Sitting at my gate at LAX. (8.11.14; 11:19am) I was on my way back home and SOOOOO happy! Don't get me wrong I had fun. But after a long weekend away from my life in Texas I was more than ready to get back there. My boyfriend and my cat were waiting for me. Plus now that I've experienced what I have I can cross that off of my bucket list. This experience has also showed me I am stronger than I thought I was. I've always been so afraid of traveling outside of my comfort zone (which appears to be all of Texas). But this weekend I did what I thought was the impossible and I'm still alive and well. This trip was a big step forward for me and now that I've experienced that I want to continue stepping forward as I get older and start working towards my career, whatever it may be. I had a lot of new experiences this weekend and I'm so happy I get to share them with all of you.
I know some of you were at Kcon and probably a lot of you reading this didn't get the chance to go this year for whatever reason. For those of you who didn't get to go I can tell you what you'll be glad you missed first. If you would have had to take a flight; the lines at the airport, security checks, TSA scanners (ugh). Then once you got here the sunburns, having to navigate around LA by either figuring out how to take the bus or spending money on a taxi/shuttle, possibly adjusting to jet lag, possibly dealing with everything being more expensive than wherever you come from (in LA things are more expensive than in TX.), The long lines (OMG THE LINE FOR CHECK-IN ON THE FIRST DAY OF KCON O_O ), the excessiveness of standing at red carpet/concert floor area surrounded by people smelling musky. That's the price you pay to get close to your favorite artists. It can be worth it. But majority of the time you are just hot and tired and squished. And if you want the good spots you have to stand in line for a longer time than anyone else since you have to come first and stand and wait for things to start so you miss all the other fun activities that are going on. //cut in// I was shaking my head so hard at people that were lined up for the concert at 1:45pm on Sunday! The concert doors didn't open til like 6:30pm. There were still so many panels and activites and good food and stuff and they were just sitting there waiting for the concert. *sigh*. I just can't even with people like that. Plus if they were there saturday night they must have known that you can't get too close to the stage because there are like 5ft long and wide barriers between the stage and the audience standing area. Also the P1 and P2 standing wristbands had queue numbers and Sunday night they actually used the queue numbers so even if you were in line since 10am for the concert if your queue # on your wristband was 1200 you didn't get to go in til they got to your number *SMH*. So, yea that is the bad and the ugly of traveling here for the convention.
Going to this event definitely changed how I feel about some people. //short rant//When someone is nice to you and says 'Hi' you can at least be decent to them and say 'Hi' back and maybe even smile. And if they are obviously a subscriber to your youtube channel/reader of your blog don't treat them like they are a 'fan' even if they act like one. We are all people. Being a reader or subscriber does not make anyone 'lower' than you. Don't treat anyone that way. //over//
Now before I go into the relative good let me tell you guys my story. I didn't have the best time getting here mostly because I had to wait at the airport in L.A. (my first time taking a flight alone) for my friend to arrive then I couldn't find her and figured out it was because she was at a different terminal (lol.) So I had to get a ride to that terminal then after meeting up finally we had to find a way to get to our hotel and we ended up, after wandering around for forever, taking a shuttle and it took even longer cause it dropped us off last. So we FINALLY got to our hotel and all I wanted to do was sleep (turned out to be this way most of my weekend). //sidenote// My friend hadn't booked us for Sunday night so we had to 'extend' our stay Saturday morning. But for most of Saturday I was sort of stressed out. //end sidenote// So saturday was my day to just be free and do whatever. So I got to start by passing the line (perks of being a Special Guest) and go straight in to the Special Guest check-in. However when I got there I found out I had to stand around and wait like 2 hours. But it wasn't all that bad. I got to meet some awesome people while I was standing around and waiting. //shameless promotion// CheyenneKpop was there and she was really nice.
