seoul, south korea > part III

its party time.

we're in the bus, smiles all around. well, most of us anyway! as we left the air dome back at Jamsil Olympic Stadium, after all the presentations were finally done, all all the photos were taken, after all the challenges were complete, we left for the bus that would take us to our next spot. and we all got to go, and by around 7 pm, we were ready.



ready to leave and party the night away. the whole bunch of us, including all the other teams were on board, and you could feel the palpable sense of relaxation in the interior ambiance's of the bus. no one was under pressure, everyone's shoulders were lighter of their burdens, and the inner auras of people filled with a sense of relief and joy that the challenge was over, manifested on their faces, through their body language, and simply expressed in their eyes.

and so were on our way.

everyone was seated, but i was too excited. i only had 2 hours sleep last night, but somehow i was bursting with energy. my eyes were lit up, and i was hyper. i was all over the place, walking front to back, back to front, front to back, back to front, front to back.

you get the picture.

i couldn't help it, i really was excited. i guess its true what people say that fatigue is simply a state of mind, and you can snap rite out of it whenever you like. no time was that more evident in my life than last nite. i wasn't even yawning. i was walking about so much, i even started singing the song "breakfast at tiffanys'" by deep blue something to the 2 korean chicks, the french chick and the australian chick sitting next to me!

i had an international audience ... and another dream of performing like a rock star infront of a crowd came true that nite! i take what i can get. after all of that, one of the lovely koreans told me that i was like a 5 year old, running around uncontrollably in the bus! haha, i smiled too.

i took that as a compliment, as acknowledgment to my vibrant youthfulness!

after around 30 mins being stuck in the jam, we finally reached our destination. it was a club, but a club like i've never seen before. this was a 3 storey structure. the interior spaces were defined by the incorporation of metal cargo containers ( like the kind you'd find on ships ) and spaces
were divided to 5 distinctly different functions.

we had a bar and dining space on the ground floor, situated next to an exhibition space showing architectural projects from germany, 5 individual art studios and a library on the first floor, and finally and office and another exhibition space on the third! it was an odd amalgamation of creative spaces all wrapped in a single box, 40'00" high.

but it was cool.

and so, this was where we spent the night.

we partied, we dined, we feasted and we told each other stories, we made each other laugh, we participated in each others memories and we relished in each others company.

at that moment i felt so lucky. i felt so blessed to be in korea at that time, talking to people from all over the planet, sharing amazing experiences with each other and it was all happening to me.

could this be the best thing that ever happened to me?

i've been pretty blessed so far, but this was surreal. its something i've felt i was always destined for, because i always had a feeling that i must follow my passion, in this case architecture, regardless of the obstructions that laid in front of me. i must pull through, and like the treasure that one would find at the end of the rainbow, guarded by some mythical leprechaun, the rewards would be unbelievable and worth every bead of sweat i poured to get this far.

and this moment was definitely one of the treasures that ive received after embracing my passion wholeheartedly and going as far as i can.

i spent most of my time with the members of my team. Team G. and i was loving every minute of it. we talked about everything we could think of. Hee told me of her dreams to visit New York one day, inspired by watching some american rom-com movie i cant remember now. Jien told me she could never cut class cause her mother was a teacher. Katie told me she was 17 when she had a first kiss.

stuff like that.
i tried teaching them a bit of hindi, in my efforts to expose them to something i grew up with, and i thought we could start with " I love you", which in hindi was "Mujhe Tumse Mohabbat Hain" ... the first two words were ok, but by the time we reached the third word, they threw thier hands in the air and gave up! too hard, it seems ... well, at least they tried.


we played games, one called 3 - 6 - 9, which i completely sucked at. i lost every turn, forced to drink coke every freaking time i lost, but with these dried snacks inside the drink! it was horrible, man. but all in good fun i thought...at least we were all laughing. one of the funnier moments that night was when katie, the interpreter, showed us a picture of her boyfriend, and one of the other girls said the guy looked like something like Waldo, from wheres' waldo!

