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The all-important after-work socializing of Korean office workers could see something of a quiet revolution as the focus shifts from pubs and karaoke bars to more salubrious gourmet restaurants and cultural events, if a survey by jobsearch site JobKorea is to be believed.
The survey polled only 414 office workers, but 43.5 percent of them cited ¡°gourmet experience¡± as their favorite way of gathering with coworkers, followed by ¡°drinking and singing¡± with 18 percent, and ¡°excursions¡± like going to amusement parks, skating rinks, and baseball parks with 13 percent, while a respectable 10.9 percent named ¡°cultural performances¡± like movies, concerts and plays. That was closely followed by ¡°leisure and sports¡± like skiing, fishing, and hiking with 9.4 percent.
Gourmet food was top of the list for both men and women with 43.7 percent and 42.9 percent. But drinking and singing remained in second place among men with 22.3 percent, while women cited cultural performances next with 17.1 percent.
Yet while barbecue and sushi restaurants (57.7 percent and 32.1 percent) were the places where most groups started the night, things went downhill from there. Next up were pubs for 52.7 percent or karaoke bars for 37.4 percent, while 58.3 percent waited until a still more advanced stage of the evening to do their singing in a dimly lit environment.
The unregenerate rest went to what they delicately called ¡°exotic bars¡± (14.3 percent) and pubs (13.7 percent) to end the evening. This suggests that despite their stated preference most workers did end up in a karaoke bar sooner or later. Perhaps their older bosses insist.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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