Airport Overload

[Anchor Lead]

Incheon International Airport buckled under the pressure Sunday when it saw a record number of passengers on the last day of a three-day weekend. The airport experienced a disruption in the baggage handling process, which eventually caused some 120 flights to be delayed. Some passengers were stranded at the airport until late into the night.

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Roughly 170,000 passengers crowded Incheon International Airport on Sunday, a record number of users since its opening. To make matters worse, the baggage handling process was overloaded to cause delays for some 120 flights, which included 80 China's Southern Airlines and British Airway flights that were scheduled to depart Incheon on Sunday. Some foreign carriers claimed that a malfunction in the airport's baggage management system forced employees to transport the luggage themselves, ultimately causing the delays. The airport authorities countered it by saying that there was no problem with the system and the delays were caused by the stalled check-in and baggage handling processes of overseas airlines.

[Soundbite] Incheon Int'l Airport Employee(Voice altered) : "A record-breaking number of passengers seems to have caused an baggage overload. I believe a certain contractor was overwhelmed."

The airport announced that the baggage handling system has now been normalized and is currently designing measures to minimize passenger inconvenience.

2. NK “Speed Battle”

[Anchor Lead]

A North Korean media outlet has unveiled video clips of North Korea's so-called speed battle. In these scenes, we see North Korean soldiers forming a human bridge for an underwater construction project and even female soldiers were mobilized to remove rocks by hand. Let's take a look.

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North Korean soldiers dressed in short-sleeved shirts dig at the ground with shovels. They carry the dirt across a bridge to the opposite side. A closer look reveals that the bridge was formed by soldiers in the water. Standing against gushing waterfalls, workers drive logs through a wall. Hammers strike terrifyingly close to the hands of soldiers holding nails. Nearby, a woman in military uniform moves a huge rock with her bare hands. Analysts say that these video images intensively aired by North Korean media during the New Year's holiday season are aimed at fully mobilizing civilian workforces ahead of the seventh Communist Party Congress scheduled for May this year.

[Soundbite] (North Korean Documentary Film) : "Korean speed must be created in construction. The People's Army must fill up a sea or move a mountain if the supreme commander orders it."

North Korean authorities are calling for speedy progress, presenting detailed goals of completing construction on the No. 3 Mt. Baekdu Power Plant and a waterway in Hwanghae Province before the party congress in May.

3. Northern Limit Line

[Anchor Lead]

Tension remains high on the Yellow Sea since several North Korean provocations taking place across the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border. Even on New Year's Day weekend, South Korean naval forces kept up their defensive vigilance on the NLL.

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In waters off Yeonpyeong Island, which sits just 1.5 kilometers away from the Northern Limit Line on the Yellow Sea South Korean sailors immediately get battle ready at the sound of orders to deploy.

[Soundbite] "Emergency departure! Emergency departure!"

The target soon disappears from radar after 76- and 40-millimeter cannons fire a series of shots from the high-speed, guided-missile patrol boat killer, or PKG vessel. This was a drill simulating an invasion of the NLL by an enemy vessel. South Korean Navy sailors did not let down their guard even while welcoming the new year with bowls of hot rice cake soup at an offshore base.

[Soundbite] Pvt. Kim Dong-hyeon(Chamsuri 365) : "Sometimes life is harder than on land, but it's all worthwhile."

At the frontline Yeonpyeong base, damages from the North Korean artillery attack in 2010 still remain vividly. The South Korean military has beefed up its firepower along the maritime border on the Yellow Sea since the North Korean shelling by tripling the number of K-9 self-propelled howitzers and placing multiple rocket launchers on Yeonpyeong Island.

4. Black Bear Project

[Anchor Lead]

New progress has been made in a project since 2004 to restore and increase the number of endangered Asiatic black bears. A recently discovered young bear is believed to be the third generation descendent of a bear originally released for the project according to gene testing, signaling that their restoration is going smoothly.

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In September last year, a bear was caught in a trap installed for study purposes at Mt. Jiri. The sedated Asiatic black bear was a young, three year-old male. Through various studies and genetic analysis, it has been identified as a third generation descendent of a bear that was released for restoration.

[Soundbite] Chang Kyung-hee(Researcher, Species Restoration Technology Inst.) : "It proves that the bears have adapted well and are living as part of the ecosystem of Mt. Jiri."

A total of 39 Asiatic black bears, including the recently discovered cub, are confirmed to live on Mt. Jiri. The Korea National Park Service expects that if reproduction goes smoothly this year, the population of the black bear will reach 50, the number at which the species is considered capable of breeding sustainably. In order to secure genetic diversity, Manchuria bears with similar genes to the indigenous Asiatic black bears must be additionally released. The National Park Service plans to expand the restoration project by releasing black bears at other mountains along the Baekdudaegan Range, including Mt. Seorak.

5. New Year’s Sales

[Anchor Lead]

Major department stores held the year's first regular markdown events and saw their sales figures jump 30 to 40% compared with the same time last year. But it remains to be seen whether these spikes in sales signal a revival of consumer spending.

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This department store's clothing and apparel section is bustling with customers. Huge discounts on winter clothing have drawn a crowd of shoppers, but the fashion accessory and household appliance sections also enjoyed a rush.

[Soundbite] Jo Hyeon-beom(Shopper) : "I need clothes for my new job, so I came by to check out the sale."

Major department stores held their first markdown sales events of the year on Saturday and saw their sales figures jump noticeably compared to the first Saturday of last January. The Lotte and Hyundai department stores each recorded 43% increases, while Shinsegae's figure rose 30%. These are sharp boosts compared to the 5 to 7% year-on-year increases posted at the year-end sales events last year. Huge markdowns on inventory leftovers of men's clothing contributed to a spike in sales as winter clothing remains in stock due to the warmer-than-usual weather. Encouraged by the good start of sales events this new year, department stores hope that consumer sentiment will recover and spending get a boost this year.

