I'll start off by sharing that I won the Pinoy KPOP Star 2011, held here in the Philippines last October 8. Result? I will represent the Philippines in the KPOP World Festival this December. And December came without me feeling it. It flew real fast but I was thankful that my song wasn't that hard compare to the songs I sang in the World Championships of Performing Arts. A once every three days practice did it.
Day 1 - Manila to Seoul
We took off at midnight on Asiana Airlines, bound for Incheon Airport in Seoul, South Korea. It was exciting since it was my first time flying on Asiana, let alone going to Korea. Although the excitement I felt didn't actually show on my face because it was midnight, and I needed sleep. So I slept all throughout the flight, and when I woke up, we had arrived.
The moment I stepped out of the aircraft, I felt like I entered a really huge freezer and started shaking. Was it really this cold? I looked at the bright side that it's only the air conditioner that's doing this, but I asked ate Jenny, one of my insulja, if the outside temperature was that cold too. She said, no, the airport was actually using heaters. I dropped my jaw. It was the coldest place I've ever been to, and it was shocking that the outside temp was colder.
When we went out to the arrival area, two guys wearing black jackets with a big "STAFF" print on their backs were holding a camera for filming, and a big sign that says, "KPOP World Festival 2011. Welcome to Korea!"
So you see, I was only wearing my Hello Kitty jacket and a scarf. Basically, if I go out wearing only those, I'd freeze myself to death.
We waited for a few minutes for Vietnam. Their flight is close to ours so I guess that's pretty wise, waiting for them. When they arrived, I felt really bad for myself since they all wore things that looked really KPOP-ish: printed jeans, Bruno Mars hat and other stuff. While me, I sat there, wearing jeans, shirt, jacket, Chucks and nothing else. I looked like a typical human being. xD
So we headed out to Yeouido Hotel after Vietnam's arrival. The staff were nice enough to lend us their jackets because the temp was really out of this world! Well, at least for a Filipino like me. We don't have winter seasons, so my body was really sucking the cold air like mad. We traveled for like an hour on the bus with Vietnam, and on the way, they kept on talking. It was the most interesting language I ever heard. Eventually, I learned that in Vietnamese, the tone changes the meaning. That explains a lot.
We arrived at the Yeouido Hotel at around 6am, without any proper sleep. Before I tried to sleep, I scanned the television in the Hotel room with ate Tech, and found a channel that plays music videos. There they were, the INFINITE. I'd no idea who they were, no idea that I will be as addicted to them as I am now. I watched them as I slept, ignoring the fact the I have to wake up as early as 12nn for lunch.
The next day, a.k.a. 5 hours later, my insulja's woke me up and we assembled at the lobby with the other participants from other countries. The lobby was jam packed with people wearing orange jackets: jackets that were provided to us by the organizers. The lobby was full of people I had only seen online. I've watched some of their performances through Korea.net and I was a bit shaken because there they were, a few inches away from me. Some were practicing their dances, but most of them were just sitting and waiting. Just like me.
We ate lunch at a buffet. It was one of the most neat buffets I've ever been to. The ambiance was so nice, and I'm thankful for the heaters. I stuffed my face with unfamiliar food and we left afterwards.
Back to the hotel room, we were given time to practice our pieces BUT with a camera filming us. It was a bit embarrassing because I've never practiced with a stranger holding a camera before. But after a few minutes, I eventually got the hang of it. I danced, I sang, I fangirl-ed in front of the cam, saying a few Korean phrases from time to time which makes the interviewer a bit hyped up and also a bit disappointed that I couldn't hold a Korean conversation. It was fun though. After like 20 minutes or so, she left our room. That was in the afternoon, and the next schedule wasn't until that night, so we had free time. We went to Yeouido park, and to the family mart, and that was the first time I ever tasted the heavenly taste of Banana Uyu.
I had two bottles that day, or three. I can't even remember.
That night was the elimination. Only 10 out of the 21 teams are to perform in the finals, so we had an elimination. I sang Byeol by Youmi, which was also my contest piece, and I'm happy that I sang it well. Although I was a little bit embarrassed for forgetting what I was about to say before I perform. >.< It was in Korean, and I'm a Filipino. I guess that's considerable.
So yes, the other teams got a lot of exposures because a lot of media men gathered around them. I sat there, waiting to go home. Haha. I was tired, and I lacked sleep. So I wasn't really showing myself off. We had dinner before going back to the hotel. And before I shove myself under the sheets, I finished a bottle of Banana uyu, and a bar of Hersheys: a little reward for myself for doing a good job.