I know some of you were at Kcon and probably a lot of you reading this didn't get the chance to go this year for whatever reason. For those of you who didn't get to go I can tell you what you'll be glad you missed first. If you would have had to take a flight; the lines at the airport, security checks, TSA scanners (ugh). Then once you got here the sunburns, having to navigate around LA by either figuring out how to take the bus or spending money on a taxi/shuttle, possibly adjusting to jet lag, possibly dealing with everything being more expensive than wherever you come from (in LA things are more expensive than in TX.), The long lines (OMG THE LINE FOR CHECK-IN ON THE FIRST DAY OF KCON O_O ), the excessiveness of standing at red carpet/concert floor area surrounded by people smelling musky. That's the price you pay to get close to your favorite artists. It can be worth it. But majority of the time you are just hot and tired and squished. And if you want the good spots you have to stand in line for a longer time than anyone else since you have to come first and stand and wait for things to start so you miss all the other fun activities that are going on. //cut in// I was shaking my head so hard at people that were lined up for the concert at 1:45pm on Sunday! The concert doors didn't open til like 6:30pm. There were still so many panels and activites and good food and stuff and they were just sitting there waiting for the concert. *sigh*. I just can't even with people like that. Plus if they were there saturday night they must have known that you can't get too close to the stage because there are like 5ft long and wide barriers between the stage and the audience standing area. Also the P1 and P2 standing wristbands had queue numbers and Sunday night they actually used the queue numbers so even if you were in line since 10am for the concert if your queue # on your wristband was 1200 you didn't get to go in til they got to your number *SMH*. So, yea that is the bad and the ugly of traveling here for the convention.
Going to this event definitely changed how I feel about some people. //short rant//When someone is nice to you and says 'Hi' you can at least be decent to them and say 'Hi' back and maybe even smile. And if they are obviously a subscriber to your youtube channel/reader of your blog don't treat them like they are a 'fan' even if they act like one. We are all people. Being a reader or subscriber does not make anyone 'lower' than you. Don't treat anyone that way. //over//
Now before I go into the relative good let me tell you guys my story. I didn't have the best time getting here mostly because I had to wait at the airport in L.A. (my first time taking a flight alone) for my friend to arrive then I couldn't find her and figured out it was because she was at a different terminal (lol.) So I had to get a ride to that terminal then after meeting up finally we had to find a way to get to our hotel and we ended up, after wandering around for forever, taking a shuttle and it took even longer cause it dropped us off last. So we FINALLY got to our hotel and all I wanted to do was sleep (turned out to be this way most of my weekend). //sidenote// My friend hadn't booked us for Sunday night so we had to 'extend' our stay Saturday morning. But for most of Saturday I was sort of stressed out. //end sidenote// So saturday was my day to just be free and do whatever. So I got to start by passing the line (perks of being a Special Guest) and go straight in to the Special Guest check-in. However when I got there I found out I had to stand around and wait like 2 hours. But it wasn't all that bad. I got to meet some awesome people while I was standing around and waiting. //shameless promotion// CheyenneKpop was there and she was really nice.
Also Mister Popo was there and he was super nice. He talked to everyone and took selcas with everyone and let everyone take selcas with him. I also got a hug from him before going to the concert on Sunday. Later on JRE showed up and he was very chill. He also took selcas with everyone who asked and was very polite and professional. I believe the last one I remember really well is Nickehboi who I actually didn't even start watching his videos til a few days before Kcon and he was also very nice and welcoming. He took a selca with me and was nice to me throughout the convention when we would run into each other. Check-in, once it started, went by pretty quick though and all the Special guests were able to go in and enjoy the convention. One of the first places I went to though was the Special Guest green room. It was nice and while chilling in there I saw some cool people including Dave Levene (btw... I don't think I knew who he was before this event but now I'm going to have to check out his yt channel) and KoreanEnglishMan (who was pretty cool) and one of the people from HallyuLA (she was very nice). Later on I was walking around with my friend and I saw this make up booth so I asked if they had a mirror so I could do my makeup. They were very nice and even let me use a cloth to wash all the sweat off of my face first then after getting the mirror I started attempting to do my makeup (I'm not a big makeup person). The girl at the booth noticed that and asked if she wanted me to have her do my makeup. Of course, I said yes. She was very polite and very sweet. She asked lots of questions and was very gentle and made me look amazing. It made me so happy because for the rest of the day when I took pictures I looked flawless. I can't thank her enough. I just wish I had remembered her name. I did a lot of things on Saturday and I can't remember all of them but what I do remember is going to Nyx's panel and perormance at the Dance All Day Tent and all 3 of those girls were so sweet. We got to ask them questions and they answered wholly and honestly. After the whole thing was over they were also super nice and stayed and took pictures with everyone.
