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I’m really stoked! There’s going to be a special preview day of the 2012 Expo on May 5th, which is Children’s Day here in South Korea. The Expo is selling advance tickets for only 3,000 Korean won, which is a bit less than $3.00 and quite a bit under the regular daily ticket price of 35,000 won that will be charged when the Expo officially opens on May 12th. Proceeds from the special preview will go to UNESCO’s Children’s Fund.
Expo officials put 110,000 preview tickets on sale, and, as of Tuesday morning, when I bought my ticket, there were 24,800 remaining. So, the number of people at the Expo site that day will probably total around the daily average for the three months running time of the event.
Many of the other English teachers at the university also bought tickets, and I think were all excited about spending some time at the site. I’ll be sure to take plenty of photos and, of course, post here about the day.
However, not all the news about the Expo is good. Here’s an article from the Korean Times entitled Expectations for Yeosu Expo in which concerns are raised about attendance at the Expo.
According to press reports, domestic ticket sales remain at about 425,000, only 14 percent of the organizer’s goal of 3 million. Overseas sales targeted 500,000 but only 37,000 tickets have been sold so far. The organizing committee says this week a contract to sell 100,000 tickets to China will be finalized.
Hopefully, as the event draws nearer, interest and excitement will pick up.
Here are a few more links to recent news about the Expo.
First are some links to news of various countries’ pavilions and exhibits.
Singapore — Singapore unveils concept for Yeosu Expo
United States — USA Pavilion to Showcase Diversity, Wonder and Solutions . . .
Norway — Norway to offer wind energy tech during Expo
Romania — Romania will participate at the international Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea
Germany — Germany to show futuristic marine tech at Yeosu Expo
Switzerland — S Korea gets a bite off the old Swiss glacier
Algeria — Algerie Poste issues stamp on Yeosu International Expo 2012
Australia — Australia to participate in 2012 Yeosu Expo
Philippines — PH joining exposition in Korea
Turkey — The Turkey Wind will Blow in South Korea in 2012
And, here are a boat load of other links, some interesting, some perhaps not, to various news items about the Expo. I’ve collected these from here and there over the past few months; they’re in order from oldest to newest.
Korea is the Special Events Capital of Asia in 2012
Top Ten Things to Do in Korea
Around the World with Yeosu Expo Passport
Yeosu Expo, a must-visit destination
Expo 2012 pulls Yeosu ahead
South Korea’s little Yeosu prepares for Expo 2012
Chinese snatching up tickets for Yeosu Expo
High-concentration ozone possible during Yeosu expo
6.5m tall Robot “Navi” Unveiled at Yeosu Expo
More train services for Yeosu Expo
Yeosu Expo Launches Landmark Stage and Screen
Yeosu Expo to feature diverse exhibits, performances
Expo 2012 aims to boost tourism in Yeosu
Countdown to Yeosu Expo begins
Yeosu to makes waves with expo
Major Facilities at the EXPO 2012 Yeosu Korea
The Expo site is looking awesome. Like I said, I’m really excited about being able to actually walk around the area on May 5th. From the look of things from outside the construction lines, it’s gonna be great. Hopefully, enough people will attend to make the effort pay for itself. In any case, I think it will prove to be worthwhile.
Just a quick post today of a panoramic shot of the Yeosu Expo area, taken from the causeway on Odong Island. It’s a series of 11 shots that I “stitched” together in Canon’s Photostitch software. It’s not as sharp as can be, since there was a fairly stiff wind blowing at times. I might go to Odong again this weekend, but will try to get there early in the morning, when the sun will be at my back.
You should definitely click on the small photo a couple of times to get a close up view, but, be warned–the final size is almost 2 megabytes, so it might take some time to load! (But I think it’s worth it.)
 Panoramic photo of Yeosu Expo 2012
One of the biggest problems that visitors to the Expo will face is finding a place to stay. Accomodations in Yeosu are limited, to say the least. The Organizing Committee for the Expo realize this. In an article on the Korea Times website, Kang Dong-suk, chairman of the Organizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu, had this to say:
“We would like to attract as many foreign visitors as possible for the largest global event ever hosted by the coastal city of Yeosu, South Jeolla Province”, Kang said. “But the problem is that there aren’t enough lodging facilities in the city and its surrounding areas to accommodate a large number of non-Koreans. We have to come up with alternative measures to house foreign guests during the event”.