Day 2 - Idol Mentoring and Announcement of Finalists
The next day, we woke up late. We were told to gather at the lobby at 8am, and me and my insuljas woke up at 8am. So we didn't have time to even process that we were already awake. We went down the lobby and went out for breakfast.
That afternoon was the best afternoon of my life. We went to the Starship Entertainment building to meet a few stars. Sistar, Boyfriend and K.Will. So when we arrived, we went straight to the training room, and the staff told us to dance. They played Sistar's So Cool and just right around the chorus, the Japan team, who were standing across the room, started screaming. I wondered why, so I looked at where they were looking. They were looking at the door, screaming and shouting, and I saw Dasom peeking. DASOM! The girl from Sistar. When the other teams started noticing her, everyone freaked out! So the staff let the Sistar in, followed by Boyfriend and K.Will. I was really starstruck.
I screamed at the top of my lungs, but then I remembered that the finals will be on the next day, and if ever I got in, I would perform. So I saved my voice and just flashed my biggest smile with my left hand hiding it.
They started talking about things I never understood. They talked in Korean without any translators, so I just stood there and smiled and nodded and laughed. Awkward.
The downside was I never got a picture with Sistar, K.Will and Boyfriend. It was not allowed. Although other teams got a picture with some of them. I wasn't just that delinquent enough. Haha. Afterwards, we were divided into two, and I was in K.Will's group. Quite right because K.Will taught us to sing properly and gave us a few tips. He spoke in Korean, and I'm happy there was a translator.
I was with teams Vietnam, Chile, Poland, Germany, England, USA and China.
After the mentoring, they announced the finalists! It was scary! I was so nervous and I was shaking. They called in the first, second, third, fourth finalists. Still no. Fifth, sixth, seventh. Nope. I lost hope. Only 10. ONLY TEN. And we were, what, 21? I started thinking about what to post on Facebook. An apologetic status, maybe. I was composing a speech to say to my parents, a speech apologizing for not doing my best. Then they called in the eighth, and my heart stopped when they said, "PHILIPPINES!" I slipped and landed on the floor because of joy, forgetting everything I thought of.
When the announcement was over, I hugged my insuljas and started crying. My eyes were leaking so bad. Everyone flashed in my mind: my parents, my sister, my grand parents, my titos and titas, my cousins, my friends. I thought I would totally make them proud. After crying, I started dancing I Am The Best of 2NE1 with my friends and red eyes. We were totally the best. Media men gathered around, and started asking questions. How do I feel? What can I say? I said everything I felt in rapid English. It was one of the happiest afternoons in my life.
That night, we were off to Changweon and we traveled for 5 hours. Before I slept on the bus, I finished another bottle of banana uyu. God, I love it so much.
Day 3 - The Finals
We arrived in Changweon and slept a bit. After a few hours of sleep, we woke up for breakfast, and set off for the Changweon Town Tour. We went somewhere very traditional. Traditional houses and other traditional stuff. I enjoyed it. That was also the time when I started making friends with the other teams, particularly Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Vietnam and France.
After the tour, we left for the dome where the finals took place. There was already a long line of audience, waiting to enter the dome. The fun part of it was when we acted like we were the KPOP Stars, and those were our fans. We wore shades, and hid our faces and shouted "HIDE! Paparazzis are everywhere!" It was sort of true! Media men followed us wherever we go, so it felt somewhat real. It was fun times.
We started the technical rehearsals and the sound system was really good! After my rehearsal, I was called to the dressing room for my wardrobe, make up and hair style. Then, rehearsals again. Afterwards, I rested, and drank tea from Steven, from NYC. I thanked him for it because it really helped me open up my throat. I waited for the event to start, with interviews from time to time. The show started without me knowing it, so I freaked out! I was like "It's starting already?! HOW COME I DON'T KNOW!?" Haha. So I went to peek at the stage, and there were KPOP Stars already performing. I thought I should prepare already. So I said my little prayer of thanks, and asked for support and guidance.
When it was my turn to perform, there was the INFINITE behind me. I didn't know that they were next after my performance. (I'm spazzing while I'm typing this part. Srsly.) I got up on stage and started performing. The audience was HUGE! More or less 10,000 people were there. It was the biggest audience I ever had. It was also heart warming since they were waving their light sticks to the beat of my song. I bowed after I finished the song and went down the stage. My insuljas hugged my tight and gave me a thumbs up for a good performance. I was contented. I thought, even if I don't win, I'm happy that I got the chance to perform on a stage like that, and in front of a crowd like that.