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Most of my day was sort of spent wandering around, trying free samples of food and checking out all the event tents and such. It was all so new to me. I'd never been to such a huge convention before and I'd never been to LA before. I'd also never seen so many Kpop fans together in one place. It was all very amazing and new. There was so much I didn't want to do though because of the lines. Oh my gosh. I've never seen so many people in lines in my life. There was a line for practically every event or activity that was going on. I just wandered most of the day. I think the only things I bought that day were a hat and some food and drinks from the Bibigo truck and Tour Le Jours booth. Then I want to the concert. Since I was sitting (I was also P5) I got into the concert hall super quick and found my seat. The Saturday concert was nice. Seeing VIXX again and getting to see IU. Oh my gosh IU was so cute. And even though I was so high up they had tvs so sometimes I'd look at the TVs for a close-up of what was going on. When the concert was over I was ready to go to sleep (I love my sleep time). So I grabbed my roommate and as soon as we were able to hale a Taxi (omg it took like 30 mins) we got to our hotel and fixed our hotel issue, went up to our room and I passed out in a matter of minutes. Sunday I got up, took and shower and we had to get our stuff downstairs since technically we had to check out of our room. Luckily we were able to store our stuff at the Hotel so we could pick it up when we got back that night. Sunday I felt my 'Special Guest' status because that was the day of my panel. We got to the Con later but that was ok because the check-in process an stuff was going by a lot quicker since most people got their wristband on Saturday. But since gates opened at 8 and the market didn't open til 9 there was a line for getting into the market so I left Elizabeth (don't worry, she can take care of herself ^_^ ) and went off to the Special Guest tent to chill. When I first went in there was no one there so I looked at the time and since it was a little after 9 I wandered back in the direction of the entrance to the market and there was still a line so I went back to the tent and righ after I walked in someone else did. Which I was kind of upset about because I wanted to chill alone. But, you know, you can't control that kind of thing. So I chilled with them and waited around for Elizabeth to text me and let me know the Market was open and people were getting in. Sunday I had more money with me so I got breakfast at one of the food trucks. I had Kimchi and Chicken tacos while Elizabeth had a Bulgogi meal with Kimchi and rice on the side. I ate most of her Kimchi since my tacos were small (on corn tortillas). Other than breakfast I remember going back to the Dance All Day tent and seeing Heather again before my panel to let her know she'd probably miss my panel as I would her stage performance since they were around the same time. That whole ordeal made me kind of sad since we had been talking about going to each other's events. But it is what it is. I also went to Tour Le Jours and got a Melon ice bar, Milk Tea and a 'The Cheese Bread'. Which was oddly good for being cheese and being sweet. Before my panel all of the panelists met up to talk and plan n' stuff. Then we headed straight to the tent our panel was at. It was actually hotter under the tent than outside of it. I helped fan off John and Mckenzie from Demographics a bit and before I knew it the panel was starting. I can't say for sure but I feel like I did pretty well. I was me, I was honest and I was sort of winging it, since that's how I like to run things. I hope everyone who went had fun. And if you missed it for whatever reason it's alright. Although I wish you could have been there. I love all my readers. I appreciate the time you take to read my blogs and like my FB pages. It makes me happy to have you all in my internet bubble.I also went to the red carpet where the beautiful 8 girls of GG were less than 10ft away from me // I say 8 because Sooyoung wasn't there :( // So now I guess I should talk about Sunday night. I don't want to talk much about Pre-concert but let me just say that the Kcon staff are amazing! So walking in to the concert arena knowing I was going to see GG made me emotional. I cried.. kind of a lot. I found my seat and prepped myself for the amazingness that is Girls Generation. Don't get me wrong, I also thoroughly enjoyed the other acts. BTS did a great job, Jung Joon Young was hot, SPICA did amazingly and CNBLUE melted all the fangirls hearts. As soon as GG got on stage though all my dignity was gone. I was standing up, jumping, clapping and screaming so loud that