I just read a recent release by the Expo Organizing Committee regarding accomodations in Yeosu. It contains a bit of new information on lodgings and you can read it here. [NOTE: no longer available] That’s the main site, then click on Expo 2012 –>Expo News. It summarizes the types of accomodations available and gives you the hotline number to call with your questions. That number is 82-1577-2012 (82 is Korea’s international call prefix number). It looks like there are still quite a number of rooms available, so if you plan on coming over, give a shot at staying here in Yeosu.
Month: May 2012 (Page 2 of 2)
Angola Pavilion Entrance
OK, so here’s my first pavilion review. Let me state that these are just my opinions and others may have different thoughts about individual pavilions, so caveat emptor, so to speak.
I was going to give a grade to each pavilion, but, me being a teacher, that seems too pedantic. I’ll just give a recommendation about whether or not a pavilion is “must see.” Most of the international pavilions that I’ve seen are worth a visit. If you’ve got a lot of time, take in as many as you can. However, if you’re only going to be in Yeosu a day or two, you’re going to have to maximize your time. You really need at least several days to browse around. Hopefully, these reviews will help you.
Angola would seem to be an unlikely country to have a great pavilion, but it does. It has a beautiful exterior that easily catches the eye, but it’s kind of off in a corner. I haven’t noticed any long lines, but I’ve usually been by the pavilion before noon, so later times might mean longer lines. (That’s true of any of the pavilions–go early in the day to avoid the lines.)
This is one of those pavilions where visitors are ushered in in groups, probably about 20-30 at a time. Once inside, you’re given an introduction to the country by way of several video monitors. Then, you’re led into a larger theater with a large screen that shows a several-minutes long video about the gorgeous Angola coastline. Very nicely done. After that, you go into a small interactive area that also has a few cultural assets.
If that were all that the pavilion had, it probably wouldn’t be worth waiting in line for. The thing that makes this a special visit is the restaurant and performance stage. The restaurant has an extensive menu, and you can sip on a beverage, including various teas and beers. When I ate there this afternoon, the staff told me that only a few choices on the menu were available, but the food items would be arriving in the near future. Also, the Angolan beer, Cuca, hadn’t yet arrived. No problem.
After around 2 p.m., you can also take in some of the Angolan musical performers and dancers on the stage in the restaurant. I haven’t been there late enough to check that out, but I hope to go there tomorrow evening to catch some of the performances, and I’ll post my impressions at a later date. At any rate, the restaurant seems like a great place to chill and enjoy some African music. Adding to the laid back feeling is the friendly staff. If you go there, enjoy a chat with Uzail, Bernie, Leandro or Eldon. Cool dudes, and everyone else seems very accomodating, too.
On a couple of these photos, there seems to be some odd ghost-like figures on the back wall, but music videos are projected there when live performances aren’t taking place.
Angola Pavilion Restaurant
Angola Pavilion Restaurant
Angola Pavilion Restaurant
Angola Pavilion Restaurant
The paintings along the wall are part of a monthly rotating exhibit of Angolan artists. Here’s a close up of one of them.
Angola Pavilion Restaurant Painting
Like I said, I had lunch there today. I ordered a rice and seafood stew and it was darn good! The downside was that there were a few small bits of crab shell that I bit into, so I don’t think I’d order that particular dish again, but it was good. I also had a small cup of coffee. The total bill was 16,000 Korean won , around 14 or 15 US dollars. Most of the pavilion restaurants, and there are many, charge between $10 and $20 an entree. You can get cheaper food outside the pavilions at any of the numerous food courts. The food in those courts, mostly Korean fare, is also quite edible. I promise, you won’t go hungry at the Expo. For even cheaper fare, there are many small Korean food stalls and coffee shops clustered around the main gate. Most of their food looks very palatable.
Angola Rice and Seafood Stew
I didn’t notice a souvenir shop, but there may be a small one. I’ll report on that later.
