The Nutcracker

It was a pretty last minute decision for me & my sis to purchase tickets for Ballet Festival at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas. The Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) has planned for another ballet inspired performance but this time with a little surprise - a live ballet performance by the Stars of the Moscow Ballet. Prior to the show, I was very intrigued by how the entire dance troupe would be able to perform on stage, with very limited space in the hall. We decided to go for The Nutcracker as we are more well versed with its music.

When we entered the hall, we were surprised that the organiser was able to fit in a backdrop on the stage. The entire orchestra was moved to beneath the stage in order to accommodate the troupe. The performance was divided into 2 parts - Act I & II with an internal of 20 minutes in between. The programme began on time & as soon as the orchestra struck the first few notes, the long forgotten music became all too familiar. It was heartfelt to be able to experience these beautiful melodies I grew up with come to life.

The dancers performed incredibly well even though the size of the stage was indeed a challenge for them to execute their leaps & jumps flawlessly. At one point, the Nutcracker prince nearly fell onto his knees when he was in the midst of his high leaps. The stage was way too small for him, what's more he is a tall man. He covered his mistakes very well which clearly shows a true professional dancer. The protagonist, Marie seemed wobbly at pointe in certain scenes. It could be due to exhaustion from the 2-nights gala performance or just being nervous. She still nailed her performance so we personally had no claims at all.

It was an enlightening experience to able to witness a live ballet performance, what's more from Russian ballet dancers. These performances don't come by often in Malaysia & though pricey, it was worth spending on the tickets. I hope that MPO will consider bringing similar performances to Malaysian shores as more locals are starting to appreciate these art forms. I couldn't help sneaking out my iPhone & managed to snap a  shot of the backdrop in DFP during the interval. Not long after that, I was being warned by a flash of green laser light so I had to keep my phone before it risked being confiscated. Well, one shot is better than nothing... XD

Pic courtesy of Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) Facebook

Justin Lo Live in Genting 2010

Attending Justin Lo's concert was one of the promises I made with WL ever since we were together. Justin's last concert in Malaysia was back in 2008 & I missed cuz nobody was interested to go with me. I, or should I say we, didn't expect he would return for another concert. He had been a little quiet for the past 1-2 years other than making headlines for being involved in a fight with our local singer, Gary Chaw in Hong Kong with the latter landing a kick on Justin's groin. Gary apologised publicly & the two best buds were back to good terms.

Okay, enough of the showbiz gossips. When it was announced that Justin will be back for a concert at Genting, we jumped at the opportunity to make reservation right away. It costs RM368 inclusive of one pair of RM130 tickets to the concert & free breakfast for two.

WL didn't want to drive for fear of damaging his already old car. So, we'd decided to be more adventurous & took the Genting bus at 1U to Gohtong Jaya station then boarded the cable car up to the highest peak. My heart was thumping hard because the cable car carriage was letting out loud, cranky noise as it prepared for lift-off through the cables. The same question kept running in my mind. What if the cable snaps off? o.O Oh, the horror!

My heart nearly dropped when the carriage lifted off & suspended mid-air, rising slowly - with occasional wobbles - up the steep slopes of the highland.

The view outside the carriage got even scarier as it ascended the hills. The tropical rainforest is right below us & trees grew as tall as few hundred feet. Look down & you'll see that the forest seemed endless. To ease our anxiety due to acrophobia, we attempted forcing a smile in front of the camera.

When the carriage arrived our destination, we heaved a sigh of relief that we were finally back on solid ground. Wow, what an experience that was! We headed to First World Hotel to check in & were overwhelmed with the huge crowd waiting for their turns. Guests of different nationalities can be seen - Chinese, Middle Easterns, Indians, South Africans, etc. It took us more than an hour to finally check in to our room. WL forgotten to request for a queen-size bed & we ended up having to accept a twin single bedroom even though we booked for a deluxe room. It's still better than sleeping in a superior room which is awfully small.

After napping & shower, we were all set to go for a walk to enjoy the chilly air outdoors. The concert is scheduled to commence at 8pm & we were told by the staff at the ticketing counter to enter the Arena of Stars by 7.30pm. This means dinner has to be early or else we'll be late for the concert. We dined at a Hainan Kitchen for a quick meal of chicken rice & lamb stew. Not that both dishes tasted good & it was darn expensive - as expected from every F&B outlet in Genting. Next, it was time to hit the outdoors while it was still bright. How I love the cold breeze~ If only KL is as cooling every day.

