30 Stunningly Cool Facts About South Korea You Shouldn’t Miss

In 2003, a South Korean subway driver named Choi Sang-yeol told passengers to remain inside while a fire was spreading in the station. He then fled with the master key leaving the train doors closed and sealing passengers inside. Out of 198 people who died in the station, 79 were trapped in his train.

In South Korea, babies are considered 1 year old from the day they were born and then get 1 year older on New Year's Day. There are calculators to convert international age into Korean age and vice versa.

There was a South Korean Gang named Chijon family that specialized in kidnapping and eating rich Hyundai customers. One gang member admitted to dismembering his victims and eating their flesh, saying this was to fire up his courage and to renounce his humanity.

In 1998, South Korean citizens donated their private gold to help repay an IMF loan the country needed during the Asian Financial Crisis.

The South Korean government spent several years and over one million dollars to produce a "space kimchi" that was safe for their astronaut to take onto the ISS.

There is a museum in Seoul, South Korea centered around poop. It's called Poopoo Land.

“Fan Death” is a well-known myth in South Korean culture. They believe that running an electric fan in a closed room with unopened or no windows can lead to death. Despite no concrete evidence to support the concept, this myth persists due to its popularity as an urban superstition.

In the South Korean town of Daesong-dong, residents are exempt from taxes and the mandatory military service in an effort by the government to keep people there despite being only 350m from the North Korean border. However, for security reasons, there is a curfew and headcount at 11 pm every night.

The Hanwha Eagles, a South Korean baseball team, has robot fans. These robot fans are controlled by real fans who can't attend the game. The bots can cheer, chant, and do the wave.

Some South Korean mothers are resorting to tongue surgery for their kids so that they can speak “flawless English” to sort out misplaced L and R sounds.