Lotte World Adventure

August 15
Lotte World Adventure!

Korean Independence Day fell conveniently on a Wednesday, so we had the day off from school. We had already planned to go to Lotte World Adventure theme park in Jamsil, and I guess we didn't realize until we got there that, oh yeah, everyone else in the country has today off of work too. And they ALL came to Lotte World. So we waited in line for tickets for about half an hour, and we didn't even get a foreigners discount! (LIES, Lotte World Website! Lies!). Then we went through the gates and.... Holy frig Lotte World is cool!! We started our "Adventure" in the indoor part of the park: it's not just rides and games and stuff, but every square inch of the place is decked out. Some of it looks like jungle, and there are dinosaurs and moneys and stuff. In the middle of the bottom floor is a skating rink, and its open to the top floor, so you can look down on people skating, and shopping on the other floors. Around the perimiter of the huge building these giant faux-hot-air balloons go around, giving you a view of the whole place.

Our first ride, we decided, should be the French Revolution. It's a roller coaster, and there's nothing particularly French about it. But since when have Korean names for anything make sense. We were super pumped about it, and got in the line. 10 minutes pass, 20 minutes, 30 minutes... And then we finally get to.... The sign that says there's an hour wait from this point. We kept ourselves amused with our surroundings though, laughing at the rulse for the ride (No drunken ride, Not allowed medical sensitivity, Not allowed pregnant) and the crazy Engrish t-shirts (my favorite said ETHAN HAWKE: A Lucky Strike). Eventually we get to the front of the line, and onto the French Revolution. And it was so worth the wait! It has an upside down loop, and some of it is in the dark, and some of it is in a crazy-lit-up-seizure tunnel!

After the French Revolution, we got some lunch from a "Danish" hot-dog vendor. I didn't know hotdogs came from Denmark, but sure. Mine I think had friend onions on it, but Alaina's...oh my. Her "cheese dog" was a hollow bun, into which the lady squirted bright orange "cheese" from a bottle. She filled the hole, and squirted it all over the top. Then she took the hotdog, and sliiiiid it into the hole in the bun. And then back out. And in. And out. And in and out. And in and out and in and out. And in. I've never seen anything so filthy in my life. Apparently it tasted about the same. The cheese, she said, was "tangy."

Rejuvinated (ie: disgusted) from lunch, we next wanted to try the Conquistador, which is that boat that swings back and forth, only this one is all did up like a pirate ship. And the lady who runs it is dressed like a pirate. About an hour into our wait for the Conquistador we were conveniently placed viewing the "World Carnival Parade." This is, I imagine, what a parade might look like if it were people entirely with the offspring of Miss America contests and drag queens. They all have the most elaborate costumes, covered in head to toe with feathers. One lady's headdress was so big that it was on wheels! And it had handles for her to steer it around. I didn't notice that the parade wasn't particularly "worldly" until BBro noticed the flag of Brazil coming. And the people who were supposed to be representing Brazil? Some Korean. Some white. Only they have different colored feathers to differentiate them from the other countries. The parade also had people playing drums, and flinging ribbons, and a guy on stilts, and... Everything you can imagine. Apparently this is how Koreans see people from European and North and South American countries. It was awesome. Along the same lines was the "Salsa Band" called "Rio Samba", but its entirely Korean women, in sparkly fluorescent jumpsuits. They were actually pretty good.

Anyway, after the Conquistador, we explored a little bit, the indoor "Adventure" theme park, and the outdoor "Magic Island" one. We decided, finally, to try the bumper cars. The wait here was probably the longest one yet, but at least we got to watch kids smashing in to each other. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, then us! We kept being the first people in line: they'd stop letting people on the rides just before us. Every time! Suspicious, I think. Bumper cars, of course were super fun. Josh vs. Brittany vs. Alaina vs. 9 Korean children. Guess who won?

We didn't have enough time to wait in line for any more rides, so we tried to find the Folk Museum. On the way there, though, from the top floor, we saw down into the park where a group of people who were dressed as bears or turtles or soemthing, it was hard to tell from far away. They had on big costumes, anyway, and they were dancing around and playing instruments. And what they were playing? Like a Virgin, which in my opinion, is NOT appropriate for a children's theme park; but then again I don't make the rules in Korea. The Folk Museum is actually a lot less lame than one might think. It's got some artifacts and traditional costumes, but the best part for me was the model village, which had THOUSANDS of tiny people all dressed up, and models of palaces and temples and other buildings.

Since the lines were so long, Lotte World was sort of disappointing, as a first-timer. But it was definitely awesome enough to entice me into going back on a day when it's not so crazy busy.


This is a donkey that pooped out prizes for 1000won. I won a gummy candy. Delicious.