So, here’s a short summary of the Angola Pavilion.
time and day visited–Tuesday, May 15th, 10:30 a.m. and Thursday, May 17th, 12:30 p.m.
decor–entrance good, restaurant awesome
lines–short in the morning, maybe longer later on
multimedia–large screen presentation, a few interactive screens
souvenir shop–??
cultural assets–a few, except for the restaurant, which has many
restaurant/bar–superb, prices in line with other International Pavilion prices
overall rating–I consider this a must-see for the restaurant alone, although the large-screen video of the Angola coastline was spectacular. Laid back atmosphere with friendly staff. Make room for the Angola Pavilion on your itinerary.
OK, I hope you enjoyed my first review and I’ll try to get more of these posted on a frequent basis every few days, or, depending on time, perhaps a couple a day.
I’ve been out to the Expo twice since it opened and I’ve been taking literally 100s of photos. Many of those I’ve deleted because of exposure problems, blurring or bad composition. Still, I’ve got dozens that I could probably post here, some good and some average. I’m sure I’ll be taking hundreds more, but I’m not going to bore you with all those shots. Therefore, I’ll put up a few random scenes here and there from time to time.
What I think I really want to do is to focus on some of the major pavilions, including the International Pavilions and to give my opinion of them, along with a few photos. I’m thinking of rating them according to several criteria, including cultural aspects, the overall look, use of multimedia, quality of the souvenir shop (which most pavilions have) and whether or not there is a restaurant/bar and the pricing. This might be handy if you’re going to be here for only a day or two, and you want to visit some of the more interesting areas. (In my opinion, you’d need several days to really take in the Expo.) So, stay tuned for the upcoming Pavilion Reviews, probably beginning tomorrow.
In the meantime, here are a few shots from opening day, last Saturday, May 12th. Enjoy. One of the performance highlights is the Ocean Show, which is put on in the area of the Big O. It’s very colorful, interesting and exciting. Here are a few photos of the Ocean Show.
Overlooking the performance was the 11-meter (33 feet) tall mechanical marionette, Yeonani. He’s become, like the Big O itself, somewhat of an icon of the Expo. He’s chauffeured all over the place. Here he’s on the walkway between the International Pavilion and the Theme Pavilion.
Yeonani
Here are a few of the many performers in the Ocean Show. First up, literally, are some pole “sitters,” who climbed atop the flexible poles and cavorted and swayed to the enjoyment of the audience.
Pole Performers
Pole Performers
Other performers included gaily costumed dancers and trampoline artists.
Ocean Show Dancer
Ocean Show Dancer
Trampoline Acrobats
Trampoline Acrobats
And then there’s this amazing guy, who hovered above the surface of the ocean through the force of jets of water streaming out of his feet and hands. Reminds me a lot of some comic book Super Hero. He does his “flying” at the far end of the performing area, but now that I know where he appears, I’ll try to be watching from the other side the next time the performance occurs so I can get some close-up shots of him.
Water Flyer
Water Flyer
Water Flyer
Here’s a shot of the Theme Pavilion from the far end of the structure.
Theme Pavilion
Finally, a photo of the Big O at twilight, with the Theme Pavilion on the left and one of the docked sailing ships on the right. This particular ship was lit with ever-changing lights, including green, blue and red. I caught it here in green.
The Big O at Twilight
I’m going to the Expo again tomorrow, so I’ll visit a few of the International Pavilion areas and, hopefully, put up a pavilion review or two. More later.
I went to the opening day of the Yeosu Expo 2012 yesterday, and it was spectacular, in my opinion. Most of the pavilions are up and running (except, of course, Saudi Arabia). Here, then, is a quick report.
If you’re looking for pavilions that provide the host country food, look no farther than these countries. The German Pavilion has an extensive menu, featuring a splendid German sausage sample platter (which I had) and several different types of beer. Belgium has plenty of their chocolates and features a chocolatier making chocolate confections as you watch. Their restaurant has plenty of food, including Belgian waffles and various beers. (As a side note, five of my students from last year are working in the pavilion, and I’m quite proud that they’re putting their English skills to good use.) Spain has a very nice tapas bar and, of course, Spanish beer and wine. In the Australia Pavilion, you can snack on various kangaroo meat dishes, and Uruguay [EDIT: changed from Ecuador–my mistake] has a small snack bar with several delicious-looking beef sandwiches (I’ll give ’em a try at a later date). I didn’t walk through all that many pavilions yesterday, but I bought a season pass, so I’ll be reporting throughout the summer on any other pavilions that have food and I’ll try to give some recommendations about interesting places to visit. (Can you tell I’m a bit of a foodie?) So far, definitely visit the above places, and I also found that the Pacific Joint Group Pavilion was very interesting (found the Laos booth there–no Lao food, however), which features booths from the Marshall Islands, the Solomons, Fiji, Tonga and others.
