Urgent one night, two days whirlwind trip to South Korea with father and daughter and recommended spots at Incheon International Airport★
chika
2 years ago
Last Sunday afternoon, I received a message from my baseball-loving father saying, 'Looks like there are not many spectators...' 😶
While I was staying in South Korea, I knew that the MLB opening game was taking place, but I think the tickets were sold out immediately? And the game was supposed to be on a weekday, right? Thinking about it, I searched online.🔍
And, amazingly, there was a game with a Korean team before the MLB opening game for 2 days! 😮 And when I looked it up, I found out that there was also a 'Team Korea vs LA Dodgers game' the next night, and when I checked the ticket sales site, there were indeed about 200 seats available in the 4th floor infield seats and outfield seats 😮 When I asked my dad, 'The seats may not be great, but do you want to go? 😁' he immediately replied, 'I want to go!' haha. As expected of my father 🤭
Thus, suddenly (the day before departure unexpectedly), a decision was made to travel to Korea with my father 😁 Immediately, we booked our flight tickets, hotel, and baseball game tickets!
My father also has work, so we booked a flight departing in the afternoon on the day of the match for the outbound trip, and a flight departing in the morning on the day after the match for the return trip 🛫
The hotel chose Toyoko Inn at Tobira Station👍 There are several reasons for choosing this place, first of all, you can transfer directly from the nearest station to the dome without transferring, and you can also transfer once to Incheon International Airport🙂 Also, there is a Lotte Mart in the station building, making it convenient for souvenir shopping, and since it is a lively city until late at night, there are many restaurants where you can eat even if the game ends late😉 Also, it is a Japanese hotel, so there is a sense of security and stability, and the fact that breakfast is included and cheap was also a deciding factor! (Approximately 5,500 yen per night for a single room)
After that, the important baseball viewing ticket reservation is ... but here a problem occurred 😱 I learned one of the reasons why the tickets were not sold out ... Actually, only paid members of the online shopping site called Coupang can purchase tickets 💦 To register as a paid member, you need a Korean phone number in the name of the person ... And asking a paid member to purchase on your behalf is not allowed. Although up to one person can enter with a paid member, strict rules require the paid member to enter with them. There is no same-day ticket sales at the venue.
In other words, only invited guests, foreign residents in Korea who are KBO paid members, or those who know a Korean (KBO paid member) who will go to the baseball game together can attend the game 😱
Too strict...but I really want to take my father to watch baseball...so I asked my family in Korea and was able to successfully purchase tickets 😅 However, only one companion is allowed, so I won't be able to go in 😂
There were various things, but somehow managed to finish all reservations and pick up my father the next afternoon at Incheon International Airport 🚊
Here also a little accident 💦 I thought it was the first terminal because it's an LCC, but the Jetstar my father uses was actually at the second terminal 🤯 Hurriedly moved to the second terminal 💦 If you are using Jetstar, please be careful!
The plane arrived before 4:00 PM, and I arrived at the arrival lobby at 4:40 PM 💦 No matter how many times I tried to contact my father, he wouldn't answer the phone or read my messages on Line 💦 (My father in his late 60s can't even set up Wi-Fi...)
Are they still not coming out, or have they already come out and are somewhere in the crowd, walking around for about 15 minutes but not finding them... there are still 2 hours left until the game starts 💦 I was thinking about asking for an announcement at the information desk, but thankfully I was able to find my father! 😭 He's not used to using smartphones, can't speak Korean at all, and it's his first time coming abroad alone, so I was truly relieved when I found him 🥲
When meeting up, it's better to decide on a specific location instead of just specifying the exit! It was really tough searching around 😫
Time is running out, so we hurry to Lotte World Tower Sky Dome! 🚊
To get to the dome from the airport, you need to transfer buses or trains, but I thought the roads would be congested, so I decided to head to the dome by transferring trains. As it happened to coincide with quitting time, the train was crowded, but I managed to arrive at the nearest Kyuichin station 💦
Met up with my family as planned, successfully passed the ID check and belongings inspection, and entered the venue 5 minutes before the start of the match 😅 Feeling relieved 🥹
The day before was a huge mess, and I was worried after seeing information that it took about an hour to line up before entering, but it went smoothly this day and I'm really glad!
