Seoul was ranked third on the NYT list of 31 places to go

Seoul was ranked third on the New York Times list of 31 places to go this year behind Sri Lanka and Argentina's Patagonia Wine Country.

The nation's capital was the sole East Asian city among the top 10 in the daily's annual picks for travel destinations.

"Forget Tokyo. Design aficionados are now heading to Seoul," the daily said. "They have been drawn by the Korean capital's glammed-up cafes and restaurants, immaculate art galleries and monumental fashion palaces like the sprawling outpost of Milan's 10 Corso Como and the widely noted Ann Demeulemeester store - an avant-garde Chia Pet covered in vegetation."

Seoul has emerged in recent years as a serious player in the design industry.

In 2007, it was appointed World Design Capital of 2010 by the International Council of Societies Design Alliance - a city promotion project that recognizes and awards accomplishments made by cities around the world in the field of design.

Other East Asian cities selected on the list were Shanghai at 12th and Shenzhen at 20th.

서울, NYT 선정 '올해 가봐야 할 명소' 3위
서울이 뉴욕타임즈가 꼽은 올해 가봐야 할 31개의 장소 중 스리랑카와 아르헨티나의 파타고니아 포도밭에 이어 3위를 차지했다. 동아시아 도시 중 10위 안에 여행지로 이름을 올린 것은 서울이 유일하다. 뉴욕타임즈는 또 “도쿄는 잊어라. 디자인 마니아들이 서울로 향하고 있다”고 전하면서, “이들은 한국의 수도에 있는 황홀한 카페와 레스토랑, 흠잡을 데 없는 미술관, 기념비적인 패션 매장에 끌리고 있다"고 보도했다.

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2010/01/12/201001120076.asp ◦

Seoul was ranked third on the NYT list of 31 places to go