[WaPo] Chinese tourists, with Korean drama stars in mind, flock to Seoul for cosmetic surgery

A cluster of plastic surgery clinics in Apgujeong-dong, southern Seoul.

[THE WASHINGTON POST] All around the southern Seoul district of Gangnam — the area of conspicuous consumption made famous by the hit song “Gangnam Style” — Chinese women walk down the street with bandages over their faces and around their heads.

Some, despite hoodies pulled up and parasols pulled down, are so badly bruised and swollen that they look as if they’ve just survived a car accident — if only barely.

They’re riding the latest crest of the Korean Wave: plastic surgery.

Korean cultural exports — especially the manufactured “K-Pop” music and schmaltzy soap operas — have become a phenomenon across Asia. There’s a huge following in China, in particular, and an increasing number of fans are coming to South Korea not just for shopping and sightseeing, but also for nips and tucks — and more. [READ MORE]

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