Just in time too, I had free round trip tickets from Cebu Pacific and they were nearly expiring at that, so again, JUST IN TIME! I totally believe I was destined to see him ㅋㅋㅋㅋ I mean, that might be disgustingly cliché, but how could everything align and go smoothly?? Even if it's not up close, I still got to see this wonderful man with my own 2 eyes and I'M STILL NOT OVER IT. This post is a major way to relieve myself of my feelings for that day in the life

 20190928 SATURDAY 

The invite above (that green card with PSJ's face) still needs to be exchanged for the actual MoA Arena ticket, so I scheduled my flight for the day before the show. This is so that I can roam around the metro as well. Pure solo travel and I like(d) it. I actually enjoy my own company, yall *winks*

Since I was alone, I went for the Capsule room at Kabayan Hotel. Booked in Agoda and I got a sale price of less than 500 PHP for a night + free breakfast. Such a deal! Its prime location is / was my fave though: 1 ride to MoA (fare at 9 PHP) and it's in front of the Taft MRT station. Just give me an MRT line and I'm good to go in Manila. Lol

  
  

The Capsule room was actually spacious~ You have a locker for your bag(s) and you're provided with a towel, toothbrush and soap. There are 2 sockets and a mini mirror too. Worth it, right?? You'll have to keep silent though, since you're sharing the big room with other folks. Not that hard, except that I had to have an early alarm for next day's fun meet! Thank God I woke up on the first ring

I was supposed to just go and watch Jung Haein at New Frontier that Saturday if I got to score a cheap-ass ticket like 1K or max 2K because everyone will get to have a Hi touch with him! Unfortunately, all I could find on Twitter were discounted tickets with no such perk (why though??) and the original price for Gen Ad / Balcony was 2,700+ PHP. I have no budget for that. The reason I went was for Go Dong Man, my man, anyway. So when I saw on Facebook that James Reid will be on the Wish Bus in Eastwood, I thought I might as well go~

  

From Taft, I dropped by Ayala Station to go to Landmark, shopped a bit, and had my late lunch. I thought I was pretty boring to be eating at BonChon but thank God ㅡ I heard the branch in Centrio already closed. I didn't even notice! Huhu

  

To go to Eastwood, my first options were Grab and Angkas, but they were hella expensive. As a practical person lol I researched and got info on this P2P bus around Glorietta that costs only 85 PHP! Schedule is every hour and I wasn't able to catch the 3PM one. I was worried because James' appearance was set at 4PM~ I kept checking Twitter if he was already out and all. I got on set and he arrived a few minutes later. Whew.

I was in front of the bus, but James was sitting and facing the other side.... Tsk. Had to be on my toes when he turns to us, so my camera had to be on standby too. My view at first and at most :

  

Sometimes he would turn full-on but I'm too slow lol here are the shots where his face shows:

  
  

I swear these don't give justice to how handsome he is ㅡ milky skin and all. Not to mention, his talent is legit. He sang his new single "Healing", which he wrote for Nadine I expected he'd sing a popular song / remake but I guess this was promotion for his music label anyway. He sounded so good, no bias~ I think they recorded twice though for YouTube, but the 2nd one wasn't broadcasted to us there.

  

I moved to the other side for a bit for a change of angle but it's still not enough ㅡ also maybe since I only have my 35mm with me? I couldn't zoom in


Below are 2 of my most favorite shots for this set.... He looked so cool for me


Okay, I shall stop because I'm still about to spazz about the real shizz!!!!

PS. I went to Paragon by the Penthouse at Mall of Asia but I shall do a separate post~

 20190929 D-DAY 

I woke 30 minutes before 6 AM? Checked Twitter to see that people are already lining up for ticket exchange. Like your guuuurl had to move. Lol Kabayan Hotel serves breakfast starting at 4 AM, so at least I didn't have to worry about missing it. It was gonna be a long day and I must be energized

  

I brought my backpack because I already checked out. I figured I'd go to the airport directly after the event. There's a baggage counter at the arena too. But I guess another stroke of good luck had me meet a few unnies that became my #ParkSeoJunForBench buddies + they let me stay over at their condotel just nearby NAIA T3. One was from Cebu so Bisaya represent! Another had a car so my bag was kept there and I didn't have to worry about carrying it and all. See? That day was golden (Connected with them through PSJ PH FB group; I didn't just meet them randomly there)

