Korea’s 17th cultural center opens Down Under

Ethnic Korean residents of Australia sing Korean and Australian folk songs, including “Arirang” and “Waltzing Matilda,” at an opening ceremony for the Korean Cultural Center in Sydney yesterday. [YONHAP]

SYDNEY - Celebrating its 50 years of diplomatic ties with Australia, Korea opened a cultural center here yesterday to help promote cultural exchanges between the two countries.

It is Korea’s 17th cultural center worldwide and its first in the Oceania region. It’s located across from Hyde Park, Sydney’s largest park and one of its major tourist attractions.

The Korean Cultural Center includes a multimedia exhibition hall, a Korean crafts room, a kitchen for cooking lessons and a library with about 1,500 books and 500 DVDs and CDs on Korean culture.

“Marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Korea and Australia, the Sydney Korean Cultural Center will bring the two countries even closer culturally,” Choung Byoung-gug, the Korean culture minister, said during the opening ceremony.

“To further promote cultural exchanges, we will scientifically study Australians’ sentiment on Korean culture and build programs for the Korean Cultural Center accordingly,” he added.

Electronics giants Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics donated about $100,000 worth of equipment to the cultural center.

Yonhap