Hawaii

Inside South Korea’s Blue House and the Korean President with Hawaii ties

Published

1 year ago

October 27, 2023

Press Room

Inside South Korea’s Blue House and the Korean President with Hawaii ties

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – U.S. Presidents live in the White House. In South Korea, Presidents lived in a Blue House.

Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul served as the home and administrative headquarters of Korean presidents for 74 years.

In May 2022, current president Yoon Suk Yeol moved his office to a Defense Ministry complex in Yongsan district about three miles south, to a neighborhood that once housed a U.S. military base.

He opened the Blue House to the public for the first time, allowing the public to learn more about its history — which has ties to Hawaii.

The first president of the Republic of Korea and the first to live in the Blue House was Syngman Rhee, a long time Hawaii resident and strong ally to the United States.

After World War II and Korea was freed from Japanese colonial rule, Rhee and his wife moved to the 62-acre complex in 1948, known as Gyeongmudae at the time, and served as the residence of the Japanese governor-general.

Rhee brought with him democratic ideals he developed in Hawaii as a leader in Korea’s independence movement, along with artifacts like an English language typewriter he used to carry around to type diplomatic letters.

Before Japanese rule, the site was home to Korean royalty for hundreds of years and part of the sprawling Gyeongbokgung Palace in the heart of Seoul, which draws millions of visitors each year.

In 1960, after the ouster of President Rhee, the site’s name was changed to Blue House, after the 150,000 blue tiles covering the main building’s gabled roof.

Since opening to the public, the Blue House has fast become a popular destination. HNN was part of an international press tour that visited an exhibit about past presidents and various rooms on the second floor.

We also toured the State Guest House that hosted foreign dignitaries — the gardens — and the separate Presidential residence that was built in 1990.

Set against Bugaksan Mountain, the wooded surroundings provided a natural defense against attack, but it couldn’t protect Blue House residents from an ill fate.

Two presidents were forced out of power – one was assassinated – another impeached — one committed suicide – and nearly all were tied to corruption.

Today, the Blue House is free for the public to visit, a sign that even the most powerful house in the country can open the door to change.

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Related Topics:blue house cheong wa dae Featured hawaii Korea Seoul south korea syngman rhee

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Hawaii

College football's Hawaii Bowl highlights slowest sports day of 2024

Published

8 hours ago

December 24, 2024

Press Room

College football's Hawaii Bowl highlights slowest sports day of 2024

Sports fans can breathe easy on Christmas Eve as there will only be one game played on Tuesday before a full buffet of games on Christmas Day.

College football aficionados will be happy to know there is one bowl game on the slate. The Hawaii Bowl between South Florida and San Jose State. The game will start at 8 p.m. ET.

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South Florida Bulls quarterback Israel Carter runs the ball against the Florida Atlantic Owls at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida, Nov. 1, 2024. (Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images)

The Bulls finished 6-6 on the season and earned a second straight bowl game under head coach Alex Golesh. They had the same record last season before entering and winning the Boca Raton Bowl over Syracuse, 45-0.

The Spartans finished the season 7-5 overall in Ken Niumatalolo’s first season at the helm. The team is on a three-bowl-game losing streak. They lost the Hawaii Bowl last season and the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in 2022. The Spartans also lost the Arizona Bowl in 2020.

San Jose State hasn’t won a bowl game since the 2015 Cure Bowl under Ron Caragher.

San Jose State Spartans head coach Ken Niumatalolo after their win over the Stanford Cardinal at CEFCU Stadium in San Jose, California, Nov. 29, 2024. (Eakin Howard-Imagn Images)

TEXAS FOOTBALL MASCOT BEVO BARRED FROM SIDELINES OF UPCOMING CFP GAME, ORGANIZERS SAY

Sports fans looking for some action should take it all in and be able to get some sleep before opening presents and starting Christmas Day at noon ET with NBA games.

The NFL also has games on Christmas Day for the second straight year – a two-game menu featuring the Kansas City Chiefs against the Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 p.m. ET and the Houston Texans hosting the Baltimore Ravens at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Browns defensive tackle Mike Hall Jr. and linebacker Devin Bush rush Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland on Dec. 15, 2024. (Ken Blaze-Imagn Images)

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College football will return on Dec. 26 and the NHL will be back on Dec. 27.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

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Hawaii

Nebraska tops Hawaii 69-55, will play Oregon State in title game of Diamond Head Classic

Published

17 hours ago

December 24, 2024

Press Room

Nebraska tops Hawaii 69-55, will play Oregon State in title game of Diamond Head Classic

Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — Brice Williams matched his career high with 32 points and Juwon Gary scored a season-high 21 to lead Nebraska to a 69-55 victory over Hawaii on Monday night, sending the Cornhuskers to the title game of the Diamond Head Classic.

Nebraska (9-2) will play Oregon State on Christmas Day for the championship of the eight-team tournament. Hawaii (7-4) will play Oakland for third place, also on Wednesday.

Williams made 10 of 18 shots with four 3-pointers and all eight of his free throws for the Cornhuskers (10-2), who have won three in a row and will play for their first tournament title since the 2018 Hall of Fame Classic. Gary buried 8 of 10 shots with three 3-pointers and both of his foul shots.

Williams had 11 points and Gary scored eight to help Nebraska take a 29-27 lead into halftime. Marcus Greene had nine points to keep Hawaii close.

Williams and Gary combined to score 34 of the Cornhuskers’ 40 points in the second half. The senior duo combined to make 13 of 18 shots while their teammates made 3 of 9.

The Rainbow Warriors scored the first four points of the second half to grab the lead. Williams answered with a layup and a 3-pointer and Nebraska never trailed again.

Greene led Hawaii with 11 points. Kody Williams and Akira Jacobs both scored 10.

Nebraska has won 34 in a row when holding its opponent to 70 points or less.

Hawaii leads the series 7-3 with all 10 games being played in Honolulu. The two teams had not met since the 2014 event.

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Hawaii

Hawaii's Kilauea volcano erupts, spewing columns of lava

Published

1 day ago

December 23, 2024

Press Room

Hawaii's Kilauea volcano erupts, spewing columns of lava

LOS ANGELES —

One of the world’s most active volcanoes sprang into life again Monday, spewing columns of lava 80 meters above Hawaii, U.S. vulcanologists said.

Images showed enormous fissures in the caldera of Kilauea, on Hawaii’s Big Island, spraying jets of molten rock into the air.

The U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said the eruption began just after 2 a.m. local time (1200 GMT) in the southwestern section of the caldera.

“At 4:30 a.m., lava fountains were observed with heights up to 80 meters [262 feet],” the agency said.

“Molten material, including lava bombs, is being ejected from the winds on the caldera floor up onto the west caldera rim.”

The eruption was also sending matter much higher into the atmosphere.

“The plume of volcanic gas and fine volcanic particles is reaching elevations of 6,000-8,000 feet above sea level … and winds are transporting it to the southwest,” the observatory said.

The observatory said sulfur dioxide emanating from the fissure would react with other gases in the atmosphere.

So-called vog — volcanic smog — can affect people and animals, as well as crops.

Kilauea has been very active since 1983 and erupts relatively regularly, including most recently in September.

It is one of six active volcanoes in the Hawaiian Islands, which include Mauna Loa, the largest volcano in the world, though Kilauea is far more active.

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