''Sisters Over Flowers'' (), also known as ''Noonas Over Flowers'', is a South Korean

travel Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel c ...

- reality show that aired on

tvN TVN may refer to: * TVN (Australian TV channel), a former horse racing channel * Televisión Nacional de Chile, a public broadcaster * TVN (Indonesia), a former television station; predecessor of Rajawali Televisi * TVN (Norway), or TVNorge, a comm ...

from 29 November 2013 to 17 January 2014. It featured veteran actresses

Youn Yuh-jung Youn Yuh-jung (, ; born June 19, 1947) is a South Korean actress, whose career in film and television spans over five decades. Her accolades include an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a British Academy Film Award, an Independent Spir ...

Kim Ja-ok Kim Ja-ok (October 11, 1951 – November 16, 2014) was a South Korean actress. Kim was born in Busan in 1951. Kim dropped out of Hanyang University majoring in Film. Kim started her acting career after admitted to a public recruit by MBC TV. ...

Kim Hee-ae Kim Hee-ae (born April 23, 1967) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading roles in Korean dramas such as ''Sons and Daughters'' (1992), ''Perfect Love'' (2003), '' My Husband's Woman'' (2007), '' How Long I've Kissed'' (2012 ...

and

Lee Mi-yeon Lee Mi-yeon (born September 23, 1971) is a South Korean actress. Filmography Film Television series Variety show Music video Theater Discography Awards and nominations References External links * * * ...

going on a 10-day backpacking trip through

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

and

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, accompanied and assisted by the significantly younger

Lee Seung-gi Lee Seung-gi (; born January 13, 1987) is a South Korean singer, actor, host, and entertainer. He has numerous hit songs as a singer such as "Because You're My Woman", "Will You Marry Me", "Return" and "The Ordinary Man". He has garnered furt ...

. The trip covered the cities of

Istanbul ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_i ...

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertai ...

, and

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

. It is a spin-off of ''

Grandpas Over Flowers ''Grandpas Over Flowers'' () is a South Korean travel- reality show that airs on tvN. The title is a word play/parody of , a popular Japanese manga about four handsome young men ('' Boys Over Flowers'' also refers to the 2009 adaptation of the ma ...

'', which featured a similar premise but with older male actors. The show's title also follows after its predecessor, which is itself a

word play Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, pho ...

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

on , a popular Japanese manga about four handsome young men.

Cast

Production

While ''Grandpas Over Flowers'' starred a cast of veteran actors in their seventies, the ''Sisters Over Flowers'' cast were significantly younger and spanned a wider age range, with

and

in their 60s alongside

and

in their 40s. Producer

Na Young-seok Na Yeong-seok (, born April 15, 1976), often known by his nickname Na PD, is a South Korean television producer and director. Na is best known for producing the popular variety- reality shows '' 2 Days & 1 Night'', ''New Journey to the West'', ...

said the age gap was intentional during casting as they "wanted actors with more than 15 years of experience" who were "wise, experienced and had great life stories to tell." Singer-actor

, then 27 years old, was also cast as the actresses' companion and "luggage boy." This marked Lee's reunion with producer Na, whom he had previously worked with on hit reality show, '' 2 Days & 1 Night''. Lee later admitted that he had difficulty fulfilling his duties as a tour guide for the actresses. Producer Na said he chose

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...

as the show's destination because most Koreans are unfamiliar with it, praising

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

as an "exotic" country with "strong colors, beautiful landscapes, and cultural heritage."

Reception

''Sisters Over Flowers'' was a hit with audiences, surpassing ''Grandpas Over Flowers'' by recording an average viewership rating of 7.5 percent with a peak rating of 10.5 percent, a significant figure considering most Korean cable programs rarely reach 1 percent. Like its predecessor, the show's success also led to a Chinese remake. Actresses

and

also saw a boost in popularity after the show, with clothing and accessories worn by the former becoming sold out in stores. The show had a notable impact on

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, with Korean tourist arrivals rising sharply from 70,000 in 2013 before its airing to 147,000 from February to July 2014. In September 2014, visiting Speaker of the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sab ...

Josip Leko Josip Leko (born 19 September 1948) is a Croatian politician who served as Speaker of the Croatian Parliament from 2012 to 2015. Biography He was born in 1948 in Plavna village ( Bač municipality) in Bačka, Serbia (then Yugoslavia) to a Croa ...

gave the Order of the Croatian Star to

CJ Group CJ Group () is a South Korean conglomerate holding company and one of the largest Chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous businesses in various industries of food and food service, pharmaceutics and biotechnology, enter ...

vice chairwoman Lee Mi-kyung on behalf of his government for her contributions to Croatian tourism and economy. Lee is the first Korean to win this highest recognition from the Croatian government.

Ratings

In the ratings below, the highest rating for the show will be in and the lowest rating for the show will be in . * Note that the show airs on a cable channel (

pay TV Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, b ...

), which plays part in its slower uptake and relatively small audience share when compared to programs broadcast ( FTA) on public networks such as KBS, SBS, MBC or

EBS EBS may refer to: Broadcasting * EBS TV (Ethiopia) * Educational Broadband Service, US TV service * Educational Broadcasting System, South Korea ** EBS 1, a South Korean television channel * Emergency Broadcast System, former US Warning system ...

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
{{Na Yeong-seok 2013 South Korean television series debuts 2014 South Korean television series endings TVN (South Korean TV channel) original programming South Korean variety television shows South Korean reality television series South Korean travel television series Korean-language television shows Television shows set in Turkey Television shows set in Croatia