There are many other restaurants with Korean food and burgers and such, so you certainly won’t go hungry at the Expo, and the prices are reasonable. Lots of coffee shops, too, and if you drink too much coffee or beer, there are restrooms everywhere.
The afternoon performance at the Big O area was superb and is called, obviously, the Water Show. It’s quite colorful, entertaining and exciting. Be sure to take that in if you’re coming to the Expo.
There weren’t as many people as I expected, and certainly there were quite a lot fewer attendees than there were for the rehearsal on May 5th. That meant that the lines were much shorter for most of the exhibits. Officials estimated that around 100,000 visitors would attend each day this past weekend. I didn’t go today, but, hey, I’ve got all summer! I haven’t processed yesterday’s photos yet, but I’ll get those up ASAP.
In short, I really think the Korean government and the Korean people have done a great job getting this all set up and running, and if you plan on coming over, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. I hope to see you at the Yesou 2012 Expo.
A Korea Times article dated May 9th, 2012, begins with the headline Still Under Construction, and has a sub-heading “With 2 days to go before opening, Yeosu Expo unprepared.”
I’ve given some nice reviews of the Expo site, but, to be fair, I’d better report some of the downside, too. The article goes on to state:
With the grand opening of the Yeosu Expo slated for Saturday, exhibition halls and other facilities are unfinished, littered with tools, electric cords and others, casting doubt on whether the international event’s long-awaited opening will take place on time.
“The expo will have its opening with the construction of some booths being incomplete,” said an official of the organizing committee. “We keep encouraging hosts of these to get everything done as quickly as possible.”
Even the main building of the three-month event, the Theme Pavilion, designed to visualize the expo’s “The Living Ocean and Coast” theme was not an exception.
Dozens of engineers were laboriously giving final touches to the building’s exterior and interior. The front yard of the building was littered with trash and sawdust from a giant saw that trimmed plywood to be used to decorate the building’s exterior.
The biggest headache for the expo’s organizing committee in this regard is the International Pavilion, which will present exhibition materials from 104 participating countries.
Of them, 47 countries have promised to build their own independent halls with their own budget, while the remaining 57 have contracted to run their exhibitions in a spacious pavilion built by the expo.
However, only 10 out of the 47 self-financing states — the United States, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, the Netherland, Pakistan, Israel, Russia, Oman and Thailand — are set to greet visitors, while the others still have a long way to go.
The article goes on to be very critical of one country in particular–Saudi Arabia. I just read an article in the Saudi Gazette, dated May 10th. It’s headline is “Kingdom participates in Yeosu Korea Expo 2012.” It goes on to state that:
The Kingdom, through the Saudi Ports Authority, will have six booths during the entire expo, that will highlight its knowledge on the proper use of the ocean and coast and underscore the need for cooperation in the marine sector.
Hold on, there. The Korea Times article also says that
The organizing committee has openly vented its frustration to Saudi Arabia since the oil-rich Middle East has done nothing yet reportedly due to a budget shortfall. Its pavilion is set to be built on 350 square meters, which is one of the largest exhibition halls. But the site is currently empty, and surrounded by painted steel panels.
A construction worker familiar with the Saudi Arabian pavilion was quoted as saying in a news report that, “Saudi Arabia planned to invest more than $3.5 million in the project. But its ruler didn’t approve the plan so all related work has been put on hold.”
The organizing committee has repeatedly asked the country to take proper action to deal with this, but it has remained silent.
“We have delivered our messages (to Saudi Arabia) through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. But there has been no response yet,” an organizing committee official said. “If the country withdraws its participation, we will use the space for a restaurant or restroom.”