We entered the concert hall at 7.30pm however, the concert is still empty & nowhere near occupied. We sat quite far from the stage but still able to catch Justin in action. He should be about 5cm tall from our view which is much better than the Alan Tam & Hacken Lee concert we went last year. While waiting, we were bored & started camwhoring as usual XD.

The clock struck 8pm but the concert was delayed for about 10 minutes to allow the other concert-goers to find their seats. Little did we expect that the hall was filled up within minutes & it was close to 95% full. Despite the small hall that could only accommodate 6,000 people, it's still quite a feat to command such strong crowd. I supposed many people just love Justin. =)

The concert started with the singer elevated from underground, belting one of his older hits. He looked exactly like the last time I saw him 3 years ago, only a little pudgier now XD. He wore his cap as always but seemed to be spotted without any hair. No sideburns or stubs. Seemed to me that he shaved his head bald, which I felt, is a good feat for his severely receding hairline.

He wasn't much of a dancer but he still made an effort to showcase his dancing prowess. The crowd went wild when he & his dancers sashayed on the stage to Wonder Girls' infectious Nobody & continuously pumping in actions for Super Junior's Sorry, Sorry. So darn hilarious! It was one of his songs called 30 Days with meaningful lyrics made me tear as he sang with full emotion. WL thought that I cried for the singer but it wasn't true at all. The lyrics were touching as I tried to imagine WL saying each word in the song to me. Well, he sang to me several times in the car but somehow he couldn't express the feelings as strong as how it should be. Baby, don't get me wrong ya. Nothing beats having you saying it to me & I really appreciate your effort. Love you! ♥

All good things must come to an end. The concert ended with a standing ovation from the crowd after he fulfilled a three-song encore for us. I'd say he did pretty good fan service too when he called on a fan to join him on stage during his performance. Lucky gal! Boy, we were starving as soon as we left the hall & quickly sat down for a quick bite. WL had his Burger King that he was pinning for, at last XD. Took a snapshot of us with satisfying grins plastered all over our face before we returned to our room for a good night's rest.

The next morning was passing by quickly as we rushed for free breakfast at First World Cafe. Worst buffet breakfast I've ever had cuz it felt like fighting for prison food. No offence but we didn't feel at ease eating our sausages & ham. :/ We left the highlands at late noon, descending the hills through cable car again. Upon boarding the bus heading back to 1U, we bumped into this old lady seating one row behind the driver's seat.

She was being loud & chatty with another elderly man sitting in front of me. At first, we ignored her but we couldn't help overhearing her exceptionally loud voice. This lady was narrating proudly on her pastimes during the weekends - travelling to Genting early morning to gamble & then taking the evening bus home. When being asked why her husband didn't offer to drive up to the highlands, of which she nonchalantly replied that her husband finds it costly to fund her weekly escapades & preferred her to settle it herself. She even added that she would be so bored to death if told to stay at home instead of gambling. Me & WL exchanged looks - both finally understood with our very own ears how Genting can remain so prosperous despite its rundown facilities.

Above all, both of us were truly satisfied with the outcome of the concert. Mainly because we adore Justin's song so much that it was natural we watched the show together. It's not the case in which only one of us fancy Justin which makes things a whole lot easier for us =) The one & only scary part is travelling to Genting during 7th month of the lunar calendar. -.-"

Alan Tam & Hacken Lee Live in Malaysia 2009

When I saw this poster of Alan Tam & Hacken Lee promoting their concert in Malaysia (for what seemed like their 2nd or 3rd time in our homeland), it never crossed my mind that I would attend it. For free!

I've got nothing much to blog about them as I'm not a fan of their music. As veterans, it's no doubt that their voices shine throughout the concert. It could be the choice of songs & the fact I'm no fan do affect how much I enjoyed the concert. Definitely wasn't as exciting as the Dong Bang days but what more can I expect, right? Furthermore, it was FOC & I attended it with dearly beloved WL =) I guess that's all that matters...

Piccies, piccies!

Celebrate New Year's Day, Viennese Style

My 2nd time watching an orchestra performance is more meaningful in a sense that it was meant to welcome a new year. A 2 hour show to be filled with Austrian or more specifically, Viennese waltzes to mesmerise the ever supportive audience. With the two tickets I bought last year...

