Stray Kids MANIAC concert in Seoul

We did it! After 3,5 h of page refreshing, clicking, inputting of card details... we finally had 4 tickets to a Stray Kids MANIAC concert in Seoul.

The tickets came on sale at the end of August while we were still in Finland. I was sitting at a hairdresser with a phone and my friends at home on their computers. The task was to buy 4 tickets all together to the upcoming concert in Seoul - as it happens we would actually be there when it was arranged.

One person could only buy 2 tickets and there is no hope to get two seats next to each other, but it did not matter. After 1,5 hours of trying I got my first ticket. Then about 30 minutes later I got my second one. Apparently, I had better luck with my phone at the hairdresser. Then soon after one of my friend gets a third and tries to get a fourth as well for her co worker who was going to be in the Seoul at the same time. When there were 2 tickets left in the arena, she manages to get a fourth one.

I had no idea where did I get the seats were because at that point I just clicked and inserted details again and again and again...

On the concert morning in Seoul we woke up late, got ready and went to the 943 Kings Cross Harry Potter -themed cafe before heading to the concert. The cafe was in four levels and had different themes. They were also getting ready to open up even more levels.

After exploring the cafe we took a subway to the Olympic Park, where Stray Kids would perform on the KSPO Dome. Next to KSPO Dome there is a Handball Arena that had an ENHYPEN concert starting at the same time. Both groups are on my Spotify list so it was great to see a lot of fans.

Everything went on so smoothly. We picked up the tickets once we arrived at the site and it took us about 1 minute to do so. No lines, and two plastic cards with a picture of Stray Kids were in our hands. We went to get something to eat before entering the dome. Everyone still had to wear a mask indoors.

Once the concert started, I was sucked in. The visuals were amazing from the beginning and the performances were top notch. I was on the second last row but could still see everything extremely well. One of my friends got luckier - she was extremely close to the second barrier and some of the below pictures are from her phone.

If concerts were like this always, I think I would put a lot more money on them. No one stood up unless we were told to do so, so there was no annoying blockage of sight at any point. No drunk people, the sound was extremely clear and the screens so big that you could see everyone very closely through the camera.

The concert was looong. It lasted for about 3 hours with a 20 minute break time where fans (stays) could go to the toilet. At that time there were some games played on the screen. At some point they played Stray Kids songs and chose a random member from the audience, and that person had to show the dance suited to that music. I would've been in trouble, but it was a good thing I sat so far back.

The colourful sea of Stray Kids's fans light sticks was also a sight to see. They changed colour accordingly so it suited the performance.

Above is the picture of how close to the second barrier my friend was sitting. This is a screenshot from a video she took as the members went past in some sort of space shuttles.

After the concert we were so hyped that we had to invent something to do. We were also very hungry, so we hopped on the subway and ended up in Itaewon. We went to get some tapas and drinks and after continued to search for a bar we could stay at. Unfortunately, we were not let in a couple of places for reasons they did not state, but I have read that discrimination against foreign people is still very common in Korea. Fortunately, we did get in to one bar in Itaewon and stayed there until closing time playing dart games.

Street in Itaewon

Two local guys wanted to take a match against us four and stated, that who ever loses, has to buy a round of beer for everyone. We agreed, they lost, and as they went to buy the beer, they disappeared and most likely changed bars or left home. Didn't change our itinerary, and we continued playing.

From Itaewon we continued to Hongdae with a local Uber. We walked around for a while and ended up continuing our night in a hip hop club called B1. It was a lot of fun to dance after a while. We ended up being back at our hostel in Hongdae during the early hours of the morning after the adrenalin from the Stray Kids concert had worn off.

The concert day was definitely something I will always remember as it was something so extraordinarily amazing and one of my first big concerts by a Korean artist. Hopefully, not the last one, since this is something I would gladly experience again. I'll end this with one more picture of the concert.