“We do not worry about Korean visitors because they will figure out where to stay. Churches in Yeosu told us that they will provide rooms for expo visitors for free. Many Yeosu residents have expressed willingness to offer visitors a place to stay”, the chairman said. “But our concern is where all the foreign tourists will stay”.
Kang said there are about 1,000 hotel rooms in Yeosu and the nearby areas, including the newly-constructed MVL hotel at the expo site that has 331 rooms.
“We will have no problem accommodating foreign government officials and other high-profile guests. But regular foreign tourists, particularly the Chinese, won’t find it easy to get a hotel room”, he said.
To ease the expected accommodation shortage, the chairman said the organizing committee has been in talks with travel agencies to have foreign guests sleep in Busan, Gwangju and other nearby larger cities, and bring them back and forth to the expo site.
He talks about the MVL Hotel at the Expo site, but none of its rooms will be available; they’ve all been reserved for heads of states and visiting dignitaries. It’s a beautiful hotel, and it’s described at the previous link as a “seven-star” hotel. You can visit the hotel website by clicking here.
The option to take a shuttle bus or boat from Busan seems to be on its way to becoming a reality. Dynamic Busan reports that:
Busan City has prepared a shuttle bus directly from six hotels in Busan to the expo site. To facilitate this, the city has made arrangements with the Lotte, Paradise, Nongshim, Commodore, Paragon and Toyoko-inn hotels. The packages that have been put together include expo tours and accommodation. The traveling time to Yeosu is about two hours, and guests can reserve their tickets at any of the aforementioned hotels’ websites.
Others can choose to travel by sea from Busan Port to Yeosu Port Passenger Terminal. This takes slightly longer but also affords magnificent views of Busan’s beautiful shoreline and is highly recommended for those who are not in a rush.
Busan’s representative cruise ship, PanStar Dream, will be plying this route. It will operate on six days: June 2, 9 and 23, July 14 and 28, and Aug. 11. While on board, tourists can enjoy various performances, a sauna and a cafe, as well as other luxury facilities. Reservations can be made via the PanStar website (www.panstarcruise.co.kr). Each cruise will take about five hours to reach Yeosu. Meanwhile, those who wish to organize their own expo schedule can take an intercity bus.
The bus from Busan West Bus Terminal (Sasang District) reaches Yeosu in two hours and 30 minutes, making this the quickest way to reach Yeosu by intercity bus. Six buses leave the station each day and one-way tickets cost 18,100 won ($16). Busan East Bus Terminal (Nopo-dong) is also running buses to Yeosu, with 13 leaving daily at a cost of 19,600 won. The traveling time is three hours and 10 minutes.
Visitors can also stay in the nearby city of Suncheon, which is only a 20-minute bus ride to Yeosu, or they can grab accomodations in Gwangju, a large city that is about an hour and a half by bus from Yeosu.
Finding accomodations online can be quite frustrating. I’ve had a few readers of this blog ask if I knew of any sites that are in English or that allow online booking or that have English speakers manning the phone lines. Here are a couple of websites that might help.
Hostel World lists basic guest house and dorm-style facilities. You can do a search on Busan (many listings), Gwangju (very few) or Suncheon (one), and you can book online.
A good source is also located on the official 2012 Website. There’s an accomodation search page that lists options for English language service. I assume that by checking this option, you will be given a list of accomodations where you can talk to someone who speaks English. Give it a try–it looks like a great resource.
You can also try to reserve a room in the new HS Hotel, which is located right at the Expo site. I know of a lady who was able to phone there and book a room with an English-speaking receptionist. Rates, I’m afraid, are going to be quite pricey, over $200 a night, but it’s a nice hotel. Unfortunately, many businesses in Yeosu are raising their prices (unfairly, perhaps?) during the Expo. City buses, however, will be free throughout the duration of the Expo.
If you run across any other accomodation websites, please be kind enough to mention them in a comment to help other people who might read this blog. Also, if you find a good-looking hotel or guesthouse online, don’t be afraid to give them a call; many facilities have English speakers. Even if their abililties are low-level, it might be worth it to be patient about their language skills and try to book with them.