...my sis & I trotted off to Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP) witness the annual performance which has become a Viennese tradition for centuries. When we arrived, the programme books were sold out. Yes, the book is not FOC but we somehow managed to grab a photocopy of the booklet for our own reference. Honestly, we had no idea what the orchestra was playing before the intermission. The waltz & polka seem so familiar. Anyways, which classical music doesn't sound similar? *sighs*

Upon flipping through the pages, I was so esctatic to see my all-time favourite song listed in the playlist.

My heart skipped a beat; my stomach flipped as I was nervous & excited about the MPO's performance of Johann Strauss II's By The Beautiful Blue Danube unfolding before my very eyes. Watching Andrew Rieu & the Viennese Opera Symphony dazzling the audience on TV was more than enough to move me to tears. A grand finale would probably drive me to stand & applaud like a mad woman; screaming "Bravo! Bravo!" at the top of my lungs. XD

Well...? The show was fantastically superb which also featured a soprano with an amazingly good voice & a jolly, fun conductor that lightens the atmosphere. Four additional encores were granted by the conductor as a gratitude to our thunderous applause. I'd have to say...the last piece, Radetzky March really got the crowd going. What better way to cook up the atmosphere than to entice the audience to perform clap along with the orchestra. Definitely a good way to start the year.

Our tired but satisfied face show it all~

Malaysian crowds are really sad, as usual. Why don't they even cheer as a symbol of support to the person performing on stage?? They're just so...unsupportive -_-. That was what exactly happened at Leo Ku's concert. The concert was pretty okay. Wasn't as bad as I thought it would be cuz Leo Ku can really sing live. It's just that his songs are not to my liking but that's besides the point. Being a non-fan, I could at least present a more objective perspective in this concert report. Btw, the verdict had been revealed. It was decided that me & my sis attend the event.

Dad wanted to make sure that we wait at the police station opposite the stadium after the concert. I was silly enough to not recall that it was there all this while. Haha. To even dare say that I was at Stadium Merdeka last month XD. So, Dad drove me there so that I dun get lost later. There was nobody there at the stadium at 2pm; not surprising though. It was a far cry from Dong Bang's pre-concert happenings. Lets just say no other fandoms are as passionate as Dong Bang's. Hands down for that~

Since our tickets were free seatings, we knew that we had to be there quite early to reserve a good spot. Me & sis arrived at about 6pm (the concert is scheduled to start at 7.30pm). There was a long queue at the entrance to the arena as expected. Fifteen mins later, everyone entered the stadium & (surprisingly) didn't rush to grab good seats. Again, that's incomparable to Dong Bang's. Both of us walked briskly to find the perfect spot for the best viewing experience. Not that it made much difference cuz the arena is pretty far from the stage.

Before the concert...

I shall start by describing the stage set-up. It's a pretty decent one - not too extravagant to the point of being labelled "overly done". What more can the staffs do since this is an outdoor stadium. Apart from the good thing about open space, a lot of stage effects & pyrotechnics are compromised when holding a concert outdoors.

I waited for about an hour or so & still there were no signs of other ppl coming to sit at the more expensive areas. It felt so awkward to see that Leo Ku's fans ain't enthusiastic at all. Or perhaps I was too used to passionate Dong Bang fans who're always punctual for any Dong Bang events. And the latecomers did reflect how un-punctual Malaysians are -_-". At approx 7.40pm, ppl start pouring into the stadium & slowly filling up the empty seats on the field.

At 7.40pm.

By 7.50pm, all the seats were filled up. The concert officially started at 8.05pm with stage lights flashing at intervals.

During the concert...

Two drummers emerged from the stage; hitting the drums with style & force. Without further delay, Leo Ku appeared on stage while suspended mid-air; singing his first hit song of the night. (Don't question me the song title cuz I fail at Chinese...XD)

Seen here is Leo Ku MC-ing after the first song. To my surprise, his jokes turned out to be witty & hilarious. Thumbs up!

Basically, he continued crooning numerous slow ballads after all the MC-ing. There're not much pics to upload here since 80%-90% turned out really blur. The rest are fancams which would take hours for me to upload thanks to stupid Streamyx. The video sizes are just too big! Nevertheless, the few pics below imho are the few best scenes throughout the night. Love those captivating stage lights.

Underwater scene with jellyfishes floating about.

Prince Charming meets Lady Princess.