i gotta admit, she was right!

and so that was how we let the evening pass. from around 7.30 right till the bewitching midnite hour, we chatted. about anything and everything. we wanted to squeeze every moment of joy we could from this blessed meeting of minds and spirits. and no matter how much i tried, i knew that i would never be able to completely embrace the moment.

i just did the best i could to ensure this moment never dies,
silently thanking God in my heart, for this.

for everything.

this very well could be, the best thing that has happened to me. at least in my professional career. and like all good things it was coming to an end. one by one we started to leave. we took photos of ourselves, realising, we might never meet up again, cherishing every second. i know of course the night had to come to an end, but it just seems so unfair. this was the best part of this trip! why cant we just have one more day?

by around 12.30, almost everyone from Team G had left, and i started mingling with the others in the conference. there was still a good crowd left, and i went from table to table, meeting people from all over the planet. i spoke to these 2 guys from italy and portugal, and then these 2 people from bosnia joined us. i pretty much just joined them, getting involved in their conversations, enjoying whatever else that was left of the night. we spoke till about 2.30 and my last conversations that night was between me, my malaysian counterpart, Grey, Sharon from Taiwan and this other korean guy...whose name unfortunately i cant remember!

he asked me where i was from, and of course i said malaysia and i told him that Grey and i were from the same country, he look baffled. puzzled. bewildered. he was wondering how come 2 people of 2 different races come from the same country? you see, thats thing about homogeneous societies like korea..its very difficult for them to grasp the notion that multiple races can live in 1 country. it took quite some time for me to convince him, we DO come from the same place.we malaysians take it for granted that living in a country with different races and that almost everyone here speaks english relatively fluently is no big deal.

guys, trust me, it is. we're lucky, and we dont even realise it.

around 3,00 am, it was pretty much over. we were all getting ready to go back to the hotel. and we did. we took a cab, me, sharon and grey straight back to the hotel. the night, unfortunately, was over. reality bites, and she bites hard. we got back to the hotel, and we saw the australian girl at the reception counter looking anxious and panicky. we found that she had lost her passport earlier and there was virtually no way to retrieve it. our heart went out for her.

hopefully they'll be a silver lining in this cloud, and she gets some good news in the morning. we on the other hand were exhausted and all we wanted to do was hit the sack. straight to our rooms, straight to our beds. and as i laid there silently on my bed, i couldnt help but feel just a tinge of sadness. what had been an incredible journey of friendship, camaraderie and adventure was coming to an end. these were the last thought floating in my mind before i slept.

we were going home tomorrow.

seoul, south korea > part II

the second day at the conference pretty much started when everyone of the team arrived between 9 and 10am .. i got there kinda late too..cant really blame me tho..we only left the stadium the night before at 430 am, and back at the hotel by 5am! so had a couple of hours of sleep, and then back up at 8 plus, and off to the stadium. now, after working 2 days on our ideas, sketches and concepts..that hours that led up to our presentation at 3 were surprisingly calm and cool. chris, our mentor, was pretty much putting in the final touches for the presentation and the rest were kinda like hanging out till he finishes..

i finally i got the time i thought to check out the stadium grounds .. at last, some time to check out the vast array of innovations scattered all over the place. from one level to another, from one end to another, from one air d0me to another, at last, i could go check it all out.


and i wasn't disappointed.


there were so many items on display all over the place, that it was impossible to take it all in at one go. on one wing, there were products birthed from innovations in graphics, multimedia, industrial and product designs, and in the other, wild ideas materialized in architectural, interior and sculptural forms.

new ideas boldly pushing the limits of design
in terms of concepts, execution and creation.

from simple ideas like the the redesigning of clocks, cups and calendars, and other run-of-the-mill mundane items you find in your home, till the redesigning of an entire city, covering infrastructure, interconnectivity and interaction among future citizens. its amazing what the human mind can dream up when given the chance, almost to the point of playing God.

