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S Korean retirees dance the blues away at seniors’ discos

SEOUL — As the mercury outside plunges to -10°C on an ice-cold Monday afternoon, the dance floor inside the Kukilgwan Palace is packed with grey-haired Korean couples moving to the rhythms of high-volume disco.

SEOUL — As the mercury outside plunges to -10°C on an ice-cold Monday afternoon, the dance floor inside the Kukilgwan Palace is packed with grey-haired Korean couples moving to the rhythms of high-volume disco.

“I come here every day of the week, except for Saturday and Sunday,” said 81-year-old Jun Il-taek as he danced beneath the giant disco balls and brightly-coloured string lights decorating the venue in central Seoul.

Mr Jun was one of about 200 men and women on the floor — all engaged in the same, rather static, knee-bobbing dance routine, with the odd slow-motion twirl to liven things up. “Nothing keeps me healthier than dancing ... I can’t live without this place,” said Mr Jun, deftly leading his 75-year-old female partner into a slow turn.

The army veteran is one of thousands of retired South Koreans hitting the dance floors at “Colatecs” — special discos for the elderly that are flourishing across the country.

South Korea’s rapidly ageing population may be a major headache for policymakers, but its members are determined to enjoy themselves, dancing the years away at clubs where 50-year-olds are turned away for being “too young”.

Colatecs first emerged in the late 1990s as dance halls for teenagers, where alcohol was banned and the only drinks on offer were sodas such as Coca-Cola.

But they soon fell out of fashion with their young clientele, who migrated to gatherings at Internet cafes and karaoke clubs. And so the Colatecs rebranded themselves for an entirely different demographic.

“They became a playground for the over 60s ... and they turned out to be far more loyal customers,” said Mr Lee Kwan-woo, the 70-year-old owner of the Kukilgwan Palace, which was established in the early 2000s.

“Here, they can exercise to stay healthy, make new friends and have a little bit of excitement.”

South Koreans aged over 65 years make up 13 per cent of the population, and that figure is expected to rise to as much as 40 per cent by 2060.

Currently, half of that demographic live on or below the poverty line. A meagre pension and lack of social welfare make retirement a daunting prospect.

Among those with some disposable income, leisure activities are something of an unknown field for a generation whose labour transformed the country from a war-ravaged backwater to Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

“This generation spent all their lives working, working and working, and leisure was considered a privilege of the elite,” said a researcher at the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, Hwang Nam-hui.

“So many find it hard, and even baffling, just to relax and enjoy themselves after retirement.”

Kukilgwan Palace owner Mr Lee said clubs such as his offer a vital opportunity to “unwind and just have fun”. “If a regular suddenly stops coming, it usually means he or she has died,” said Mr Lee, who feels attending funerals of loyal customers is part of his job. AFP

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