After seeing off two people, I decided to head to Tomiura Station to check in at the hotel first. However, the train did not come at all even after 30 minutes. When it finally arrived, the platform suddenly changed, and the train I finally boarded, which was supposed to be an express train, changed to a local train. There was confusion between the automated announcement and the station staff's announcement 😂 When boarding the train, please also pay attention to the announcements and listen carefully!
Finally arrived at Tomihira Station after 8:00 pm.
Actually, there is the world's largest underground city in Tomihira Station! And it's cheap!! Even in the current high cost of living, there were many products at prices that were almost the same as before Corona 🙂
When it comes to underground shopping centers, GOTO MALL in Seoul is famous, but this one is also recommended👍 A friend who visited this underground shopping street before spent a whole day enjoying shopping here🤭
It's so wide that if you get lost, I recommend going up to the surface to get your bearings 😅
Also, many shops closed after 9 pm.
After the baseball game ended, we decided to meet at Tomihira Station. By the time we were able to meet up, it was already past 10 p.m., so we did some shopping at Lotte Mart before having a meal.🙂 There were also several strawberry-flavored products available due to the season.😉
After finishing shopping, let's drop off our luggage at the hotel and head out for a meal 🐾 It's convenient when the hotel is close to a supermarket or train station, isn't it?♪
I was unsure what to eat, but I chose a yakiniku restaurant 😋 Here, the staff cooked the meat for us ✨ There was a staff member who spoke fluent Japanese, and my father happily engaged in conversation 😊 He was pleased that all the dishes were delicious ♪ In particular, he seemed to really like the Kalanchim, and he even learned how to make it from the staff 😁 Due to time constraints, we can't go buy tteokbokki anymore, so next time I will buy it as a souvenir to take home ♪
After eating to my heart's content and returning to the hotel, it was already almost midnight ⏰ From there, we had a second party with the cloudy sake (takju) and yupo that we bought at the supermarket 😂
This cloudy sake may be better to drink with ice because it is rich😅 I found it troublesome to go get ice, so I diluted it with water and drank it🤭 It was about three times more expensive than regular makgeolli, as befitting its premium name🙂
It seems like they also went to the goods shop inside the Gochi Sky Dome, but many items were sold out, so unfortunately I couldn't get the towel I wanted 💦 But if I could buy something to commemorate my father, that would have been nice 🤭
The next day, we had breakfast at 7 o'clock and left the hotel before 8 o'clock, heading straight to the airport 🚊 I was worried about the rush hour commute, but it wasn't too crowded 😉
The return trip is on T'way Air, so get off at Terminal 1 🤭
I was able to use online check-in, but my father, who is not familiar with smartphones, was worried, so we issued a paper ticket at the airport's self check-in machine 😅 I made sure my father's smartphone was properly connected to the internet, explained the route to the boarding gate, and saw him off at the security checkpoint entrance a little after 9:30 🤗 It was nice that the security checkpoint was also empty, maybe because it was a weekday♪
My father arrived at the boarding gate, so I decided to stay inside the airport and went out for a walk 🐾
The free linear motor car connecting the airport to Ryuyu Station is said to be suspended until the end of July 😞
There are plenty of interesting spots near the airport railway platform!
At VIVID SPACE (K-Contents PR Hall), you can enjoy experiential video content, there are chairs like pieces, and it's quite interesting 🤭
VR Experience Center seemed to be under preparation🙂
Right next to that is the exhibition space🙂
And there was also a spot where you could experience how the security inspection system at the airport is set up 🤭
There is also a free electric cart that will take you from the airport railway platform to Terminal 1😊
Tourist centers are also recommended! They offer sightseeing experiences and various campaigns, so be sure to stop by😉
After about an hour of strolling around, I received a message from my father that he had arrived at the boarding gate👍
And so, my father's Korean bullet tour has ended safely 😊