6. Local Art Buses

[Anchor Lead]

City buses decorated with artwork instead of ads are running throughout Gwangju city. The so-called art buses designed by local artists have become a new spectacle drawing the attention of citizens.

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Flowers bloom on a bus running through a downtown neighborhood. A flowing waterfall creates a refreshing atmosphere. A cheerful tune seems to emanate from a yellow bus.

[Soundbite] Kang Sun-hee(Bus Passenger) : "It's wonderful. My baby likes it. I hope there are more buses like this."

The sides of city buses, once covered with advertisements, have now combined with works of art, turning them into so-called 'art-buses.'

[Soundbite] Kim Jae-chan('Art bus' Driver) : "Passengers say it's marvelous. Students and citizens turn around to get a better look."

Eight artists selected by the local government through competition produced the designs. The works were produced using a special film to fit the buses' size, and attached to the vehicles inside and out.

[Soundbite] Song Pil-yong('Art us' Project Artist) : "It would be good to have more people experience and appreciate my works, rather than displaying them in a limited space."

Artworks once displayed exclusively in galleries have been brought out to the streets, offering a new and unique experience.

7. CG Movie Magic

[Anchor Lead]

Movies these days continue to impress audiences with sophisticated computer graphic techniques. Sometimes it's hard to tell the real thing from computer graphics. Here's a look at the latest scientific technologies used in computer graphics.

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Movies without actors -- this may sound like nonsense, but in fact it's become a reality. In the past, graphics were drawn by hand to portray every single movement. But nowadays, there is no need to do so thanks to the principles of advanced mathematics and physics. The movements of this tiger, which was created using computer graphics, appear natural because the dots were connected smoothly using differential geometry. This scene of an avalanche is hard to tell from a real one, because it was created using one of the principles of physical science. Called "magnetohydrodynamics," its equations are used to predict the movements of various matter, such as air and water.

[Soundbite] Park Ui-dong(CEO of RASCA) : "We calculate every aspect, such as the intensity of gravity, the flight speed and density."

Thanks to state-of-the-art scientific principles, computer graphic images in movies continue to evolve.

8. Entertainment News

[Anchor Lead]

Korean movies broke the record in December by expanding their share of the local box office to over 60 percent. The milestone is mostly attributed to the popularity of the movie "The Himalayas," which has drawn more than six million viewers so far. Here's more from the world of culture.

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"The Himalayas" is a story about mountain-climbers who set off to find the body of their colleague who died during an earlier ascent. The movie has drawn six million viewers so far, helping domestic films increase their share for the month of December to a record-high level of more than 60 percent. Although the overall number of viewers recorded last month was the smallest in the past four years, domestic films were able to expand their share on the popularity of "The Himalayas." The "Cirque du Soleil" puts up an enrapturing performance featuring g midair stunts. Previously staged in circus tents, Cirque du Soleil's show has been made into a 3D movie that can be screened in theaters. The movie was produced by James Cameron, director of "Avatar," while Andrew Adamson, who directed "Shrek," directed the new production n and wrote its screenplay. Baik Hyun-jhin of the Korean first-generation indie band Uhuhboo Projectsound and Bang Jun-seok of the legendary duo U&Me Blue have released an album under the name Bahngbek. The album features the dreamlike voice of Baik Hyun-jhin harmonizing with alluring guitar tunes played by Bang Jun-seok.

9. Yum Yum TV Series #13

[Anchor Lead]

Korean food is known for its wide variety of soup dishes. But many other cultures and countries around the world boast of dishes with tasty and comforting broths. Let's find out more about unique soups and stews from around the world just perfect for cold winter days.

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What kind of soup or stew do people around the world crave when winter frost is nipping at their noses?

[Soundbite] Esther Burgen(From Canada)

Our culinary tour takes us first to Tibet, nicknamed the roof of the world. This is an authentic Tibetan restaurant in Seoul. One of the Tibetan people's favorite wintertime comfort foods is "thukpa."

[Soundbite] Dawa Pasang Rama(Owner, Tibetian Restaurant) : "'Thukpa' is like Tibetan knife-cut noodles. It's usually enjoyed as dinner in Tibetan homes."

He makes the stock using various spices brought over from Tibet and locally grown fresh vegetables. Then he makes noodles from a dough made with curry powder and wheat flour. The vegetables are stir-fried before the noodles and stock are added. After cooking the mixture for a little while, you are ready to enjoy the mild-flavored Tibetan traditional noodle soup thukpa.

[Soundbite] Thupten(From Tibet) : "It's exactly like what I had at home. It's good."

Let's cross the Pacific and visit Mexico.

[Soundbite] Park Yeon-gyeong(Global Culinary Culture Researcher) : "There is a soup similar to Korea's spicy beef soup in Mexico, too. I'm going to make the Mexican wintertime specialty 'pozole.'"

Onions are stir-fried and then black pepper, chili powder and various spices are sprinkled in to add a fiery kick. Then shred the chicken used to make the stock and let it cool. Add stir-fried vegetables, shredded chicken, and pre-cooked corn to the stock and cook for a little while more to complete a satisfying Mexican soup called "pozole."

[Soundbite] Koh Nang-hyeon(Taster) : "It's exotic, but I think Koreans would like it too. The broth is delicious."

Soups and stews from around the world have warmed people up for many centuries. Why not try some of these exotic and delicious soups to warm you up this winter?