out of this world.

and the displays had come from all over...from design universities and technical colleges, from individual companies and public enterprises, from professionals and students, from the government itself till the layman walking on the streets. i really wished as i walked around that we had something of this magnitude and appeal back home in KL, simply because the sum of it all was such an exciting affair. it truly was an international effort.

so for the next hour or so, i walked around, or rather rushed around, trying to absorb as much as i could visually. it was just too much and i was in design heaven, but like all good things it had to come an end. i needed to rejoin my team by 1 for lunch and then of course, for the presentation at 3pm.

and so we rushed.

















we worked as quickly as we could. getting all the little things rite.
spelling. visuals. sketches. presentations. the works.


2pm, we approached the deadline. gotta hand up the cd to the organisers. and we did. we were a bit late, but we handed it up. finally, a breather. finally we were done. and now off to the air dome, this huge silver caterpillar, with a form that looks like it's contorted within itself for the presentation. one of my buddies who took a break last nite around 3am wanted to go out for some smokes, and he wanted to be in the fresh air, decided to light up just next to the airdome ... not a good idea!




the second the lighter was lit, some guards immediately came around and asked them to stay away from the dome..'why' you ask? cause you gotta realise that the dome is made of flammable plastic and one spark was all it would take to light up the air filled tent like the zeppelin that blew up the morning sky like some out of control giant air borne bonfire...


so back to the presentation...as we headed to the hall around 3pm, we were ecstatic. God knows we did the best we could, the rest was up to providence. but you know, regardless of the results, we were happy. happy to be here, happy with our work and happy to have made friends.






that's what really matters.

and so we waited for our turn. only after the first 6 teams tho..agonizing wait for some of us, im sure. but the good thing was we get to see what the others prepared..and i was kinda impressed too..we had teams presenting karaoke devices and interactive, net - friendly audio devices for the hearing impaired, chairs that morph and change form for the wheelchair bound, interactive hand held cube like computers for the disabled, and green community based projects for the elderly. and the presentations were wonderful .. ranging from simple but effective animations, 3D renderings, hand drawn sketches in pdf format and good old fashioned public speaking. all passionate about their work, and it clearly showed in their presence on stage.

i thought to myself, all this in 48 hours? wow.

and so one by one, we all went on stage. presenting, articulating and advocating. my team member even decided to get everyone up and about stretching themselves to get the blood moving again before she presented. Nice work, Hee. and when everything was finally over, and in goodwill one team won the best idea, it was time to rejoice! time to get together, time to celebrate and time to take photos. yes, we all got on stage and we all smiled for the camera. and the word of the day for the photo op?

why, kim chi of course ... what else is there?

and now its off to the farewell party. we were done by around 6 pm, loitered a bit, hung out a bit, took more photos and congratulated each other as much as we could. all in good spirits, all in good fun.next stop ... Seoul city, to party till the break of dawn.




















now that's what we really came for!

seoul, south korea > part I

well, here i am.

I've always thought of writing a blog, but somehow, i never got around to actually do it. so why the sudden change of heart?

simply put, the timing was right.

I'm never gonna forget September the 14th, 2009, cause that was the day that made an astronomical impact on me. on my career, on my life, and on my spirit. that was the day i was selected by the British council to represent the country in an international design symposium, called Seoul Design Olympiad 2009 in South Korea! And these winning visuals had won me the ticket to the far east. looks like my work is literally taking me places eh?








that was the day that shook my universe, and that very night i celebrated having a small dinner with a friend that had taken the time and effort in emailing me the link to the competition. i couldn't go for guitar class that nite ... was simply reveling in joy to be sitting down in 1 place...

i owe her one.

so here i am. seoul. i still cant believe it. we had a dinner to introduce everyone at the hotel sunday night, where at once i was treated with compassion, joy and warmth, as i got to know my team members.

simple dinner, simple pleasures.

