2014 Asian Games: The High Kicks Of Sepak Takraw

           (My Asian Games ticket and the wrongly spelled 
            welcome banner at the Bucheon Gymnasium)

The first stop of our trip to the Asian Games sponsored by the Korea Tourism Organization was at Bucheon Gymnasium. I haven't been to this part of Gyeonggi Province. So, a trip to this city was a welcome idea, especially if it was to watch an event of the 2014 Asian Games.

            (Students waiting to enter the Bucheon Gymnasium)

                     (Lining up to buy tickets for the event)

We got to the venue before the games started, and since this sport isn't that popular, I saw a lot of empty seats in the gymnasium. There wasn't much going on around the gymnasium either. I was expecting some Asian Games fun booths to lighten up the atmosphere of this sleepy residential neighborhood. Other than watching the matches inside, there wasn't much else to do outside. 

The crowd watching the sepak takraw elimination rounds mainly consisted of families and students, who I think lived around the area.

Sepak takraw is a sport that originated in Southeast Asia that involves a rattan ball that is kicked by the player over a net. I have never played it, but as I watched it played by teams from Japan, Korea, Nepal and Singapore that afternoon, I realized this sport requires a lot of agility, flexibility and lightness to fly, kick, defend and anticipate where that rattan ball was heading to.

The object of the game is to kick the rattan ball into the court of your opponent, much like volleyball, but using one's legs and everything else, except hands and arms. If the ball drops into your opponent's court, it's a point for you. Although it sounds easy, the ball should not touch your court, too, and only your feet, knees, back, head and chest should touch the rattan ball during the game. If your arms or hands touch the ball, it's a foul. 

'Sepak' is a Malay word that means 'to kick', and 'takraw' is a Thai word that means 'rattan ball'.

Interestingly, the Filipino word 'sipa' also means 'to kick', and Sipa was a game I used to play with friends and classmates when I was a kid using a lead washer that was usually covered and tailed with a plastic candy wrapper. We would kick the lead washer using the inward motion of our right leg (if you're right-handed) and do it the most number of times without dropping the lead washer, and I was very good at it. I guess if I trained for sepak takraw, I would have ended at the Asian Games, too. Ha-ha-ha! 

Inside the gymnasium, the home crowd loudly cheered for the Korean teams, but also applauded by efforts of the visitors. Although the matches didn't last that long as the team that reached 21 points with a difference of 2 was given a set, and the victor should win 2 out of 3 sets. 

And as I was admiring the flexibility and speed of these athletes, I took some photographs from my seat inside the section assigned for Asian Games athletes. Oops! I guess the Korean lady manning the area allowed me to sit in that section because she thought that I, too, was an athlete at the Asian Games. Ha-ha-ha! I was flattered.  Perhaps, the red, white and blue Filipinas t-shirt (bought from Collezione at Greenbelt 5 in Makati City, Philippines) made me look the part.

Here are some photographs of the high kicks, stunts, twists and flexibility of the teams that day:

       (Korea vs. Singapore: the Singapore team member 
                    tries to block the ball with his back)

        (Korea vs. Japan: a Japanese team member doing 
     a split in the air to kick the ball into the opponent's court)

    (Korea vs. Singapore: opposing teams both in mid-air for a kick)

(Some Korean athletes watching the games)

                             (My favorite shot of the day: 
           A player from Team Korea flies next to the net almost 
           horizontally with one leg about to kick the ball and with                                his back against the ground. Amazing!)

Good luck to the remaining teams for rest of the Games!

Korea Tourism Organization's K-Performance Supporters!
                             (Photo courtesy of KTO)

2014 Asian Games' Parade Of National Colors

I missed the opening ceremonies of the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, not that I had tickets, but I would have wanted to watch it on TV. Unfortunately, last Friday night, I was out for dinner when almost all of the 9,501 officially registered athletes from 45 participating countries to the Games paraded before the crowd at the Asian Games' main stadium.

Thankfully, my dinner was just nearby at a Korean barbecue restaurant (which was very good!) next to the Samgakji Station. So, when it was done, I rushed home and was able to catch the tail-end of the program.

I got to see the last torchbearers as they entered the stadium. I only recognized the lady golfer and the last guy, Lee Hyung-Taik, who was a professional tennis player.

