and crowds of youngsters in their teens and 20s flock to the Japanese manga section in French bookstores. Many young people have hopes of saving enough money to someday visit Japan.

People in other European countries have also been showing greater interest in Asian cultures, but compared to those of Japan and China, Korean culture has attracted almost zero attention. Korea has attempted to boost its international image, with the previous administration organizing a national image committee and the current government establishing a national brand committee, but this cannot be achieved with catchphrases and self-serving propaganda.

It can only be achieved by having people from around the globe wear, eat, and feel Korea. In particular, as the example of Hakone suggests, it can be achieved by having celebrities wear, eat, and feel the country. Foreign government ministers and celebrities, despite their tight schedule, should be given the opportunity to experience the uniqueness of our culture when they visit Korea. There should be such tours. And we also need to devise a smarter PR strategy to use the foreign media to promote our culture. That way, we can not only spread but also improve our national image abroad.

Nobody gives a fuck, get over it, and while you're doing that, how about not making fun of how we use chopsticks k thx. Aren't you the ones that put whipped cream on a baked potato? I was just about to say you can't force people from around the globe to wear, eat, and feel Korea, but then I remembered that I have a blog with over 1,000 entries, 78% of which are devoted to foreigners wearing hanbok, making kimchi, or performing doing traditional Korean things. I've even looked at foreign dignitaries wearing hanbok and making kimchi and the foreigners who win Korean golf and tennis tournaments that have to pose in hanbok with their trophy, as if these tournaments are the custodians of the traditional Korean sport of tennis. You can't be a foreign celebrity and pass through Korea wait I lost my place. Ah, you can't be a foreign celebrity and pass through Korea without being paraded in front of cameras in hanbok. Allow me to plagiarize myself:

I was going to type something like "Maybe we should make every famous Korean in the US wear a blue Union uniform and pose for an old-timey photo at Six Flags." But that would be awesome. And there are no famous Koreans in the US. Here is Pete Sampress and some other guy, Venus Williams, Britney Spears, Nicholas Cage, Amerie, and Paris Hilton.