here i was! amidst a group of international citizens from all over the globe ... from Korea, UK, Italy, Taiwan, Bosnia, Portugal, Singapore, Indonesia and the list goes on.. we're all here cause we're in love with design..and we were celebrating our passions in an event that glorifies the various disciplines of design! graphics, multimedia, industrial, product, video, architecture and everything else in between...!

it all seems so unreal...and yet, here i was...dreams really can, and do come true.

arriving for the first time at the Olympic stadium with its gorgeous exhibits and even more gorgeous air domes, we spent Monday, getting to know each other, couple of presentations and games to get us moving (where we "constructed" a camera with our bodies) and spend the day with Hai MoNi ( which is korean for grandma! ) as our guide.

one funny incident happen to me when i boarded the subway ... another elderly woman looked at me for a while, then approached me as she was leaving the train, smiled and said to me while pointing at my eyes ...

"your eyes, very big,"

in surprise i said thank you and quietly smiled to myself. at that moment i realised that i had not seen anyone else of hindustani heritage around since i got here. no one at all. and i also realised that i think most of these koreans had never seen someone like me before. someone of north indian heritage. i must have been exotic to them! rare and unique .. wow..that makes me feel on top pf this world. finally we came to our stop, and then we followed our superwoman grandma to her first stop.

she took us to two lovely traditional korean villages and gardens set in such a beautiful eastern ambiance, explaining to us that that's where she hangs out ... she and her girlfriends...! culturally, it seems elderly men and women don't spend time together .. both genders feel uncomfortable with each other..a bit of culture shock to me, considering its so clear that both men and women feel lonely and isolated, yearning for companionship.











after that we came back to the stadium, hung out a bit and eventually said our goodbyes...

its now Tuesday evening on the grounds of the vast vicinity of the Olympic stadium, fast approaching the midnight hour here in Seoul, chilly winds gushing outside beneath a moonless sky, with a bunch of wonderful koreans ( the girls are really lovely , sweet and kind ) working on architectural solutions in an attempt to close the gap between the elderly and the young. thats what we're here for...

















our mentor is a white dude from the UK..nice fellow, chris, ..and the rest of my team are Koreans..designers mostly...very helpful, very kind, very approachable.

one girl, Hee, in particular took me to the local markets yesterday in Insadong, after everyone said goodbyes, night to buy souvenirs to take home..i was really touched that she took the trouble to accompany me .. she even bought me something! she then asked another friend to join us, and we went for some bamboo tea in an inn nearby...in an authentically wonderful eastern setting...sitting in an open courtyard beneath the sky, subtle lights surrounding us...it was magical.

people ARE good at heart.

after drinks, we had gone to a Buddhist temple, where three magnificent statues of the Buddha with a serene temperance and a diamond in the forehead, were housed in a structure, decorated beyond belief. it was 11.30 pm. time for one last sojourn to the opera house and a chance to witness a statue of Sehjong, the King responsible for the Korean alphabet among many things, and a general who defeated the Japanese in the 14th century. Hee Jeong, it seems, is in love with him.

it was then time to call it a night.

i arrived here at the stadium this Tuesday morning at precisely 9am, as requested. been working on ideas, sketches and concepts the whole day...everyone is still here..12.30 am. no one's gonna jump ship till its all done..thats for sure...and the work is amazing...digital ribbon screens interweaving themselves in gardens, benches that talk and interact, organic urban furniture, parks interconnected through the growth of a green web, and a billion ideas floating in the air. so this is what it feels like working at an international level. wow!

its unbelievable.

language is a problem. most of them don't speak English well enough..but a couple of translators have been a Godsend. its really interesting to use hand gestures and simplified , albeit broken English, to get the message across, and it has been humorous at times, and its all part of the experience. and i am grateful. im in Korea!
















well, i guess thats about it. its 2.30 am. we still have things to do and tomorrow's gonna be an exciting day. an opportunity to present design ideas and concepts thru sketches and visuals to an international audience .. an audience that's just as passionate about design as we are .

now what could be more exciting than that?