When guest artiste for the night appeared, we were screaming hysterically XD. Yes, it was indeed Justin. Seems like the girls who sat behind us came cuz of Justin. So do I. Gosh! I sounded so evil :P. Anyways, I dun have any pics of him as it was really difficult to get a clear shot of him. Don't forget that I was sitting really far away from the stage. Speaking of costumes, the pic below showed Leo Ku with a pair of humongous wings strapped to his back. The wing looked ugly; like a devil's wing -_-. What was the wings for anyway?

If I'm not mistaken, after taking off the wings; he sang one song before thanking the crowd & walking off the stage like it was the finale. It was only 9.40pm that time!! Everyone thought that the concert ended. Like WTH?! How can it just end like that?? Although our tickets were free, we didn't come to be serenaded for merely 1 hour or so. That was a total rip-off~ So we stood still & waited a little longer. The stage lights dimmed & the atmosphere was quiet for about 3 mins. We were convinced that the show ended for some reason. Suddenly...HE APPEARED! Leo Ku came up the stage again & started singing the next song. He jokingly said, "Why on earth are you guys thinking that the concert ended already? I believe concerts in Malaysia usually lasts till 12am or so..." Awww~ At least he knew that the crowd was utterly shocked with disbelief when he left the stage like that earlier on. The concert went on...

Later, Justin & the other 2 guest artistes who also co-performed that night were dancing away on the stage together with the dancers. They were even jiggling away to Christmas songs. Obviously the show was coming to an end very soon. Giant balls were tossed to the crowd as part of the Christmas celebration too.

FINALE! MERRY CHRISTMAS~

After the concert...

Large crowd leaving the stadium.

-Random pics-

A proof of our existence at the concert~ Look at my dishevelled hair & blouse -_-"

The road to the stadium can be so Christmas-ey at night ^^

The hustle & bustle of night life in the heart of KL.

Overall, the concert wasn't so bad. It's just that when you're not a fan, you're naturally not as enthusiastic as you should be. Same goes for me. It's the type of concert in which I would go if the tickets were free. I won't go the extend of paying so much to watch it. Leo Ku is just not my cup of tea. I'm more of a Justin fan if I need to make a choice. Phew! Boy, the report was real long...o_O

Can you believe this?? I got myself 2 tickets to watch Leo Ku's concert. The cheapest ones, of course. But who cares? It's still free. And it'll be held at Stadium Merdeka this Sunday. Omg, I was there for Dong Bang's concert. I'm starting to tear up cuz I miss them so much T.T Okay, that was random.

You see, me & Mum was sorta debating on who should go. I intended to bring my sis while Mum wants one ticket for herself. Or it could go like this - Mum & sis go instead. But...but...*starts tearing again* I love concerts!! This is my first time watching Leo Ku in action~ (though I'm not a fan of his XD). I want to see the guest artiste with my own eyes. Tsk, tsk. Justin will be there. He's my fav, how can I miss him singing a song or two?!

The verdict:
Undecided

We'll see. If I update my blog with a concert report, you'll know who went. Stay tune!

P.S.
Check out my I.PLE blog at istyle.iple.com/waimei86. You need at least IE7 to view the blog. Pls disable all popup blockers before accessing the blog.

edit:

Some of the pics that I wanted to upload but left out from this post.

The glowstick that I used during the concert. Not many ppl had it so I'm considered one of a kind XD

Remnants from the concert Silver confettis collected from the pit zone ^^

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Concert Experience Part 3

Next, the projector screens showed a clip ala Charlie Chaplin of the boys hanging out at the car showroom - oggling & playing with the cars. It was a hilarious one cuz the boys got chased out of the showroom for messing with the cars on display. In the end, they built a car on their own using scrap metal parts taken from a junkyard. And off they came up on stage driving a car which was detachable while grooving to the tune of DRIVE. Yunho & Yoochun sat in the car & drove along the middle aisle straight to the crowd at the RM423 & RM283 area. I think Junsu came to our side for a while then along came Changmin as well. Junsu was smilling sheepishly all the time. I was thinking, he's sure tengah perasan cuz all the girls were calling out his name. Changmin was really shy that night as he quickly turned his eyes away when all of us met his XD. How cute!