  

This was chaos. Lining up for Korean events (I've been to 5?) is srsly a battlefield This was the worst for me too because this is first come, first served basis so we had to fight for seats ㅡ the Capricorn competitiveness in me definitely jumped out

  

Once we got in, we were each given PSJ posters and then we had to rip a part of our ticket to join the raffle. At most, it was for a chance to play with Seojoon oppa (fast forward: I didn't win )


I was aiming for center but when we got inside, it was actually sooo far from the stage~ I had to rethink all my decisions in life lol I urged my friend to transfer but I chose wrongly when I think about it. I went for the right side facing the stage ㅡ we were so near already ㅡ but for the entirety of the event, the left side had a clearer view of Park Seojoon compared to us If I stayed in the center too, my fancams would have been full front. Anyhoooo just those small details. I GOT TO SEE HIM LIVE I CAN'T MOVE ON YET HOW TO DO THAT

MAH HEARTTTT AND MAH SOULLLL

They should've played cuts from his dramas and movies~ That would've been the proper hype-up. Bench just played random upbeat music then did some announcements on posting with their hashtag blah blah

  

There were preliminary games and some Q&As with the audience. I saw 2 who wore wedding dresses I'm still not that crazy, yall~ Shock of the night was AiAi delas Alas crying over PSJ and I don't like it because anyway she went backstage, met him and took photos with him. Unfair are those with connections

And then IT STARTS!!!!


I don't have many pictures because I took more videos with my old digicam. I'm not that satisfied with shots using it since low quality + zoom. I might upload the videos on YouTube then embed them here!


See, if I were on the other side, I would've caught more of his face~ But that doesn't necessarily mean I didn't really see him. I have more proof of his existence on aforementioned videos. I'll get to editing and uploading them when I have the time

 TAKEAWAYS FROM HIS INTERVIEW / Q&A 

• Park Seojoon wanted to be a baseball player.

He didn't get to achieve this dream because his brother was also into baseball and it's a sport that needs much support, especially financially. Their family could only support one and it had to be his brother Anyhow, for him, that detour made him the superstar that he is now He said this while looking embarrassed. Lol

• He got into acting through a cosplay group.

He had an opportunity to go on stage with these people and that first-time experience had him feeling weird and excited. That acting must be his path. And look at him now

• He's a fan of Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio.

He said he grew up watching their work~ Asked on what his favorite movies are, he can't pinpoint but currently he's into classic romance films such as The Notebook and About Time.

• Our favorite role of his is Go Dongman.

Okay, he was actually asked what his favorite was but he asked us instead. Everyone went crazy for Go Dongman obviously, and we asked him to do the hmp hmp aegyo! He had no choice lol so he did a suuuuper short one and I felt his all-out embarrassment

Very short hmp hmp 😂😍
Hahahaha success yall + his reaction after 😬😂#ParkSeoJunForBENCH #ParkSeoJoonforBENCH #ParkSeoJoonInManila pic.twitter.com/vEVGuefIiN

— Pearly (@pjcaboodle) September 29, 2019

• "The audience will have fun if I have fun."

Park Seojoon has this mindset for his work. In his portrayals, he really lets go and allows himself to have a blast. Srsly though, his acting is topnotch and that's why WE STAN.

• All of his characters have similarities to him.

A fan question was that which of his roles were closest to his off-cam self and for him, each has a little bit of him~ Uhm, if I can't have Park Seojoon-nim, can I have a Go Dongman pretty please??

• He has no specific dream role for his next project.

Because he's busy filming Itaewon Class right now, he's more focused on that. Therefore, he hasn't thought of what's next. But wait: he's gonna be a soccer player for his new movie! Would've been nice that it'd be a baseball player since that's his dream!!!

• His current favorite song is comethru by Jeremy Zucker.

Obviously I don't know what song this is from the get-go, but I searched and okay, I've heard of this already lol he said he listens to this lately while working. We were all going "sample, sample" then he clarified he enjoys listening to it, not singing it. He just wasn't ready, yall

• He tried sisig and liked it.

