Struck Out II - Punctual Football Fan Goes To The Baseball Korean Style

Well there was no K-League being played as they were all games outside of Seoul and I didnt have enough time to go out that way to watch a game and come back. Some trips were a 4 hour journey one way so not possible to work on such short notice.

However another sport was able to come to my rescue again and what a way to beat the miserable rainy days in Seoul than to see a baseball game?

The match was between the Doosan Seoul Bears and the NC Dinos. Doosan is a major Korean company so they are naming rights sponsors. Although don't ask me about what NC means or is it Dino as in dinosaur as they have no mascot I could see! The NC Dinos are a new side in the Korean Baseball League and like in the Western Australian Football League the total amount of teams are now to 9 and from what I heard this has caused a few problematic issues with fixturing.

The home ground of the Bears is the now somewhat archaic and dated 1988 Olympic baseball stadium which is now known as the Jamsil Baseball Stadium. Interesting to note the layout of the 1988 olympic venues as the main Olympic stadium and baseball stadium are in Jamsil where the Swimming, Boxing, Gymnastics, Handball, Wrestling and other minor events are in Olympic Park some 8-10 kilometres away where the athletes village is. This was the case because the city also held the Asian games in 1986 and the location met the requirements.

The game was a stock standard affair to be honest with the Bears one of the strongest sides in the league had the game in control from the top of the first to the bottom of the 9th. Why they had to go to the 9th innings was a bit of a mystery to me when the score was 5-0 by that stage. The game did finish however 5-1 though so not bad for the Dinos.

The ground was surrounded by stalls of many western food stalls and very little Korean cuisine which I found surprising to be honest but perhaps I was expecting Korea to be like Japan, influenced by the west but very distinctively themselves though I guess 60 years of the US pushing anti communist garbage down their throat has left the nation in a very weird state.

There were copious amounts of Burger King, KFC, McDonalds and Taco Bells to shake a stick at as well as many coffee stores similar to Starbucks. Yes I wasn't impressed but for meals no more than 8 dollars that is a good deal for baseball goers at Jamsil.

The ground was very open and easy to navigate around of sorts but the concrete steps are rather high and sudden so perhaps I would suggest caution for young or elderly visitors. I was expecting to have the girls run up and down offering drinks, snacks and food but nothing... NOTHING! Though I did see a few very uninterested guys with beer kegs walking around at the very front. In the very expensive members area but from what I saw if I was a member; I would complain.

The ground does have a few food stands in the very top of the stadium evenly spaced so it reminded me of an Australian sports ground actually. Bought a hotdog and a beer which cost me 6 dollars. It was a franchise brand and they sold hot chips cut thinly with all kinds of toppings over them but they ran out and were cooking more.

Towards the end of the game I sat near the active supporters as they had a guy starting songs with dancers. Many of them were K-Pop songs but what made me laugh and reel in shock were some of the lyrics when they sung them in english. Overt sexual and foul words were often mentioned which I assumed they knew perfectly what they meant but at a "family friendly" venue you would think that wouldn't be allowed. Though Australians are a protected bunch and we love being wrapped in our conservative cotton wool.

Was a good evening out although if you want a unique Korean sporting experience this is sadly not the place as it is about as Yankee-doodle as they come.