The song ended in a few mins & the next vid of the boys in silhouette appeared. They were busy chit-chatting in their usual dorky way & then sang a short acapella, Whatever they say. Thank goodness for the subtitles or else we wouldn't have understand their casual jokes in the vid ^^. The boys appeared sitting on stools with bright red lights illuminating from their backs thus creating silhouettes while they croon to the tune of You only love. It was such a beautiful song when sung live as I got to experience their soulful harmony which complimented each other's voice, forming a perfect balance. Another vid about war scenes were shown before their next song, Dangerous Mind. Without further delay, the boys sang TRI-ANGLE which also featured Zhang Liyin covering BoA's part. I reckoned there was poor timing for the revolving door which was supposed to move upwards to reveal Zhang Liyin singing away. She was literally bending down to show her face but the door was moving too slow. I guessed half of her part was almost finished when the door barely moved up till her body. Such a pity!

Tadaa! Our much awaited song had finally came~ Dong Bang's signature song for the 3rd album made everyone high. Junsu did Yunho's intro dance while our dear oppa stood afar waiting to sing. *sighs* No one can ever replace oppa's part, not even Junsu. Everything would be so perfect if Yunho could dance. Anyways, everyone was singing enthusiastically to O-JUNG.BAN.HAP that the whole atmosphere was absolutely amazing. I forgot to mention; during the fast songs, the boys changed into outfits that blew our minds away. Yoochun especially, wore this 3/4 tight-fitted sleeve shirt with the front part cut across into strips revealing his chest O_O. We could see his nipples each time he jumped around the stage XD. That was totally orgasmic! I think I just had a nosebleed. Changmin wore nothing under a sweatshirt & had it zipped up halfway to show some bare chest *drools*. At one part, his left side kept slipping off his shoulders - revealing well toned biceps & chest. Gosh, I think my brain exploded after seeing it. The cute thing is, our dear Changmin felt so shy again & was trying hard to push back the sweatshirt to his shoulder while dancing but to no avail. Awww, Changminnie~ You're so adorkable!

The song ended with a blast & oh boy, I was wishing for more. But I guess things have to slow down a little as I got too heated up XD. Please don't ask me what the next vid is about cuz I could hardly remember. The boys came out with full length white coats & sang Remember. It wasn't my fav song off their 3rd album but somehow listening & seeing the boys singing live made it so good. It was another heartfelt song especially when the boys stood up on a rotating platform which elevated above the centre aisle. The elevated platform allowed everyone in the stadium to see the boys clearer, I guess. Hmm, how should I express my views about this song? It's...a motivating song. A song that gives hope. Maybe the song does not mean that but who cares XD.

Moving on next is another vid of the Dong Bangs in cute animation. This one is really popular & is still circulating around the Internet for months. It showed the boys going to SM Town theme park & playing rides. I should cut this short cuz you have to watch the vid on YouTube to know how hilarious it is. Then, the boys came out riding mini aeroplanes singing the cute song, Balloons & maneuvering them to different parts of the aisles. Though I didn't get to see Yoochun that much but Changmin was at our side for almost the entire song. How lucky we are! It was a fun ride with Dong Bang as everyone was waving their glowsticks & singing so loudly. This was not the end. The boys later sang HI YA YA which made the crowd jumped madly (I was one of them XD). They made speeches again & to slow things down, they decided to sing Unforgettable. Awww it sounded so romantic live!

Unforgettable was supposed to be the last song for the night. They made some sappy speeches (LOL!) & then left the stage with us wanting more. All of us shouted "Encore! Encore!" & managed to get the boys back on stage. Ah, it was a pre-planned encore anyway so no big deal. But it's good that we got to hear them singing HUG, their debut song which propelled them to success in late 2004. More bass were added to the song to make it more jumpy. I think it's meant to get the crowd worked up before they adjourned. I'd have to say this last song is my most memorable one. My dear Yoochun was holding a mineral bottle & drinking away...suddenly he walked near my area & started splashing water on me & a few other girls. AHHHHHH!!! I LOVE YOU, YOOCHUN~ Off he went to the far side of the stage. Junsu came nearby, bent down & put a foot on the railings. He was sorta tempting the girls there to pull the hem of his jeans & shoelace XD. Later, Yoochun came from the opposite direction & did the same thing. Dang! I couldn't even get near him cuz everyone was pushing -_-. How disappointing! *shrugs* Oh well...at least I got your water, Yoochunnie XD.