I'm sure you've read about this, but he was asked what Filipino food he ate, and yup, sisig came out. It was really yummy for him, and he had to have alcohol with it, even though he's avoiding drinking for his body and diet

• What's on his mind: travel, family, friends, health, Itaewon class and Filipino fans.

Particularly on his health, he's been working a lot (even up to 8 hours a day!) and drinking supplements. He feels his old age na daw lol. And Itaewon Class, that's his new drama. I'm so excited for it!!! Even though his hairstyle is funny But I need to catch up on finishing his other dramas I'm a strong Witch's Romance x Fight My Way fangirl~

• He believes in destiny.

He said he doesn't believe in coincidences, but more on destiny. And yall, did I say I was destined to be there that night

• He always sleeps with his dog, Simba.

I found it so relatable when he said he cuddles with his dog, but he runs away. Lol my Krystal is like that too He was asked how he manages his time for Simba and he answered this and also that he walks him a lot and feeds him delicious treats. He wishes that Simba will be around forever. Same for my baby too~

• He thinks he's actually boring.

"What makes you laugh?" ㅡ he doesn't know daw Because of his comedic roles, people think he's funny but he doesn't really understand that. Apparently, his friends are cold to his sense of humor lol personally, I think he's fun and interesting because of his facial expressions!

• His perfect weekend is staying at home.

Since he has such a busy schedule, he likes to just stay home when he has time. But then UGH FANSERVICE KING SAID NO ONE CAN TOP A WEEKEND LIKE THAT NIGHT

Park Seojoon oppa also played Pinoy Henyo with the audience, and he did it thrice: our side, center and opposite side. With us, the word was Hwarang and he didn't get it right . The next one was Simba and he got it from the start pa lang but he was soooo cute he acted like he didn't know. It was just too easy and the last was Samgyupsal. He got it wrong too. Lol he kept thinking so hard so the time limit was running out.

  

Another game was Hep Hep Hooray turned Park Park Seojoon Lucky fans became luckier because he volunteered to hold the mic at some point. I was so jealous!!! Everyone worked so hard (I would too if I was up there) as Park Seojoon hands the prize himself + he offers hugs first, yall


Then came the segment where he was shown 3 of his Instagram uploads. For this photo, he said the app result was like a spoiler of him in his old age ㅋㅋㅋㅋ The 2 others were of him and Simba, and one on the set of What's Wrong with Secretary Kim.


This right here was where I got TOTALLY bitter Three fans were to push the button and they'll get these special, once-in-a-lifetime gifts from the one and only~

  


  

I didn't catch it but there's a SELCA WITH PSJ too And the last one won it. IT WAS CRAZY SANA ALLLLL

Fan #1 got the pillow, Fan #2 got a voice recording!!! Imagine, Park Seojoon saying your name then I love you. I'm so hurt I'm not that fan lol how to move on from this??? Again, Fan #3 got the most-coveted selca with him. Plus a hug!!! A HUG!!!! I'm not okay. My good luck didn't go that far. Lol


Moving forward.... the fan dedication video was shown and made me regret I didn't pass an entry. Even a simple, "Oppa, saranghae" would've suffice but oh, well. Flying there was more than enough, right!?

  

VIP TIME! The 100 VIPs went up to get their signed posters from Park Seojoon and you can either handshake or hold his hands. Diskarte mo na, gurl. It was really strict at first, like look at his tall and cool bodyguards, but it got lenient at the end, especially with hugs. Oppa was very game too, I love him even more~ Huhuhu I will definitely get my hug moment in the future. I swear!!!

  

A video on Facebook circulated that a fan rejected his hug but I saw it with my own 2 eyes, she attempted to hug him, his guard blocked it so she gave up but just in time for Park Seojoon to be ready for that hug. Awwww so regrettable~ Well, we got cute shocked reactions from him

  

My man threw Bench shirts to the crowd and tried so hard to reach us in the lower box. There was one who got a catch from our side, I'm highkey jealous WAIT A MINUTE THOUGH, HE SO MANLYYYY



Wait, there's more: I was caught in the act by Bench! Find me in these official event snaps: