Government officials attend a ceremony at a port in Gunsan, southwest of Seoul, on Jan. 29, 2016, for the first rice export to China. The first shipment of 30 tons will leave the port next month for Shanghai, where they will be marketed at Lotte Market outlets. South Korea has been working for the last seven years to have rice exported to the neighboring country, hindered by quarantine requirements. (Yonhap)
A pleasure boat sails through the frozen surface of the Han River bisecting Seoul on Jan. 24, 2016, as South Korea experienced the coldest weather this winter the same day with temperatures dropping to record lows. The temperature in Seoul fell to 18 C below zero, the lowest since Jan. 15, 2001, when the mercury dropped to 18.6 C below zero, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. (Yonhap)
A group of students sleep under vinyl sheets next to a statue erected in front of the Japanese Embassy on Jan. 24, 2016. South Korea experienced the coldest weather this winter on Jan. 24 with temperatures dropping to near record lows. As of 5 a.m., the temperature in Seoul was minus 17 degrees Celsius, while the wind chill was minus 23.8 degrees. Historians estimate more than 200,000 women, mostly Koreans, were forced into sexual slavery at front-line Japanese brothels during World War II. The protest came after Seoul and Tokyo reached an agreement on Dec. 28 on the issue, which sparked a wave of public protests among victims and their supporters, who claim the deal was reached without reflecting the victims’ opinions. (Yonhap)
People enjoy playing tug-of-war at a winter cultural festival in Gangwon Province, South Korea, on Jan. 23, 2016 while the country continued to be swept by a cold wave with temperatures dropping to below minus 10 degrees Celsius in many parts of the country. (Yonhap)
This file photo dated Jan. 12, 2016 shows the landscape of the Jeongseon Alpine Center, a venue for the technical event of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, in Jeongseon in the northeastern province of Gangwon. The Jeongseon Alpine Centre, the venue for the International Ski Federation Alpine Skiing World Cup on Feb. 6-7, was declared ready for the competition in an opening ceremony on Jan. 22, 2016. (Yonhap)
Jack Black (2nd from R), the voice of Po the panda in the new movie “Kung Fu Panda 3,” makes a heart with his fingers as he poses for photos at a red carpet event for the film in Seoul on Jan. 20, 2016. To his left is the movie’s director Jennifer Yuh, who is of Korean descent, and to his right are members of South Korea’s girl group Lovelyz who performed at the event. (Yonhap)
Seok Hae-kyun (front row, 3rd from L), former captain of a South Korean ship hijacked and saved from Somali pirates, poses with naval officials in front of a monument on Jan. 21, 2016, in Busan, southeast of Seoul, that commemorates the successful commando rescue operation five years ago. Seok was the captain of the chemical carrier Samho Jewelry that was attacked by Somali pirates while sailing through the Arabian Sea. He was shot several times by the pirates during the rescue operation. (Yonhap)
A group of shirtless soldiers affiliated with an Army unit under the Special Warfare Command sing a martial song in unison after entering a reservoir by breaking the ice on its surface in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province, on Jan. 21, 2016. The day is known as “daehan,” one of the 24 seasonal divisions of the lunar calendar that marks the arrival of the coldest day of the year. The exercise in cold water, part of the unit’s tactical drill tailored for the winter’s severe cold period, is aimed to build the soldiers’ resistance to cold weather. (Yonhap)
This photo, released by the Environment Ministry on Jan. 17, 2016, shows a type of bat with golden-yellow fur that researchers from the Korea National Park Service have found on Mount Odae in the northeast province of Gangwon. They also found the endangered species, also known as the golden bat, on Mount Wolak in the central province of North Chungcheong. (Yonhap)
