Seoul’s tap water gets hip riverside makeover

Municipal authorities have long faced a notoriously tough public relations challenge: how to convince skeptical urbanites to ditch plastic bottles and actually drink from the tap. This weekend, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is gambling that the answer lies in the city's favorite summer pastime — lounging by the Han River with a cold drink and a stash of limited-edition merchandise. Starting Friday, the Seoul Waterworks Authority is launching a sprawling, ultramodern pop-up store titled "Aridapda, Arisu" (Beautiful Arisu) at the Yeouido Hangang Park Event Square. Nestled alongside the river, the three-week installation aims to rebrand "Arisu" — Seoul’s heavily filtered municipal tap water — from a bureaucratic utility into a trendy lifestyle choice centered on sustainability. The phrase Aridapda, a play on the Korean word for beauty and grace, is the centerpiece of a fresh campaign designed to highlight the city's rigorous water-quality standards in a way that resonates with a younger, eco-conscious crowd. Rather than bombarding visitors with dry technical charts, the pop-up tWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times