After more than 10 years of following this ancient kpop group called Super Junior, I finally got to be part of the pearl sapphire ocean in the summer of 2022. Watching them perform live had always been a key objective to fulfil once I became capable, patiently watching concert clips online up till then. What I didn't expect was that I'd follow the concert on a mini tour of my own to a few different cities! 18-year old me would be completely surprised haha.
Anyway, retrospectively writing this since I was waiting till the end to do a compilation and then I got busy with other travels too xD The 5 stops of my mini tour:
- Seoul, 15-17 Jul 2022
- Singapore, 3 Sep 2022
- Manila, 15-16 Dec 2022
- HCMC, 10 Mar 2023
- Seoul (Encore), 15-16 Apr 2023
+++++++++
Seoul, Jamsil Arena, 15-17 Jul 2022
- My first ever Super Show was also my very first overseas concert experience. It was also Suju's first physical post-pandemic concert in Seoul. These many "firsts" can only lead to a deeply memorable, highly worthwhile experience.
 |
| From the start. |
- Actually, I only bit this particular bullet out of fear that they would come to SG while I was out of country due to other travel plans. I kept this trip very low key for fear that people would think me crazy for going to Seoul twice in a year and for a Kpop boygroup at that. But from where I am now, I can say that SJ events are truly worth travelling for!
- Teared up during my first time hearing "Song for You" in the arena - the song that usually plays right before the start of a Super Show. That's when the lights change and everyone starts to cheer and sing along. It's THAT kind of song.
- This was in 2022 when the venue was still mostly filled with Koreans. Hence, the singalong and fanchants were super on-point and immersive.
- Had a really really good view for the first 2 nights, then traded that for the side view which was ok-ish because it was bought during general ticketing.
- Super loved the solo performances, esp Ryeowook's Dreams Come True and Kyuhyun's At Gwanghwamun (rock ver.)! This turned out to be my first and last time seeing these performances since they wouldn't carry over to pretty much all the overseas stops.
- For general listening, I usually prefer their more gentle pop/ballad tunes. But concerts truly showcase the value of their more hyper ones e.g. Sorry Sorry, Bonamana, BAD and Danger where everyone got on their feet!
- I hardly took any photos/videos for fear of being asked to leave the venue (I later learned that this treatment was mainly for those who used professional recording equipment). This allowed me to fully immerse in all 3 shows and sing/yell and wave my Sujubong to my heart's content!
- Another element that elevated the experience was that we could sync our lightsticks to specific seats. This led to extra intricate effects (e.g. rolling colours) across the Jamsil arena as compared to other stops where the whole stadium would simply flash the same colour altogether.
 |
| cr: everlasting0elf on twitter |
- Made a friend from TW while queueing at the Superstar SMTOWN booth. As luck would have it, we were the final 2 ppl to get a full set of limited cards after a nail-biting experience (i.e the ppl just behind us queued almost 3h just to leave empty-handed). This is a kind of experience that bonds! I've caught up a with her a few times after that, including my recent trip to Taipei.
- My lucky star was really working overtime during that trip coz it also just happened that an old school friend was in Seoul at the same time as me and was planning a day away from her husband on the one day I had free! We met up and had an unusually fun time over very usual activities - kbbq, snack-shopping, and chatting about old times.
- Other than that, it was a whirlwind of a 5D4N. Even though I was there for the concert, I tried to make the most of it by inserting sights I didn't manage to see previously (e.g. Ihwa Mural Village and even a mini hike up Naksan). But unlike my first time to Seoul, it was swelteringly hot to the point that I felt the need to seek out aircon. The East Asian summers are a different beast, even worse when compared to our all-year-round SEA summers.
 |
| Great view from up on Naksan but Seoul was a steamer in those days. |
Singapore, Indoor Stadium, 3 Sep 2022
- And I originally thought this would be the only stop I would be attending haha. Anyway, I was away during ticketing and had to rely heavily on others. As luck would have it, I was fortunate enough to be friends with ppl who secured very front seats in the best section of the house :D
- Safe to say I was awestruck at being THAT close to them. The energy from their performances was palpable at that proximity, especially at times where we basically left our seats and approached the barricade.
 |
| Featuring tall security guard and person's head. |
- However, we were seated on standard ballroom chairs most of the time and the view wasn't perfect due to the (1) high barriers and (2) the tall security guard whose head poked up above the stage. This meant that I was sometimes better off watching the main stage through someone else's phone. But no complains when they came to the centre stage!
