The South Korean Love Industry

With one of the lowest birth rates in the world, South Korea is in danger of disappearing by the end of the millennium. If the situation stays as it is, South Koreans are predicted to become extinct by 2750. Because of the rapidly aging population, elderly prostitutes known as "Bacchus ladies" have cornered a number of public parks as their working areas. Meanwhile, South Korean kids are living with their families well into their 20s—as a result, an entire economy of sex motels has sprung up to give kids a place to fool around outside the watchful eyes of their parents.
We sent Matt Shea to investigate this generational crisis, which led him to Seoul's red-light district, a pre-wedding photo shoot on the set of a Korean soap opera, and an erotic sculpture park on South Korea's "honeymoon island."
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