I went to the audience to join them watching INFINITE perform Naekkeo Haja and Paradise, and seriously, I died. They were so handsome! They were so good! They are what I call REAL performers. They were charismatic, and I was under their spell. After their performance, I went to the backstage to see them, and fortunately, I got a picture with 성규 and 성열!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I'm so happy.
INFINITE were so nice. I said, "Annyeong haseyo, can we take a picture?" and Seong Gyu and Seong Yeol nodded with a smile and said, "Where's the camera?" with a very funny accent. Haha! They were so cute! And so kind to their fans. *cough*Unlike Boyfriend*cough*. And I totally freaked out when ate Tech told me that while I was performing, all of INFINITE members were watching my performance real closely. O___O I am so happy that they were paying attention. And I just realized that I should be happier since they actually know of my existence. They actually know that I exist and there is someone like me. At least I have a little space in their memory. Haha.
So yeah, when they announced the winners, it was funny because they said everything in Korean. So all of the participants had no idea what they were saying, except for Steven from NYC, who was fluent in Hangeul. Otherwise, the rest of us looked at each other with questioning looks. They announced the Philippines and Kazakhstan last, so we assumed that we were the champions. Confetti covered us, and Ring Ding Dong by SHINee started playing.
After the event, a bunch of media men gathered again, with numerous cameras and lapels, and our translators around us- Ate Jenny, in my case. They asked the most common question, "How do you feel?" Of course, I had only one answer to that. I was so happy. So happy that I made another big win, and so happy that I made my family and the whole Philippines proud.
We had dinner at the fifth floor. Not really dinner. There were only finger foods, so I helped myself on barefoot. I couldn't take my heels anymore. I wore it all afternoon and all night, so I gave it up. Good thing ate Tech was kind to let me borrow her shoes. She wore my heels, and I wore her shoes. Haha. Another series of interviews occurred, and the questions kept on repeating that I memorized my answers to every one of them.
When we got back to the hotel, most of the participants were all worn out. But me, not really. I invited some of still hyped participants to the noraebang, or KTV. I said I would pay for it, as a little treat for winning the contest. We went to the noraebang just across the street and sang our lungs out. From 11pm, to 4am. We were crazy. It was so fun. I never thought we would be THAT close to each other.
Day 4 - Back to Seoul and Seoul City Tour
The next day, we went back to Seoul and had a city tour. Seoul was super cold that day. It was -4 degrees celsius, so we had to really cover up ourselves and stay warm. So we kept on talking and chatting and laughing, which actually made no difference because the cold was really going mad by the second.
Of course, the media never left us. I guess we had interviews every 10 steps, and we were told to say We Love Korea and We Love KPOP a hundred times a day. It was tiring, but we really do love Korea, so it was fine. We toured the palace in Seoul, and left for Myeongdong.
Myeongdong is like Seoul's down town. Shopping centers were there and it was the best place for tourists like us. So I went straight to the CD store to buy albums of my favorite KPOP Artists. I bought Sistar's, SHINees's, and 2NE1's albums. I purposely didn't buy Boyfriend's album maybe because I have a little hate with them. Haha. Just a little.
After that, we went for dinner, and the saddest part of the event happened. We had to leave each other already, and we didn't even have time to say our proper goodbyes. What is time?
They brought us to the traditional Korean house for our Hanok experience. It was okay. It's like living in the past in Korea. The temp was cold, but the warm flooring of the house made us feel better. We shared the house with NYC, LA, England, and Prague: Steven, Tara, Cherelle and the sisters from Prague. We didn't sleep that night. We just talked, and laughed and pigged out because the fridge was packed with food and drinks!! FREE FOOD! YAY. I ate two cups of noodles, bunch of oreos and drank coffee... in the middle of the night. We shared experiences, and talked about our countries and our accents. It was sooooo fun. That's why it really broke my heart when we had to leave Korea the next day.
Our flight was in the morning, so we weren't able to say goodbye to the others before we leave. It's so depressing. We only had almost 4 days with each other. Time flew so fast. I had made so very good friends with them, and I am hoping that I will see them again someday, somewhere in my whole lifetime. I promised the gang that I will meet them again before I get married. Not so harsh because I thought "before I die" first. But oh well, I miss them.
Overall, the KPOP World Festival didn't only give me such good experiences, but it also gave me such good friends from different places around the globe. It was only 4 days, but it was the best 4 days of my life and I would trade a memory to live it again.
Please watch the KPOP World Festival on December 30, 6pm Korea Time on KBS2. It will be a 2 hour special and I'm really looking forward to it!
Merry Christmas everyone!