When JYJ went up the stage to sing the theme song of the Games, I felt relieved. Why? Because weeks before the Games, angry JYJ fans bombarded the official Facebook page of the 2014 Incheon Games with angry messages. There was a controversy when JYJ was dropped from the list of performers for the opening ceremonies. I guess it's all settled now. The trio was able to perform, the theme song was sung, and the fans were now happy. A k-pop war was averted. Ha-ha-ha!

Although I only caught the last few minutes, they were amusing. While the last torchbearer stood there at the rafters waiting for his cue, the crowd seated around him turned out to be a flash mob; they were not your regular ticket holders. At first, I thought that section was for special ticket holders because they all looked like college students. An ordinary crowd would be composed of kids, parents or couples; that crowd was all youngsters in their 20's. 

So, when JYJ went on to sing another song, they stood up and danced on the spot, while Lee Hyung-Taik looked like the wrong member who didn't go to the rehearsal. As the flash mob was doing their thing, he remained standing while waving. I realized though that perhaps not dancing along with the crowd was a good idea. 

Since he was holding the lighted torch on his right hand, moving one's body to the upbeat song of JYJ might cause him to prematurely light, not the cauldron, but some ticket holder. Ha-ha-ha! 

Everybody knew that the one who would light the flames was going to be Lee Young-ae, the lead actress from the Jewel In The Palace drama. It was all over the news last week. But I wonder why the organizers chose her. Maybe because the committee members were her fans? She's a cook in the drama, not an athlete. And I also wondered why she was wearing sweat bands that night even though lighting the cauldron wasn't exactly a perspiring task. Maybe standing next to the flames would cause one to sweat? Since the organizing committee was trying to cut down the budget for the whole thing, I understood why she was just wearing a white tee and skirt looking like she just got out of her house and was heading to E-Mart. I guess it was more expensive to have her wear a colorful Korean hanbok, an image that would remind the audience in Korea and all of Asia of the character in the drama that made her really famous.

Well, I guess the organizers at Incheon wanted to capitalize on the Korean wave, peppering the opening ceremonies with K-pop performances and K-drama personalities. 

          (I couldn't find the description of this installation on the Asian Games website. I'm calling it the 'Full Moon'.)

But before I look forward to the closing ceremonies, I was lucky to be at the main stadium of the 2014 Asian Games the day after the opening ceremonies. Thanks to the Korea Tourism Organization for bringing us there. We were also able to watch the qualifying rounds of sepak-takraw, which I will blog about later.

At the grounds around the main stadium, I saw the 45 flagpoles of the participating Asian countries, which reminded me of the parade of nations that I missed on TV! So, I decided that this was going to be the first blog about my visit to the 2014 Asian Games at Incheon.

Last Sunday, at a party with my fellow Filipino friends, we had a guessing game related to these Asian Games. The person who could identify correctly the most Asian flags would win. So, even before I chanced upon the long line of these flagpoles at the grounds this afternoon, I already did my homework, so to speak. I could identify these countries. Well, most of them at least. Ha-ha-ha!

And under the Saturday afternoon sun, these flags were waving with the breezes from the sea west of the main stadium, much like as they were when they entered the main stadium the night before. 

As I was taking photographs of the flags, I noticed that red was a common national color. Though the meaning of a color differs from each culture, having the color red on a flag just speaks of bravery, pride and life. 

So, if you also missed the opening ceremonies, you can swing by the main stadium of the 2014 Incheon Games and see for yourself the 45 national colors of the participating Asian countries. 

(I want one, too!)

Though these flags represent the different cultures of Asia, they have gathered in one place in the name of sports, friendship and mutual understanding.

So, good luck to all the athletes, especially, to the Philippine athletes and the Smart Gilas Basketball team.

And to quote President Park Geun-Hye...

"I declare open the 17th Asian Games."

(The Philippine flag with the Hong Kong flag on the left and the Palestine flag on the right)

Crossing My Fingers, Legs And Eyes For The 2014 Asian Games!

Three weeks ago, I asked a Korean friend whether he was going to the Asian Games (AG). He asked me back, "What Asian Games?"

His response made me think that, if the locals have no idea about the 2014 Asian Games that are going to be held in Incheon starting Friday, September 19, the organizing committee's efforts to publicize the Games might not have been enough. 

Tickets
On the first week of August, I called up the AG trunk line to inquire about the tickets and was able to talk to an English-speaking staff. Funny thing was, she gave me a website not at all linked to the AG official website for the tickets. She said, for foreigners in Korea, we must get our tickets from this website, and for Koreans, there would be another website.

