대동제 뭉 아카라카 (Yonsei's Festival!)

Welcome to the wondrous phenomenon I like to mildly call the... Yonsei's Spring Festival. Are you ready?

I wish I could extend my stay just so I enjoy the fall festival, which I heard is even more elaborate. ㅎㅎㅎ Well this isn't the main reason, but it definitely would be a plus.

Our Poongmul group (데 동아리) performed on Wednesday afternoon. Here is a photo of some 데friends enjoying the night before AKARAKA. Many student clubs/groups sold food, drinks, etc under tents stretching from the center of the campus to nearly the main gate entrance.

AKARAKA concert was on Thursday and lasted from 3:30pm ~ 11:00pm. After the weeks of of drumming practice and the performance, I slightly suspected that my legs would collapse. But as with many unexpected happenings, the eruption of energy from the mass of blue brought me to life. And somehow I became wide awake, alert and ready to do whatever Korean students do (move your body!) An assortment of blue shirts filled the Yonsei stadium as enthusiastic students piled (not filed into nice, neat rows) into the packed area. Amidst the blazing blue, a few blotches of red spread throughout the crowd. Yonsei (in blue) University's rival is none other than Korea University (in red). To quote one of our 떼 friends, "If you see Korea University student [red] kick them." ㅎㅎㅎ

Never before have I seen such a lively batch of students. It is an understatement for me to say that Korea university students have school spirit. After the initial shock of beinyanked forward, backward, left and right (not in the normal sense you may be picturing) I was fully awake. "왼쪽, 오른쪽...!"
When cheering, dancing and singing you were anything but stationary. Even if you wanted to stand quietly in place I doubt your surrounding peers would permit such behavior! There were two Japanese exchange students seated to my right. The guy was quite an interesting fellow (sooo enthusiastic), while the girl was a bit reserved. I suppose the energy rubbed off because after having someone abruptly grab me around the shoulders, I followed suit and pulled this girl right down with me. Not to worry. This helped loosen everyone up! Oh AKARAKA. And this took place without the appearance of popular Korean singers.

In the beginning, a Yonsei dance club/group entered the stage. One of my friends performed on the very stage that 쥬얼리(Jewelry), Big Bang, VOS, 소녀시대 (Girls' Generation), JYP and other Korean artists would soon enter. I was taken aback I am older than a majority of the budding new singers (of course with the exception of JYP). Normally, in the states I wasn't a huge fan of pop music, but Korea seems to do a good job of opening your mind (even when it comes to something simple like Kpop). Who would have guessed that a school festival could bring about such crazy memories?

Prepartion for the upcoming Poongmul Performance-- muscles, bruises and things of that nature

How I miss blogging. Actually I really do missing writing in general. It's very therapeutic (a good way to relieve stress) and/or relax. Lately, my days have been primarily consumed by poongmul (drumming) practice because we are preparing for a performance. This week is AKARAKA, which is Yonsei's spring festival. I have been told that many famous Korean bands/singers (such as Wonder Girls) come to Yonsei for this special occasion. Being that I have yet to attend a concert in Seoul, I am extremely excited! One of my favorite bands is coming to Incheon for a Rock Festival at the end of July, which I will be missing, so AKARAKA helps make up for this loss (at least acts as a Target-brand bandaid which will at least stick for a good few hours).

Anyways, our performance is quickly approaching. This Wednesday, we will wear our white, yellow and red hats (flowers made out of tissue paper, etc), white clothing and attempt to remember the routine. This has been a tiring but fun experience that I will never forget. My arm and leg muscle mass is quickly growing. However, nothing (including "sexy legs" as my puk leader calls them) comes for free. I have obtained some nice "battle wounds" as I like to call them (aka bruises) on my legs and stomach, but I wouldn't trade them for anything (except perhaps a KTX ticket to the southern coast or Jeju Island and an unlimited supply of pot bingsu--red bean ice cream/ice dessert). Learning how to play the puk from scratch, memorizing an entire routine in 2 weeks and attempting to gracefully spin, walk (don't laugh...it's not ordinary walking!) and sit/crouch down the Korean way has been a challenge, but definitely worth it. There is something to extremely satifying about working towards something that once seemed impossible. I am definitely not even close to being at the same level as my fellow group members, but I know my friends and I have improved in some sense, which is all that really matters right?

As I said before, there is something to be said about struggling through a situation and reaching success in some form. Lia is playing the janggu (장구). Pang is playing the sogo (소고). And I am playing the puk (북). Not to sound cheesy, but I am proud of both of them. Good work girls! I just hope we will be ready by Wednesday (considering that we just learned our instrument solo sections yesterday ha!) and function with the large hats on our heads.

However, I have to admit that there is something extremely satisfying about working towards

Past members of the poongmul group often come to observe our practice and bring snacks. And yesterday they ordered pizza (sweet potato pizza is my favorite). They are rewarding us for our hard work and dedication in preparation for the performance. This is a common practice in Korean. Actually, I often am unsure how to handle a situation in which someone who is older or more experienced (in drumming, etc) offers to treat me to something. However, I have become more accustomed to this cultural gesture.

After each practice the group sits in a circle and reflect on the happenings of practice. During this ordeal, my friend and I attempt to use Korean, which the rest of the group finds endearing (or amusing). We tend to use the same words everyday (with a slight variation), but puttig forth the effort is good. The group listens intently when the three international students speak. Oh my. This is one thing that makes this Yonsei club (데) unique. I have rarely felt such a strong sense of unity and acceptance in groups I have been involved in the states. It is difficult to explain. I wish you could be here to see and experience the group atmosphere.

Well, I shall notify you about how the performance goes. Keep your fingers crossed that we will be able to stay focuses, alert and energetic for the entire 1.5 hour performance! Take care everyone. ^^