I just about lost my voice. Total fangirl mode. The feelz were imperishable. They sang 'MrMr', had a short talk then sang 'Hoot' after that it's sort of blurry but I remember at one point they thanked us for congratulating them on their 7 year anniversary by singing the chorus of 'Into the New World' which made me sooo happy. I love that song and never thought I'd get to hear them sing it live. The rest of the playlist consisted of Genie, Gee and they finished with Mr. Taxi. When they left I immediately felt the PCD (Post Concert Depression) kick in. And to make it worse my friends abandoned me at the stadium. However, I was very tired so I turned my mood around, and caught a taxi back to the hotel. The taxi driver turned out to be a very nice Korean and he played Kpop all the way to the hotel. When we got there I thanked him in Korean, he complimented me on my Korean and I paid him, check in, got my stuff and went up to the hotel room. Before I went to sleep though I had to check in to my flight. I did that then I went back up to the hotel room and fell asleep. I was slightly awakened by Elizabeth showing up at the room around 1am (I think) and calling downstairs to figure out how to get her stuff. Well at this point you've figured out Kcon was well over. Woke up Monday, got coffee, got ready, caught a taxi and went to the airport super early for me but her flight left early. It was worth it though. I got my bags checked and got through security with plenty of time to eat and chill before my flight. Although my flight ended up being delayed a bit. I still got home just an hour later than I was supposed to.
So before I sum things up let me just point out the good about the event. Getting to be close to the artists you love, fan signings, hi-touch events, artist engagements, Red carpet, The concerts, The food, the fellow Kpop fans, the possibility of winning awesome prizes, the drama stars, the culture and language events, -if you're a fashionista- the fashion, the cosplayers, and the passion. Everyone was so passionate and wanted to show their appreciation for this event even existing. There were so many people there and they were there for the Kpop, K-fashion, K-food etc. I may go back next year, we'll see how things go. Until then just let me say that despite all the craziness I did enjoy it for the most part and am grateful for having had the experience.
Going to LA was a big step for me and now that I've had that experience I cannot wait to go to Korea! I know the flight will be a lot longer but that doesn't freak me out one bit. It just means I'll have more time to kill on the plane either typing up my thoughts for you guys, watching movies, listening to music, reading or talking to other interesting people who are flying between Texas and Korea. And when I do go I hope to take my bf with me. I want both of us to go experience Korea together. If we like it we may even decide to find a way to move there. I know I would like to if I find myself loving it as much as I think I will.
Did you guys enjoy Kcon2014? Was it everything you thought it would be? More? What was your favorite part? Please share your thoughts with me. I love hearing from you guys!
So before I sum things up let me just point out the good about the event. Getting to be close to the artists you love, fan signings, hi-touch events, artist engagements, Red carpet, The concerts, The food, the fellow Kpop fans, the possibility of winning awesome prizes, the drama stars, the culture and language events, -if you're a fashionista- the fashion, the cosplayers, and the passion. Everyone was so passionate and wanted to show their appreciation for this event even existing. There were so many people there and they were there for the Kpop, K-fashion, K-food etc. I may go back next year, we'll see how things go. Until then just let me say that despite all the craziness I did enjoy it for the most part and am grateful for having had the experience.
Going to LA was a big step for me and now that I've had that experience I cannot wait to go to Korea! I know the flight will be a lot longer but that doesn't freak me out one bit. It just means I'll have more time to kill on the plane either typing up my thoughts for you guys, watching movies, listening to music, reading or talking to other interesting people who are flying between Texas and Korea. And when I do go I hope to take my bf with me. I want both of us to go experience Korea together. If we like it we may even decide to find a way to move there. I know I would like to if I find myself loving it as much as I think I will.
Did you guys enjoy Kcon2014? Was it everything you thought it would be? More? What was your favorite part? Please share your thoughts with me. I love hearing from you guys!