Good luck, and leave a comment, if you desire, to tell us about your experiences getting accomodations for the Expo.
Lately I’ve been busier than expected with work, that unwelcome intrusion into my life; thus it’s been a while since I’ve posted, so, sorry about that. I and a couple of other teachers have been given a new course to teach, the Yeosu Tour Guide course, in which some of the citizens of Yeosu who are volunteering at the Expo want to improve their English speaking skills. Most of them are not bad English speakers, but we’ve been given the task of increasing their fluency. I’ve also spent many more hours than I had expected proofreading the paper that I mentioned in a previous post. We’ve also had a few teacher/admin meetings to endure, and, of course, daily living intrudes. Hopefully, I’ll be posting more often, especially now that the opening of the Expo nears.
I took a walk around the Expo site last Saturday and there have been some small, but interesting additions to the area. Work seems to be proceeding well at the site, and it appears that on May 12th, the opening day, everything will be good to go. Here, then, are a few photos of the progress.
Here are a few shots from the back entrance to the Expo from a bit higher vantage. The first is of the Big O, the centerpiece of the Expo, followed by a view of the hotel, which now sports its name on the upper floors, the MVL Hotel. I’ll write another post about the hotel soon.
 The Big O  MVL Hotel Here’s a shot of the Theme Pavilion taken from near the railway station.
 Theme Pavilion I love how many of the buildings and their surroundings reflect the oceanic theme of the Expo. You can see how the Theme Pavilion mimics ocean waves, and other areas bring to mind the sailing ships of yore that made Yeosu a port of call.
 Railway Station Entrance to the International Pavilion  Expo Shelter Areas One of the last venues to be constructed has been the Corporate Pavilion (I think–the map I have doesn’t quite match up with the area). Here is some front and back construction on the the building, which is located near the railway station, behind the Sky Tower.
 Rear of Expo Corporate Pavilion  Work on the front side of the Corporate Pavilion I finally managed to be in the right place at the right time to capture an image of the KTX “bullet” train at the Expo railway station. Here it is, waiting to zoom its way to Seoul and destinations in between.
 KTX Bullet Train As I walked down the road near the railway station, I couldn’t help notice my Favorite Expo Lady, gazing out to sea with her spyglass.
 Spyglass Lady A shot from near, I believe, the Korea pavilion.
 Korea Pavilion Sculpture And another shot of the Big O.
 The Big O and the Theme Pavilion at Expo 2012 Here’s a close up panorama shot of the area around the Big O showing the floating stage and the seating areas. Click on the thumbnail for a larger view. Discerning viewers may be able to make out the seam where I “stitched” a couple of photos together to make this shot. I used the Canon Photo Stitch software to do this and I was quite surprised that the result turned out so well, especially since I didn’t take the two photos with the intention of making a panorama shot. I took the shots from the side of the Jasan Park hill and zeroed in on the area at 200mm with my 55-250 Canon zoom lens.
 Big O Panorama Finally, taken from the same Jasan Park area, an overview of the Expo site, a view that I always try to get when I’m in the area. If you want, you can go back through some of my older posts and check out the differences since construction began.
 Expo 2012 March 17 Overview In my next post, hopefully coming tomorrow, I’ll comment on and try to offer some solutions to The Big Problem associated with the Expo (in my opinion) –accomodations in Yeosu. Stay tuned for that.
 Photo From the USA Pavilion Organization
I’ve finally found some information about the United States pavilion at the 2012 Expo. There’s an article on the Korea IT Times that gives some details. Some snippets from the article are:
“The USA Pavilion will use the power of storytelling to bring to life the core values of innovation, partnership and hope that define the American spirit for millions of visitors,” said Andrew Snowhite, chief executive officer of USA Pavilion 2012.
A main attraction of stunning images, music and film will be projected in dazzling clarity across a 70-foot wide screen. Created around the simple yet impactful concept of “This is My Ocean,” individual voices and stories will unfold during the presentation to convey the diverse beauty of the American coastline and the many personal and profound types of connections Americans enjoy with the vast ocean. . .