- Being seated near the front, we got showered by a ton of blue confetti and I realised how heavy paper could be.
- SG fans tend not to be as hyper as other countries. While I always try to enjoy myself to the fullest, I already had a comparison from Seoul and there was a clear difference. That day, the Sujus looked rather tired too, but can't blame them after 5 consecutive SMTOWN concerts in the 2 weeks before.
- The SG stop was also the first with a truncated setlist (no more solo performances...) that ended promptly after 3h. So it did feel a little underwhelming. The stops after us followed the same length but it was really a shame that it happened with us first.
- I was up pretty early on that day to help queue for merch only to find that almost everything was sold out when we got to the booth. Spent the next few hours soaking in the atmosphere with my friends outside the stadium and distributing/collecting fan support.
 |
| Prob the only 3 ppl in SG to own signed AWR albums! |
- It's my opinion that the Sujubong is the best-designed lightstick in all of Kpop hahaha. I saw from Seoul how pretty the lights could be when programmed to change and made it a point to make some record of it at the next chance, which was back in SG!
Manila, SM Mall of Asia Arena, 15-16 Dec 2022
- This wasn't in the plans at all and came about simply coz I still had leave to clear by Dec and wanted to use it in the most fulfilling way possible xD
- I did this solo after having my confidence boosted from the past few solos in 2022, but Manila was particularly challenging due to (1) the lack of reliable public transport and (2) the peak travel season where many people were returning home for Christmas. It was fortunate that I had PH friends who could advise and aid me while I was there. Just getting to hotel from airport (a mere 7km distance) took about 3h due the long wait for a grab caused by overdemand.
- The concert itself was worth it. The view on both days was not bad and PH fans are definitely much more energetic and expressive than SG ones ahaha. Was pleased to get on my feet much more (unprompted) and jump to the music!
- SJ performed Celebrate for the first time here, and I was surprised at how warm and singalong-able this song was in a live setting. They also performed White Love on the second day, and this was a unique and very hyper ending song in the entire tour.
- I learnt my lesson from the SG stop where we didn't get much fanservice despite being so close to the stage and made a fanboard. Ryeowook saw it and waved!!! But my camera drifted just at that exact moment and failed to capture the moment :')
- Here I also added on to my Sujubong record with some videos, including my favourite gentle paddlepop during the finale. The paddlepop also stayed for as long as the Sujubong was kept switched on, like a nice send off while we made our ways from the stadium.
HCMC, Quan Khu 7 Stadium, 10 Mar 2023
- Again, this wasn't on the plans until I was jio-ed to go and didn't mind after finding out how cheap the tickets were and overall how cheap the trip would be!
- The catch was that all the good locations for this stop were standing... There usually was a mix between seating and standing options at SS9 stops but not this time. This made me thankful I had been exercising diligently since the year began and was in sufficiently good shape (my chicken legs and low-capacity lungs of 2022 would not have survived).
- Overall, this stop was worth going for due to the differentiated experience from (1) standing (2) in an outdoor stadium. Given that I'd alr seen SS9 a few times (haha), I didn't have to go for the full view and could opt for a different POV closer to the side stage though this was not completely by choice...
- We made a mess out of ticketing due to the system not accepting non-VN addresses (I ended up keying in some chimera SG/VN address just so we could proceed from the first page). Checking out 6 mins after sales opened netted us queue numbers of 917/918 xD Woeeeeeeeee.
- Things looked up a little when pictures of the stadium and stage construction began to surface and I saw how LARGE the venue was. The stage was sooo wide. My deduction turned out to be correct when we entered after 900+ people and yet managed to net a second row position at the side stage! Bonus, 2 very petite VN fans stood in front of me and pretty much secured me an unblocked window~
 |
| My first standing experience and a different view from the usual indoors (cap and sunscreen necessary to survive the intense Vietnamese sun tho). |
- Fun fact, while wandering around in shopping malls pre-concert, I came across many shops (including converse) selling shoes with double the usual platform heights :o While queueing to enter the stadium, I observed many VN fans wearing such shoes too, but even then still a head shorter than me xD Well, it's a good thing to know for choosing concert destinations!