Finally, the boys bidded farewell & left the stage. The concert had ended with loud bangs & silver confettis shooting up the air. I took one home for remembrance. Silly me! LOL. Everyone in the pit zone refused to leave as we tried to get the boys to come back just for one more song. We sang I'll be there & an early birthday song for Junsu (which I thought was a bad idea) twice. At that time, I could barely hear my squeaky voice cuz my throat was having a terrible sore. Still, I tried my best to sing as loud as I could. Sadly, the boys left for good & so we fans had no choice but to leave. Imho, I think we did give a huge impression to the Korean staffs who were listening while clearing up the stage. Hopefully they would report this the boys & make them happy. Or maybe the boys heard our singings themselves...^^

I shall not narrate on the part while travelling back home as you guys might not stand the fangirling thingy. Initially, we had plans to stop by at JW Marriott & then straight to QBar to stalk the boys after the concert. In the end, we had to cancel it cuz Mum sent me a text asking about my whereabout. Being an obedient girl, I requested Intan to drop me home instead. Besides, everyone was bloody tired. I reached home at 12am & by the time I got ready for bed, it was 1.30am. I dozed off quickly as my exhaustion reached its limits. It was a night to remember. Thank you, my beloved Dong Bangs. Though my post-concert depression sets in & lasted for 2 days, it reflected how much I love & miss you guys. I'm looking forward to you guys releasing your next Korean album soon & hopefully come back to Malaysia in 2009. I'll be waiting...

Concert Experience Part 2

The concert started with visuals shown on the large screen on the stage which also switched at random. And then, one screen moved upwards revealing 5 guys standing there in long, black & red coats reminiscent of 5 mannequins you normally see in clothing shops. Lol. Except that these are more good looking ^^. The screen moved downwards again & within mins, I saw the boys standing on the stage preparing to start their first song. Bang! The Dong Bangs opened the night with the first song, Phantom. Oh boy! You should see how much we all screamed~ LOL. Everyone started moving forward while I stayed behind. Who would wanna risk getting suffocated in there?? Here's where the not-so-fun part started. Some stupid fangirls were apparently sooooo scared that they couldn't get their oppas attention *rolls eyes* & ended up holding their signboards above their heads for 5 songs. WTF! Because of that, so many ppl couldn't see clearly. The Japanese obasans were so pissed; they complained to the security guards. Thankfully, the girls put the signboards down but they did the same thing again in the 2nd half of the show. Lets not talk about them. The boys moved on to Million Men (2nd song), dancing away like nobody's business. At that time, everyone was already screaming for Yunho cuz he was missing from the stage. Yup, he didn't dance thanks to his injured hips back at the Seoul Encore Concert :(. What a waste! *sighs*

After Million Men, videos were shown again...this time the boys were pictured like some anime characters battling with monsters & slashing 'em with their awesomely cool weapons. It was a little too cheesy for me but who cares. All of 5 of them looked smokin' hot!! In the vid, Jaejoong swerved his sword, releasing a wave energy across a convoy of monsters. He really looks like a manga character coming alive *woot*. And suddenly, he broked into the The way U are at the chorus part. Then, all 4 of them appeared on stage to continue the song - only singing the 2nd half. Yunho was probably standing at the inner right side of the stage as I only caught glimpses of him. Next was Rising Sun & the performance was good though a little lacklustre due to missing Yunho. *sighs* I was trying hard to observe Yoochun who's standing at the far left side T.T. Why didn't I get the left pit zone??? Decided to stare at Jaejoong & Changmin instead cuz they looked so bloody hot in person XD.

Time for intermission & vids were shown again. This time, a girl was seen falling into the depths of the water. Okay, I don't see any relations with the monster battle. *shrugs* Whatever...after the vid, the girl appeared at the top of the stage slowly descending & flailing away as if she was struggling in the deep waters. Later, a guy came down & trying hard to rescue her by pulling her up. The whole scene here was so spectacular cuz both the guy & girl performed so convincingly, enacting the water scene. And without that giant projector projecting almost surreal water images to the white cloth (see pic in previous post), everything could've looked so fake. Thumbs up for this! The boys came descended down to the stage with wires strapped onto their bodies. I could imagine Yoochun shuddering through this XD (he's got height phobia). The intro melody of One was played & everyone cheered loudly. Yay for Yunho singing live so well. He really improved~ ^^ Too bad this time the song failed to touch my heart. Last year, I was tearing up cuz it was sang so emotionally.

