Kia Brings Tennis Champions To Seoul!

Their names are already legends in tennis: Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Marat Safin, and Pat Cash.

And thanks to Kia Motors and the ATP Champions Tour, these tennis legends came to Seoul, much to the delight of their Korean fans!

            (Marat Safin and John McEnroe 
             talking to sports reporters)

             (The four Champions in Seoul)

On November 12 and 13 in 2016, when the autumn temperatures in Seoul were best for the outdoors, the legends amazed their Korean fans with their booming serves, shot-making, and enthralling points that made their names the most exciting to watch during their professional days. 

John McEnroe, a former World No. 1 with 7 Grand Slam singles titles to his name, is the only left-handed player in the field. McEnroe is known for his serve-and-volley game as well as his leftie out-wide serve, which, according to Pat Cash, "is very difficult on this court; it's very fast".

         (Young tennis players pose with 
                       Pete and Pat)

         (Fernando Gonzalez was last year's                  tournament champion)

Pete Sampras, with his 14 Grand Slam singles titles, sharing the 2nd spot with Rafa Nadal in the current all-time record list, is also known for his serve-and-volley game, but it's his booming serves that usually do the damage. 

When I asked Pete Sampras about his reaching the World No. 1 ranking in 1993 and the 286 weeks he spent on that spot, he said that "it was one thing to get there; it's twice as hard to stay there".  

                  (Pat Cash with fans)

   (Marat Safin with a young Korean fan)

Marat Safin, also a former World No. 1, has won 2 Grand Slam singles titles, while Pat Cash has been a Wimbledon champion.

                (Excited tennis fans)

          (John McEnroe with his fans)

With the tournament having events such as the autograph signing, the 'one-point lesson' hit with Pat and Pete, and the 'fastest serve' contest, the local and international tennis fans in the SK Handball Arena were treated to a weekend of fun and special tennis matches.

                    (Marat in action)

During the matches, fans would get into the game by cheering words of encouragement for their favorite players.

But the most popular player among the fans was Pat Cash, who not only entertained everyone with his antics on court, but also gave away his prized trademark headbands to lucky fans who were seated courtside. He even walked over to a fan on the other side of the court just to give her his headband in appreciation of the fan's all-out cheering for him.

      (McEnroe questioning a line call)

      (Pat Cash unleashing a backhand)

And just like his old self, John McEnroe flared up during matches (jokingly though) whenever a questionable line call didn't go his way. But that's what fans came to see: their favorite tennis players being just themselves on the court.

And being a tennis fan and a player myself, I felt the excitement of the fans, both young and old, whenever a long rally happened and ended with a winner, or when they rushed courtside after matches to ask for a photo with their favorite player or for an autograph. 

            (The great Pete Sampras)

I even heard one Korean female fan loudly giggled after she had a photo with Marat Safin. It was understandable; he is handsome and at 6'4", his presence on the court is still intimidating.

On the first day of the tournament, Marat Safin won over Pete Sampras (7-6 (4),6-4), while John McEnroe won over Pat Cash (6-2,6-4). 

On the second day, Marat Safin lifted the champion's trophy after winning over John McEnroe (7-5,7-5), while Pete Sampras won over Pat Cash (7-5,6-3).   

        (McEnroe talking to a reporter)

(Marat Safin giving a champion's speech as the runner-up, John McEnroe, looks on)

While the two-day tournament was probably too short for Korean fans to enjoy watching these champions, Kia and the ATP Champions Tour would probably be bringing more legendary champions to Seoul next year! :-)

Sit, Sip, and See: Deoksu Palace in Autumn Colors!

Autumn is the season of the year when the trees in Seoul turn to yellow, orange, and red before they fall. 

And if you want to enjoy the fall colors from the ground, you can just walk around the palace gardens and the surrounding hills and mountains. 

But if you want to enjoy the colors from above, one spot that would certainly give you a spectacular view of autumn is from the Jeong-dong Observatory!

From here, on the 13th floor of the City Hall's Seosomun Building, you can look down on Deoksu Palace while having an iced cafe mocha!

             (A spectacular view of the palace 
       while sipping iced cafe mocha!)

Yes, there's a café at the Yeongdong Observatory, where you can sit, sip, and see! 

The view is breathtaking and probably the best view of any palace in Seoul while being bathed in beautiful fall colors!

The best time to go up there is when the trees are on their best fall colors, and during noon time when the sun is at its brightest and is bathing the palace and its gardens with a colorful glow! 

The Jeongdong Observatory is on the building left of the Deoksu Palace. Just take the cobblestone street on the left side of the palace walls, and go inside the first government building you see on your left. Once inside, enter through the right turnstile. There's an elevator going up to the 13th floor.

I hope you'll find the Jeongdong Observatory when you're in Seoul and enjoy the fantastic autumn view like I did!

Travel Seoul: Dongdaemun's Jeon Tae-Il Bridge

             (The Dongdaemun Gate)

Dongdaemun is considered the fashion shopping capital of Korea. Clothes, bags, fashion accessories and everything else fashionistas would need to complete their look are all found in Dongdaemun.

If you're familiar with the place, there are multi-storey buildings devoted for clothes like Migliore, Doota, and a few more are sprouting up (read blog here), and a huge markets selling bags (read blog here), shoes and everything else that would fill your shopping bags. And they are open from midnight until the next morning! 😍

(Beodeuldari Bridge or Jeon Tae-il Bridge)

                     (Jeon Tae-il's revered statue)

If you have gone around the Dongdaemun shopping area, you must have noticed several small bridges that straddle the Cheonggye Stream.

And if you have crossed one, you must have noticed a half-body statue of an innocent-looking Korean man. 

His name is Jeon Tae-il. And he is the hero industrial workers in Dongdaemun and around Korea are grateful to.

In 1970, he raised awareness about the horrible working conditions of industrial workers in Dongdaemun, and when his efforts were silenced, he set himself on fire and ran the streets of Seoul shouting, "We are not machines! Enforce the labor code!" 

He was just 22 years old. 😭

Twenty-two! 😭

He was very young and yet so brave and heroic, and fought for what he believed was right.

Jeon Tae-il died from his burns. But his crusade continued on and eventually encouraged the workers to unite and fight for their rights.

November 13, 1970 was the day he died. And every year, on this day, many pay tribute Jeon Tae-il in front of his statue with songs, flower offerings and prayers.

So, if you're crossing a small bridge in Dongdaemun and see his statue, try to remember the hero and what he did for others. 

Who knows? Without Jeon Tae-il, Dongdaemun might not be what it is today as industrial workers and their working conditions might not have improved without him raising awareness on their sad plight.

Here's to Jeon Tae-il, a hero.🙏

              (Locator map of Jeon Tae-il's bridge)

The Neighborhood Street Painters

On my first weekend in this neighborhood, I went walking around to familiarize myself with local alleys and streets.

              (The painters are students and 
            were supervised a teacher)

And as I was turning a bend towards the busier part of the village, I was surprised to see a group of young Koreans painting the walls of some homes.

That morning, they were doing the sketches of the figures that would make this quiet alley a more interesting one. As they were just starting, I decided to drop by again later during the week to see the finished masterpiece.

A couple of days after, I deliberately passed by the alley to see for myself the finished drawings.  They were of cute pig characters painted on all the homes on that alley. 

The painters were just college students who volunteered their time and artistry to transform this corner of the neighborhood into an artsy stretch.

                    (The finished masterpieces)

So, in case you're wandering around a certain neighborhood in the Dongdaemun District in Seoul and chance upon these drawings, these were done by several teenagers who, for a day or two, were the neighborhood street painters.

I love this neighborhood!