- Up till Jul 2023 (MNL Fan Party), this was the concert with the best view for me. Even better than the SG one! The Sujus were so up close - barely 3m away on the stage. For once I could appreciate how tall some of them were, especially when they strode over in their majestic Mr Simple costumes at the front of the set.
- I learnt my lesson from the MNL stop and kept my hand steady when Ryeowook came around this time. And I managed to capture the moment :) Now still waiting to see if this moment will appear in the weekly vlogs he uploads on Youtube. At the current upload rate, there's still a few months to go.
- The friend situation was also quite interesting on this trip and I was lucky to have a rotation of different people for company at different points xD (1) on the same flight + concert (2) at the same hotel, ticket collecting, pre-concert meals and post-concert hike back to hotel and (3) for 4 cheese pizza dinner with friends from (1)! So many people from different points in my life. One of my friends (based in HCMC for work) said that she was thankful that Suju gave me a reason to come to her city xD
Seoul (Encore), Jamsil Arena, 15-16 Apr 2023
- Unlike the previous overseas stops, this one was very much in the plans hahaha. After having the time of my life in SS9 Seoul, I immediately made it a point to return for the promised encore. I simply didn't expect to attend so many other stops in between, but this one was a must-do. This was naturally also the final stop in my mini tour.
- Ticketing was a challenge this time due to the opening of a certain large country. Being unable to secure any semblance of good seats in the fanclub pre-sale (only 3rd floor was left by the time I entered the site D:), I was forced to go down the increasingly expensive GP route.
- And so I returned to Jamsil. Even then my drawn seats weren't great, though still salvageable on the second day. I was in the final row of the floor then, which meant I could stand up whenever I wanted and in the rest of the time sat on my jacket for some extra height.
 |
| View from the very last row of the floor. |
- It was almost an entirely new concert! All for 2 performances. One of the things I admire about Suju is the dedication and effort they put into what is essentially work that they've earned enough to not have to do. This hard work year after year contrasts with many other musicians from my school days who've either dropped off the radar, lowered their tempo or fallen in quality. So as long as Suju keeps doing what they're doing, I'll follow as long as I'm able to.
- Compared to other SS9 stops, I noticed that the setlist (1) contained many more old songs and (2) did not contain any songs at all from the 11th album :o It felt like a gesture of appreciation for long-term fans.
- The setlist wasn't the only thing that was overhauled. The VCRs, costumes and stage too, just wow. The stage layout image didn't look very impressive at first (kinda rectangly and not as far-reaching), but the difference was in the mechanics. The stage could rise and tilt. There were soaring, hair-raising moments, especially in the ballad segments, but of course SJ is not SJ if they didn't use it as a slide in the end haha. It's amazing how they could shift the atmosphere smoothly back and forth between soulful and party modes.
- Very luckily as well, the concert dates coincided with my friend's trip to Seoul! Right after the 2nd show ended, I made my way over to Hongdae for KBBQ and drinks - stuff that's hard to do alone. Safe to say, I had many happy times with myself and with company across my 9D8N in KR.
 |
| To the end. |
+++++++++
Now that I put it all together this way, it's clear how much fortune there was at play on my mini tour with my long-time favourites. The whole experience was beyond enjoyable and worth every single cent thanks to a few factors:
1. Disposable income. Concert tickets are not cheap to begin with, what more travelling to attend. It's lucky that I'm at the correct stage in life to be able to afford these fairly comfortably (i.e. without needing to specially save up or eat grass in preparation).
2. Freedom. Go overseas = need to take leave, nuff said. Not every job is this flexible, but of course we're not firefighting at the moment. And also there isn't really anything much under my care in general. I'm probably in the correct stage in life for freedom and disposable income to be in an optimal balance.
3. SJ. They make themselves worth it really. But that said, they won't be able to perform like this forever. Some of them have gone through knee surgeries in recent years and speaking as a soon-to-be-30-year-old with creaky knees, I can see why. So as far as I can and as long as they keep going, I'll go to watch them perform live. It doesn't even have to be a Super Show... Any random fan party or subunit/solo concert that I can go for, I will go.
4. Friends. My special lucky star seemed to have been shining very brightly across this mini tour! I will never stop marveling at my fate to cross paths with people in specific situations which allow friendships to bloom and the pure happiness that comes with meeting existing friends overseas just because we happened to be in the same place at the same time.
Till my SS10 tour!