A large screen composed entirely of water will amaze guests when they enter the USA Pavilion. This fluid and shifting surface is the perfect canvas to begin a unique journey that will take guests from the shorelines of America to the frontiers of deep ocean research . . .
There’s a lot more information on the the USA Pavilion Expo 2012 website, so check it out if you get a chance. I’ll be doing a photo walk tomorrow around the Expo site here in Korea, and I hope to have the latest construction photos up shortly thereafter.
That is the headline from a Yonhap News Agency article.
An exhibition center at the site of the upcoming Yeosu Expo caught fire Wednesday, but no casualties were reported, police said.
The fire destroyed 500 square meters of a vegetation mat covering the roof of the three-story building under construction for completion at the end of this month, the police said.
The article also stated that it was probably caused by welding work, and Expo officials said there should be no disruptions in the Expo preparations.
If you read the article, you’ll see this image.
As you can see from the photo below, which I posted on Dec. 4, 2011, the area that caught fire is part of the International Pavilion, though I didn’t identify it as such. Following the photo is a map of the site, and you can make out the “troughs” in the pavilion roof. (#10 on the map)
 International Pavilion Roof  Expo 2012 Map Let’s hope there are no other mishaps.
Here’s an article entitled “Yeosu Expo struggles with signage in other languages” from the Korea JoonAng Daily newspaper. The main premise of the article is that there are not enough directional signs in Chinese and Japanese to help visitors from those countries to find their way around Yeosu during the Expo. OK, valid supposition–I’ve seen no signs in those languages in Yeosu, but I haven’t really been looking for them either, so there may be some. However, the main point of this article to me is that it states:
About 250,000 Chinese and 150,000 Japanese are expected to attend the Yeosu expo. Organizers estimate they will make up approximately 73 percent of all foreign participants in the event.
Excuse me? This seems to be so typical of the misinformation going around about the Expo. Let’s see, 250,000 Chinese visitors and 150,000 Japanese? According to most of the other information I’ve read, there will be an estimated 8 million visitors to the Expo during its three-month run. That works out to about 85,000 visitors a day, something I find incredibly difficult to believe. I sincerely cannot imagine that there will be that many people coming into Yeosu every day, on average. Where the heck will every one stay? The weekends will be horrible. I just don’t believe the “official” estimates. I’ll find out this summer, and if I’m wrong, I’ll let you know. However, if there are going to be that many visitors, why is it that, according to the article, there will be such a small amount of Japanese and Chinese attendees, countries that are just a hop, skip, and a jump from Yeosu? Hmmmm. Another piece of info about which I am skeptical. Out of a supposed 8 million visitors, there will only be 400,000 from China and Japan? I’d say the reporting about the attendance in that article is completely wrong.
If you’re looking for more information about the Expo, and about Yeosu and South Korea, I just discovered an English-language website calling itself The Official Blog in English. It’s very informative, with topics like Are the Beaches of Yeosu so Beautiful? and Experiencing the Taste of Various Foods in Yeosu, a couple of articles written by students at one of the local high schools. Take a look at it when you get a chance.
As a follow up to the previous post, here are two articles from the English language daily Korea Herald, one titled “Yeosu aims for visitor-friendly Expo” and the other headlined “Yeosu Expo to highlight marine development.”
The first article begins “The southern coastal town famous for its seascape and bountiful seafood is in the final stages of preparation for the World Expo,” and goes on to talk about the construction, preparations and events leading into the Expo.
The Organizing Committee is quoted as saying that 93% of the construction is finished and that all facilities will be completed by the end of February. They also state that after the Expo has run its 93-day course, most of the exhibition halls will be dismantled. A Yeosu University architecture professor in one of my classes told me this a few weeks ago, and I was kind of dumbfounded to hear that many of the buildings will be up for only three months. One of the themes of the Expo is sustainability for the future, so this demolition seems to run counter to that theme. “What a shameful waste,” I thought. But, apparently, most Expos tear down a majority of the buildings after their exhibition is finished. Plus, I suppose you have to throw in the cost of maintenance for these large structures, and you have to wonder just how much and what kind of use they would get to justify the cost of keeping them open. The prof told me that the aquarium, the hotel and a few other buildings would remain open. Hopefully, Yeosu will get enough of a tourist uptick from the aquarium alone to keep the remaining structures (whatever they are) open. The area itself, even without the buildings, will still be a beautiful addition to the Yeous harborscape (as long as it’s maintained and kept clean).