Finally, the Dong Bangs greeted the crowd in Korean & of course in Malay by saying, "Apa khabar, Malaysia? Kita Dong Bang Shin Ki!". Omg, who taught them the wrong grammar?? Kita is soooo wrong...*grrr* Nvm, I don't blame the boys cuz it wasn't their fault. They sounded adorable though ^^ *squee* There they go yakking in Korean. This time, their speeches were accompanied with English subtitles projected on the screens at both sides of the stage. Kudos to SM for the translation efforts. At least we don't cheer for no reason like last year lol. Then, they sang Miduhyo so passionately. I was singing along so loudly & yeah, I was quite touched with the song. I couldn't hear a single thing last year due to the poor sound systems. This year wasn't that great but I would say much better. Junsu did some variations in the 2nd half of the song which I thought was a rather creative move from their original song. Unforfunately, Yoochun wasn't so consistent that night as he couldn't pull of some notes well. He tried his best anyway & I love him for that XD. Changmin has no problem, which is great :).

When You're my miracle came up, the crowd went berserk cuz the boys walked down the aisle - each of them spliting to different directions. Changmin walked along the middle aisle & turned to his left side; his back facing my area. O_O He was literally standing right in front of me (about 1m away...) & sweating profusely as seen from the visible marks on his jacket. Trust me, they were wearing suits in the hot weather -_-. Yoochun came to join Changmin & I couldn't stop spazzing away. I saw him upclose last year & it was exactly the same that night. Only difference is that I could stare at him longer at a closer distance XD. Was screaming his name so loudly but I guess it was stupid to even think that he would hear it *sighs*. They disappeared to the backstage for another clothes change. Yes, they changed lots of costumes that night.

Without further delay, another vid came up showing Junsu clad in gold tank top & err...pants I think. When he appeared on stage, he was wearing the same exact costume - singing his self-composed My Page while strutting his stuff with male & female dancers. I couldn't express how hot the female dancers were. I felt so envious in that instant moment. "Rain" started falling on Junsu while he shaked his kamo butt (he's famous for his sexy butt). While walking & dancing along the centre aisle, he accidentally slipped & fell. But ended up doing a cool pose to cover up his mistake. That was soooo random & cool! Definitely the capable Junsu. The song ended & he threw his cap away. Wonder who's that lucky gal who got his black cap. Yoochun appeared immediately from the aisle wearing a white sleeveless tank top, grey khakis & a red hat. OMG!!! I screamed as loudly as I could cuz he looked so good...When he sang the first word, my heart stopped beating for a few secs. I kept quiet & listened intently throughout the song as he did a rendition of Brian McKnight's One Last Cry. His English sounded fobby but nvm...cuz I was so drawn to the song. I didn't even cheer for him cuz I was in the verge of tears. He'll always be the heartbreaker, I thought to myself.

Upnext was Yunho performing his self-composed solo, Spokesman which supposedly featured Donghae from Super Junior. Donghae was replaced by an unknown Korean dude singing the rap parts. The performance was a blast as we got to see Yunho performing his all. Yup, he danced in his solo. I supposed he didn't wanna disappoint the fans & thus give a full performance of his solo dance. Everyone was thrilled, of course. It did made fans like me quite worried that he might strain his hips again. Perhaps performing one dance & not the rest for the entire night won't do any harm. The 5 of them were backed together to for Hey!Girl accompanied by female dancers. Everyone was screaming so loudly when the boys held the dancers' hands & even touched the their faces. Let me define the screams by the fans. I was screaming cuz the whole touching thingy was indeed hot. However, the others found it intimidating when the dancers were so close to their darling Dong Bangs. C'mon, it was only a performance. How about a peck on the cheek? Don't tell me those rabid fangirls will start throwing rotten eggs to the dancers?? Hmm, it's possible. Never underestimate them. *runs away to hide* Their next song was I wanna hold you & if I'm not wrong, the pic below was taken during that time. Sorry for the poor memory cuz I practically forgot lots of details. I was too engrossed staring at their cute faces.

See Junsu's kamo butt?? (as shown by red arrow)

Another vid was shown on the screen & this time, we could see Changmin's silhouette & his voice testing the instruments for the band. He then appeared at the top of the stage (during the mannequin part) singing When I first kissed you. To add more jazzy feel to the song, props were included on the stage with a couple sitting together on the bench & a lamp post. It was a good song to slow down the fast pace of the concert as I needed some rest from all the screams & squeals. Jaejoong was the last to perform his solo, Crying which was one my favourite song. He came up on stage sitting on a stool with a mike stand within his grasp - singing his heart out like a heartbroken soul. I'd have to admit this, Jaejoong was the best singer that night. Not even a single off-pitched note. Maybe the rest of the members weren't at their tip-top condition. As for Yunho, he's already known for his weaker vocals compared to the rest but he improved so much that I didn't find any flaws at all. After Jaejoong's solo, the 2nd session of the concert started.

