3100 Applicants Compete for 80 Openings
On the 26th (local time), participants of the 'Korean Travel in New York with Squid Game' event are playing ttakji-chigi at Times Square, New York. / Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] The globally popular drama "Squid Game" was held in the heart of New York City, USA.
The Korea Tourism Organization's New York branch held the "2021 Korea Tour with Squid Games in NY" on the 26th (local time) for 80 Americans in Manhattan, New York City.
Participants gathered in front of the Metropolitan Museum in New York, wore green uniforms, and toured the Korean Pavilion at the museum, the Korean Cultural Center in New York, and Koreatown on 32nd Street in Manhattan, experiencing Korean cultural tourism within New York.
They then moved to an indoor venue in Manhattan called "Studio 525" and played survival-style games featured in the drama "Squid Game," such as "Mugunghwa Flower Has Bloomed," "Dalgona," and "Ttakji Chigi." The final two survivors who won all the games competed in the final round of Ttakji Chigi, and the ultimate winner was awarded a round-trip ticket to Korea as a prize.
Mr. Charles Coles, the winner of the Squid Game event, said, "All participants had a very enjoyable experience, and personally, I thought I would be eliminated in the 'Mugunghwa Flower Has Bloomed' game, which was the most fun for me, but I was not." He added, "I will visit Korea soon with the round-trip ticket prize."
As the last activity, participants visited the "LINE Friends" store, a Korean character merchandise shop in Times Square, before dispersing.
Park Jae-seok, head of the Korea Tourism Organization's New York branch, said, "We received 3,114 applications within a week to recruit 80 participants, which showed the 'Squid Game' craze in the U.S." He added, "With curiosity about Korean culture at its peak due to the drama, we planned this event to increase Americans' interest in Korean tourism."
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