The second article gives an overview of the Korean government’s future economic hopes for the south coast of the country and relates how the Expo can boost regional growth and development.
It [the Korean government] also believes the Yeosu Expo will speed up not only regional economic growth but also boost balanced domestic development.
The event is projected to generate about 12.2 trillion won ($10.8 billion) worth of production and create about 5.7 trillion won in added value, as well as 80,000 jobs.
That’s a lot of money and jobs! Both articles also state that over 8 million visitors are expected over the three-month period. Let’s see, 8 million divided by 93 is, ummmm, about 86 thousand visitors a day, on average. I expect the weekend totals will be much higher, so I’ll stay away, mostly, on Saturdays and Sundays. Hope it all works out. More later.
OK, here’s the update I promised. There really hasn’t been a lot of progress in exterior construction, except for a few notable exceptions, because much of it has been finished or nearly so. I think most of the work is taking place inside the buildings, and a lot of landscaping is being done. The most striking new progress, however, is that the Big O, the centerpiece of the Expo, has finally gone up. In the photo below, you can see the framework is mostly completed, so installation of the outside paneling should be starting soon.
 The Big O, Jan 28th, 2012 Elsewhere, down by the Sky Tower and next to the railway station, new construction has begun on the Corporate Pavilion and Energy Park.
 Corporate Pavilion and Energy Park Construction, Yeosu 2012 Expo, Jan 28, 2012 The Sky Tower itself has had some new additions, seen in this view from near what will be the main entrance.
 New Sky Tower additions So, what is that reddish-orange contraption on the right hand side of the structure? From a brochure I have, here’s a description of the Sky Tower.
The Sky Tower is a monumental piece of art, recycled and redesigned from a pair of abandoned 55-meter cement silos on the Expo site. The harp-shaped exterior is an embodiment of the giant waves of the coastal waters of Yeosu. Moreover, the tower is a fully-functional pipe organ that will play the tunes related to the sea for the enjoyment of visitors.
If it works as intended, it should be pretty impressive. Next, a shot of the Expo City apartments, which are quite colorful.
 2012 Expo Apartments The hotel hasn’t shown much change, but the land around it is being landscaped and smoothed over to make way for walking and (perhaps) parking areas.
 Expo 2012 Landscaping Here’s an enlarged shot of the construction taking place around the Big O. (As usual, click on the image for larger versions.)
 Closeup of Big O Area Construction Here’s what the brochure says about the Big O.
The Expo is jam-packed with cultural programs, with 40 performances and events taking place every day for the entire period of 93 days; that is, 3,700 in total! It features large-scale events, such as the state-of-the-art Night Multi-media Show taking place at the Big-O, world-class performances, and concerts of popular singers from Korea and around the world.
The brochure goes on to mention The Fountain Show (“. . . on a stage constructed on the sea. It will be shown through the world’s first Living Screen at night, creating an awe-inspiring, dreamlike atmosphere.”), The Big Ocean Show (“. . . a performance utilizing the seas, the beach and ships . . . staged on a weekly basis”) and The World Ocean Performance (“featuring performances of artists from Korea and beyond, will take place on the floating stage and utilize the sea as a platform for cultural activities.”), all of which take place on or near the Big O.
Here are a couple of overview shots taken from different vantage points.
 Overview of Expo 2012  Expo Jan2012 Overview from Jasan Park Also in preparation for the Expo, Yeosu has been installing quite a few bicycle stations, from where you can rent one of these “hot” blue bikes to get around. I’m not sure if they’re coin-operated or bank/credit card. Probably both.
 Bicycle Station Finally, not more than 10 seconds after I pulled my camera from my bag, one of the guys working on the Expo came over and pointed to himself and said “Picture, me.” I was only too happy to oblige.
 Expo Worker So, that’s about it for the Expo photos for now. I’ll probably get back down there in March or perhaps late this month to shoot some more. Stay tuned.
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