To be continued...

Last Saturday night was like a dream *swoons*. Guess what, it took me almost 2 days to realise that the most anticipated concert in my calendar had already ended. How unbelievably fast the 2 1/2 hour concert passed by! And I'm currently experiencing what we fans called "post-concert depression". I can't express how much I missed them already after such an enjoyable night. We were BREATHING THE SAME AIR~

Okay, I was thinking of typing a complete fan account of the concert but I could hardly recall the song sequence at all. I referred to YesAsia for the song list to help refresh my memory. Can't blame...I was hyperventilating when the boys stood right in front of my eyes & all my other memories vanished. They were as good looking compared to last year; perhaps even better cuz I could capture their faces clearly every second during the concert. I was THAT near.

(from my faint memory) Here's what happened that day...

Concert Experience Part 1

Intan (Fatimah's close friend) came to pick me up at 1.30pm & all 6 of us (me, Fatimah, Intan & 3 other cousins) squeezed in her ruby red Myvi. Off we headed straight to Stadium Merdeka while screaming excitedly among ourselves. We bought some food & snacks beforehand knowing that it's very unlikely that we have time to eat while queueing to enter the stadium. I bought a McD's burger for my early dinner & a boxful of Oreos as a standby in case my stomach starts crying for food again -_-. We arrived at the venue approx 2pm or so & the crowd had already gathered. Mind you, the concert only starts at 8pm.

Then, we hung around the booths selling some merchandise & was told that it'll be opened at 3pm. Since the weather was scorching hot, we walked to the back of the stadium & found some fans trying to peak at the rehearsal which was still going on. I managed to steal a few glances through the gates & saw from afar blondie Jaejoong in a sleeveless tank top. Even from a distance, you can see his eye-catching hair & skin colour. Now you know how fair Koreans are. When the event organisers came to cover up the gates with black fabrics, we sat under the trees to enjoy the cool breeze. Ate our meals at about 4pm, commented about Junsu & Zhang Liyin's rehearsal - me giving a bad feedback about Liyin's voice. We could still hear their practice session despite the blocked gates. She was doing fine but perhaps not good enough for concerts yet. Believe or not, some fans were so notorious & uncivilised. One girl actually climbed up the stadium to see what's going on inside the stadium. Geez~ -_- I was already cursing to myself, wishing that she would fall & break her leg or something. She was being so ridiculous!

At 5pm, we returned to the stadium entrance & went to our respective gates to join the queue. I got to meet Mandy; the girl whom I chatted with for several weeks before the concert. We vowed to meet up & so we did. Both of us only managed to talked for a few mins as I had to stand at the gates to the right pit zone (she's on the left). It's hard not to miss the sea of red crowding around the entrance. At that moment, I felt so proud to be part of this fandom cuz everyone is equally enthusiastic & passionate about the Dong Bangs. Met 2 new ppl who hailed from East Malaysia & chatted joyously ^^. We parted ways after that as I headed to the pit zone while they went to the RM423 seats. Trust me, entering the stadium was chaotic. Overly excited fans were eager to save the best spot in the pit zone ended up pushing each other at the door. As a result, I heard that the doors broked & the guards got really mad & started yelling at the girls. Served the girls right...this is too rebellious. Maybe the guards should've gave them a tight slap on the face.

When I entered the stadium, I got myself comfortable by sitting on the grass. Need to conserve all the remaining energy I have just for the concert. Not surprising was a few Japanese obasan sitting in the same area too. And a group of Filipinos who were busy yakking away & fiddling with their iPod videos. Again, I got acquainted with two 16 year old girls from Ipoh. There were announcements made in 4 different languages - Chinese, English, Japanese & Korean - warning the crowd about using prohibited items (cameras, mp3 recorders, etc.) during the concert. What's more, it was repeated twice but obviously no one heeded the warning. As for me, I didn't have a camera & failed to borrow one. It was better not to carry one anyway cuz I had a feeling the security will be extremely tight judging from last year's fan account at the pit zone. Somehow, the securities weren't concern with camera cellphones. Apparently camera phones were not a threat to them maybe cuz camera phones are never great. That's why I took snapshot of the stage before the concert starts.

The evening skies grew darker & looked really beautiful with KL Tower & KLCC at the horizon. It was mesmerising...

At approx 8pm, the concert started!

To be continued...