But the funniest thing was, in the AG official website, it says that for foreigners outside Korea, you must get your tickets through your respective national olympic committees. Hmm.

Right there, I already smelled chaos.

Official Website
The official website http://www.incheon2014ag.org/index  is written only in Korean and English. I surfed the English pages last week and discovered links not working, messy lay-outs, and the English and quality of writing badly need improvement. If only the organizers hired professionals or perhaps, outsourced this to a competent advertising company, I would have understood most of what I was reading.

Venues
Most important for me was the venue location because if I were to actually watch the games, I should know where I was going. Last week, I looked for the 'Facilities' of the basketball matches. It indicated 'Samsan World Gymnasium'. So, I told my Filipino friends, who were looking forward to watching the Smart Gilas Basketball team of the Philippines play, that Samsan would be the venue. But suddenly, last night, another venue was added: Hwaseong Sports Complex Gymnasium. I wondered if the organizers only decided today that another venue would be used for the basketball matches. 

I just hope that the official website now indicates the correct venues for each sport. I hope.

No information hotline
Although the Asian Games brochure I got from the headquarters of the Korea Tourism Organization indicates a telephone number under 'Information', it's actually just a trunk line operated by a girl who claims to speak English, but didn't actually understood what I was saying. 

Today, I called again the 'trunk-line' so ask whether there was any 'face-painting' event around the sports site. Usually, during Korean festivals, there would be a 'face-painting' booth where everyone could have their face painted with different colors and design related to the event. I thought that it could actually be a good idea if there was one at the Asian Games, so that participants from Asian countries could have their flags or national colors painted on their faces.

A Filipino friend, who's planning to watch the games, asked me today whether there would be any 'face-painting' at the site. So, I called the trunk-line again and my call was transferred to an English-speaking staff who bluntly told me she didn't know anything. At all. Geez. 

I am wondering if the organizers just hired volunteers or have not briefed them where to source the information about what's actually happening at the Asian Games.

I guess if I want to know something about the Asian Games, I should refrain calling the useless 'information' telephone number, and just have to check the official website and cross my fingers that what I read there is actually the correct information.

Controversies
I found a write-up on the sports controversies on this Wikipedia page about the 2014 Asian Games. It involves cycling and basketball. I don't have all the facts about it but I wonder if the allegations have some semblance of truth to it. Hmm. Intriguing, actually.

But the most glaring controversy doesn't involve sports. It involves, what else, K-pop! Even in the Asian Games, K-pop lords over! Ha-ha-ha! It's about the trio JYJ, who used to be members of  the K-pop boy band,TVXQ. Early on, the Asian Games organizers appointed JYJ to be the Games' ambassadors, even singing its theme song. 

According to this petition, JYJ was "unilaterally dropped from the opening and closing ceremonies"  when their former agency came into the picture. This enraged their fans everywhere. Hell hath no fury like a K-pop fan scorned, indeed.

By the way, the recorded music when you call the Asian Games phone number is the AG song sung by JYJ.

Where's the Asian Games app?
Yes. I was expecting an Asian Games app! This is South Korea, where the tourist information, bus stops, subway system and even my Starbucks have an app! And in a country where you can shop for your groceries at the subway station platform by just using an app!

I am a tennis fan and I always download my apps for the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and just this month, the US Open!  And having these apps always keep me informed and updated with scores and the schedule. I even downloaded the Sochi Olympic Games app last February!

But those Grand Slams are just one sport, while the Asian Games are 36 sports! So, where in the kimchi world is the Asian Games app? They have none!  How primitive! I'm still shaking my head in disbelief!

          (The only poster of the Asian Games I saw in Seoul 
         was at the Korea Tourism Organization headquarters)

Oh, well. While I have a feeling there would still be glitches and controversies in the next two weeks, I just hope they won't be as bad as they already are. 

So, I am crossing my fingers, legs and eyes, and hoping that, aside from those 'Needs Improvement' aspects of the 2014 Asian Games, this would be a successful gathering of Asian countries in the name of sports.

I hope! Really.

Fanta-Stick: A Korean Performance At NH Art Hall

                       (My Fanta-Stick ticket courtesy of 
                         Korea Tourism Organization)

NH Art Hall is the only performance venue I have been to that's connected to an exit of a subway station. I didn't need to get out of Seodamun Stations' Exit 5 to find it.

There's an entrance right there into the theater before the escalators. And there's even a store selling agricultural products in case you want to get some groceries after watching the show.