I left a comment on the Saudi Gazette about their article and quoted some of the Korea Times story, but I doubt that my comment will see the light of day.
So, are the Saudis reneging on their commitment? And how about all those other countries who are lagging behind. Are their pavilions and exhibitions going to be finished on time? I hardly think it’s the fault of the Expo Committee that some countries, especially S.A., have failed to live up to their obligations. We’ll just have to wait and see, I guess, but I think the Expo could use another restaurant or two.
The Korea article also bemoans the lack of accommodations in Yeosu for foreign visitors, but I’ve mentioned that before, and the committee says they’re working on the problem. Wait and see, eh? Good luck finding a decent room here, though. More later.
Here are some more scenes from last Saturday’s mass rehearsal. This is the main hall of the International Pavilion, looking toward the Main Gate, which was packed with people waiting in line to get in. When I first got to the Expo around 10 a.m., I saw the looooong lines and decided to walk around to the gate near the train station, where the lines were much shorter. The individual country pavilions are located under the curving, grass-covered slopes to the left and the right. There are a couple more pavilion blocks to the sides, closer to the camera, but out of the picture.
Main Hall at the International Pavilion
If you look closely at the above shot, you might be able to spot a rather larger-than-life sized family in the middle of the pavilion. Walking down to the area gives a good look at them. Because of the similarity to the “Spyglass Lady” sitting on the Organizing Committee building (see her here), I assume they are both works by the same artist. (And I think they’re both great!)
Tall Family in the International Pavilion
There are four entrance gates into the Expo, and here’s a look at Gate 4, the Expo Town Gate. The other entrance gates are the Main Gate, Odongdo Gate, and the Train Station gate.
Expo Town Gate 4
Walking out of the International Pavilion gives you a good view of much of the Expo, including, clockwise from upper left, the Theme Pavilion, the MVL Hotel with the Marine City and Civilization Pavilion in front of it, the Big O, the Aquarium, and, at the bottom, the Amphitheater on the Ocean Plaza. The reddish-brown walkway just to the right of the Big O leads to the Floating Stage.
The Expo from the International Pavilion
The Amphitheater is the place to be during the day, as far as performances go. There are going to be many street performers and other entertainment taking place here, as well as in other areas around the site. Last Saturday saw a trio of stilt walkers putting in a couple of appearances, delighting the crowd of youngsters with their juggling and dancing, and posing for pictures with the kids.
Stilt Performers
Stilt Performers
Stilt Performers
I also caught the tail-end of another much larger performance with costumed dancers and Who Knows What Else, since I only got there in time to see the exit. Part of the entourage of performers leaving the area was this huge puppet, operated by a winch-and-cable system. I’ll have to be sure to check this performance out the next time I’m there.
Large Puppet
Large Puppet
I’ve decided to buy a season pass since there are so many interesting and “hidden” things to see and do that I’ll easily get my money’s worth. I don’t have classes until 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so it’ll be nice to wake up in the morning and decide, on the spur of the moment, to go to the Expo for 3 or 4 hours. Hopefully, then, I’ll have a lot more to say and show about the Expo as the summer goes on. I’m definitely going to try to attend the Opening Day ceremonies this coming Saturday, May 12th. So, more later.
I took in the full-scale rehearsal this past Saturday along with about 100,000 other awestruck visitors. My quick reaction: the Yeosu 2012 Expo is amazing. It met and exceeded all my expectations. If you’re in the area, you should definitely attend. I arrived at 10:30 in the morning and stayed until closing time at 11 p.m., a pretty tiring day, but well worth it.
Most of the pavilions were open, but a few were still being worked on; I imagine they’ll all be up and running in time for next Saturday’s official opening, which I’ll try to attend if I can get a ticket. As a matter of fact, I’ll probably buy a season pass, which costs 200,000 Korean won, about $175.
I took close to 500 photos throughout the day and night, and I’m still going through them, culling, deleting the obviously bad shots and deciding which of the others are worthwhile. It’s going to take a while before I process the good ones, but I’ll get them up as soon as possible.
