So this past week I finally had the chance to attend a baseball game here in Korea. Baseball games here have been hyped up by Koreans and expats since I got here so I had high expectations of the experience but not necessarily the quality of play. I arrived at the Jamsil Stadium, which is just across the Han River from my neighborhood on the far eastern edge of Seoul, and I was immediately hit with a festive atmosphere of people cooking food to sell, giant ice tubs full of cheap Korean beer and soju, and carts of typical Korean street foods. The place was a mad house but in a fun way. I was able to get 4 tickets in the outfield bleachers for about $8 each. The stadium holds about 40,000 people I would estimate and the place was definitely sold out.
The outfield seats work like bleachers so you just have to find a spot to sit and stand. Now, the really fun part was being able to purchase all the food and beer we wanted at the outside vendors to bring into the game with us. There was a KFC and Burger King as well as outdoor grill and guys from local fried chicken chains running around trying to sell off picnic box kits of chicken. Korean fried chicken is pretty fantastic and a staple here. The Jamsil Stadium is the home of two teams: the LG Twins and the Doosan Bears, both named after companies of course. That night the Twins were taking on the Hanhwa Eagles from Daejeon City and we ended up sitting among mostly visiting fans. The atmosphere inside the stadium from the start of the game and until well after is nothing short of electric. It was something akin to a European soccer match without any violence.
The home team had half the stadium and the away team had a portion down the left field line with each team using drums and cheerleaders to lead chants and singing. In between innings the cheerleaders would change outfits, perform dance routines, and even do beer chugging contests. It was all very Korean but so much fun. Every player has their own chant the fans will sing for him and at one point each side of the stadium got into a chant battle back and forth growing louder with every chant. The game itself was a pitcher's duel with the underdog Eagles coming out on top 1-0. After the final out is when the party really began for the Hanhwa fans as they cracked fresh beers, sang and danced for another 30 minutes or so. All in all we probably spent $12 - $15 a person with large cans of beer included. Definitely something I'm going to do again as much as possible!