Fanta-Stick is promoted as  a live 'gugak' musical. 'Gugak' means Korean traditional music. But the music played at the performance was not only gugak. I'd say more than half of the music played at the performance was recorded contemporary and modern.

During the show, I actually tried to figure out how was the title Fanta-Stick connected to the concept of the whole show. The story was about a man and a woman banished from the heavens for not having been able to take care of a sacred drum and flute, with the latter ending up lost and later found in a car repair shop. 

The family running the shop were humans and knew how to use percussion, while the banished family were ghosts and could play the Korean traditional instruments. I guess the title just borrowed 'fantasy' to describe the fictional story, and 'stick', to describe all the drumming.

The show was a mix of, well, Korean traditional music, dancing (with a lot of head tosses by the female performer with long hair!), slaptick comedy (for the kids), modern sounds and a lot of car parts. There was also a portion for audience participation where, that night, a female audience member was asked to come on stage and had her head beaten by a stick several times. Of course, she was wearing a helmet. And she got a gift for her bravery.

Too bad. A few days back, I watched MISO and couldn't help but compare the two shows, which actually bank on traditional Korean music and instruments. While MISO went all out on the traditional, from costumes to story, to music, Fanta-Stick tried to mix it with modern, making it look and sound ill-conceived and messy.

But perhaps, to an international tourist or to a kid, Fanta-Stick would be a funny novelty. But for it to last long, one needs creativity to make it stick. For now, the bus loads of Chinese tourists watching the show fill in the seats of NH Art Hall. They got a captive audience, so to speak. 

I actually saw excerpts of this show at the Korea In Motion showcase in Myeongdong during the chuseok holidays and I wasn't impressed at all. It was just a group of performers drumming and plucking their instruments with nary a concept but to produce noise. Even the playing of Korean instruments that time sounded discordant. 

But luckily, my ticket that night was courtesy of the Korea Tourism Organization, or I would have regretted buying a ticket, or wasting my time sitting there for 80 minutes wondering how many calories I could have burned if I spent those minutes jogging along the Han River park. Ha-ha-ha!

In the meantime, I'm looking forward to the Korean performance I'll watch next. Perhaps, there'll be more creativity this time.

But if you and your kids still want to watch this show, here's the show's website:

http://www.fanta-stick.co.kr/us/index.html

Riding The Popular Seoul City Tour Bus!

One Sunday afternoon, after I got off from a bus at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza on my way to a tennis shop, I saw this long line. 

I knew that the bus stop for the Seoul Sightseeing tour bus was at that spot, but I didn't expect to see a queue this long. I guess everyone wanted to see the city on a bright sunny day!

I

I have never taken the Seoul Sightseeing tour bus ride ever. And I wonder if I'd ever take one. But I guess, for tourists visiting Seoul, taking one would be an efficient way to see the city.

According to the Seoul City Tour bus website, a ride costs KRW12,000 per person (or should I say, tourist!). And I think it is indeed a cheaper way, not mention convenient, compared to riding the subway or transport buses just to roam the city in one day. 

I wonder if the queue at the ticket booth would be that long again the next time I swing around the area. But as they say, the early bird catches the worm. So if you're visiting Seoul soon, make sure you get there ahead of others because...the early tourist gets the best seat at the Seoul sightseeing bus! 

Enjoy!

The 2014 Korea In Motion Showcase At Myeongdong!

To keep the beat going, the 2014 Korea In Motion (KOINMO) festival holds a regular showcase performance in front of the Myeongdong Theater right in the middle of Seoul's shopping centrale.

This showcase performance features shows included in the KOINMO campaign. These performances are usually held twice a day at 1PM and 3PM.

During the holidays, I was able to pass by the Myeongdong area twice. The first time was when I headed to the Bukchon Village to visit a friend, and the second time was when I headed to the City Hall area to watch the MISO performance at Jeongdong Theater.

The two performances featured were the non-verbal show Fanta-Stick, and a musicale called Hwarang.

The crowd watching the KOINMO showcase was a mix of locals and international tourists who were there to shop and spend their day in Myeongdong. Fortunately, the KOINMO organizers followed my suggestion to also invite the crowd to watch the Korean performances in languages other than Korean; a KOINMO staff invited the crowd in Korean, English and Chinese.

So, if you're planning to watch these shows, you can see excerpts of the performances at the KOINMO showcase stage right in the middle of Myeongdong. 

Here's the link to the KOINMO website:

http://www.kperformance.org/Index.asp