One of the highlights was the beautiful experience of the centerpiece of the Expo, the Big O. After the night time stage performance, the Big O took over, showing off with a 3-D laser show incorporating bursts of flame and colorful fountains, mist and fog. It was very difficult to photograph properly, with the lighting changing constantly. About all I could do was fire off a burst of shots, adjust my settings and fire off some more. I didn’t have a tripod, although that probably wouldn’t have helped, but the lens I used does have an image stabilizer feature, so some of the shots didn’t turn out too bad. Here’s one of them.
The Big O Shows Off
I was able to process a few more photos before going to work this morning, so here are a couple of views of the Theme Pavilion, the first one taken from the International Pavilions building, and the second taken from behind the Theme Pavilion, looking toward the Sky Tower and the Corporate Pavilions on the right.
Theme Pavilion
Theme Pavilion
Here’s a shot from behind the Samsung Pavilion looking toward the Sky Tower.
The Samsung Pavilion with Sky Tower in the Background
And here’s the Samsung Pavilion from the front.
The Samsung Pavilion
Finally, another one of the Sky Tower.
The Sky Tower
I’ll have many more photos to post and some other impressions of the Expo. I’ll try to get some more up later today. Enjoy.
Literally. I’m so sad. The great Mariano Rivera, closing pitcher extraordinaire for the New York Yankees, took a tumble while shagging fly balls during batting practice today, and tore up his knee to an extent that it could mean the end of his season and of his career. Mo was, perhaps, going to retire after this year, but this is one of those things that just shouldn’t happen. Not just another selfish, rich athlete, he is a marvelous example of the combination of humility, excellence and spirituality. Here’s a post I wrote after I met him at the Yankees’ baseball academy in The Dominican Republic.
Mo
(I’d like to give credit to whoever took this photo, but I found it on many different websites, including Flickr, so to whoever originally took the shot–Thanks!)
It seems like Rivera’s amazing career is over, but if anyone can come back from this extreme injury, Mariano can. Let’s hope that he’ll be shutting down the opposition in the 2012 play offs. Let’s Go Mo!
P.S. I just read this morning in the New York Times(May 5th) tha tRivera says he’ll be back for the 2013 season. He said that he’ll not let his career end this way. That’s great news. I still hope he’ll be back for the playoffs this year, though. 🙂
Tomorrow, May 5th, is the biggest rehearsal prior to the official opening of the Yeosu Expo 2012 next Saturday. I’ve got my ticket, so I’ll be there, finally being able to take some photos from inside the site (yes, yes, yes, YES!!!). Tickets for this rehearsal cost 3,000 won, about two and a half American dollars, compared to the standard daily pass price of 35,000 won ($31) after the Expo opens. There have been a few smaller-scale rehearsals over the past few weeks, the largest topping out at about 60,000 people. Tomorrow, however, more than 100,000 tickets have been sold, which is about the expected daily total for the duration of the three-month event. I’m really excited about wandering around the site tomorrow, exploring all the nooks and crannies I can find, as well as the main areas, and I’ll post my photos on Sunday. The area is so large, that I’ll be able to take photos all summer and not repeat myself. (A season pass costs 200,000 won, and I might buy one.)
Meanwhile, as I mentioned in my last post, I went on a field trip to the Expo (as well as to beautiful Heunguk temple) last Saturday. There was a rehearsal in progress, and I took a few shots of the area. So, here are a few of what are the probably the last long-range photos of the site that I’ll take. These pretty much show that every thing is in place, except for, perhaps, a few minor landscaping details. First up is the Expo Theme Pavilion.
Expo Theme Pavilion
This is part of the area around the centerpiece Big O.
The area around the Big O
Clockwise from the lower right is the Marine City and Civilization Pavilion, a white tent-like structure which I have no information about, the Theme Pavilion and behind it, the Sky Tower, the Corporate Pavilions area, and the cruise ship dock area.
Expo View
Finally, an overview of the area (except for the MVL Hotel). If I weren’t so lazy, I’d put up some side-by-side photos of the area from before construction started and up to today, but maybe I’ll do that later.
Expo Overview from Jasan Park
Stay tuned for some Big Rehearsal Day photos on Sunday and, later in the week ahead, some photos of lovely Heunguk temple.