Seoul Drama Awards 2009

I went to Daejeon, a city in the middle of South Korea, on Saturday afternoon to attend a Korean friend’s wedding. She was a former student when I was still doing the lucrative “phone teaching” more than three years ago. I went there by myself and when I returned to Seoul, I decided to drop by Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun. I took the 704 bus from Seoul Station (I took the KTX to and from Daejeon) and got off at Sejong’s Cultural Center.
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I didn’t immediately go to Kyobo Bookstore when I noticed the plasma mounts in front of the cultural center. A crowd had gathered at the steps to the theatres watching the big screens. The banners of “Seoul Drama Awards 2009” were all over the place and in the newly-opened Gwanghwamun Plaza is an exhibition featuring the popular dramas shown last week, including the Kim Myung Min-starrer “Beethoven Virus.”
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^^ a fan poses with a violin at the Beethoven Virus exhibit
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^^ “young and nice” Gun Woo’s room
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^^ a wall display featuring Beethoven Virus
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^^ Du Rumi’s violin in her room
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^^ a fan gamely poses for the camera while seated on Kang Mae’s chair
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Being a Korean drama fan, I didn’t have to think twice about spending some time exploring the exhibits. I just love the “Beethoven Virus” exhibit featuring the rooms of Kang Mae, Gun Woo and Rumi. There is also an enclosed room with “ghosts” from the KBS program “Korean Ghost Stories”.
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^^ from Korean Ghost Stories
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^^ guess who’s not really included in the cast?
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^^ the winners of the 2009 Seoul Drama Awards
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^^ dramas to watch out for
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^^ SS501’s Kim Hyun Joong edged out Lee Min Ho for Best Actor
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^^ Choi Ji Woo is neither dead nor a senior citizen yet she’s being honored at this event
After a couple of minutes, I decided to head to the bookstore. However, I noticed a black van across the street to Sejong Cultural Center where a crowd had gathered. I overheard from the people crossing the street that actor Lee Sun Gyun is in the van and will make a public appearance at 7PM. He is best known for his role in “The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince” and he is also one of the leads in the movie “Romantic Island”, which was mostly filmed in Boracay.
I’m a natural “uzi” and I thought I just had to cross the street and find out what really is going on. I climbed up the steps to the cultural center and waited for Lee Sun Gyun to appear.
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Lee Sun Gyun was warmly welcomed by the crowd. He said a few words of thanks to those who came and distributed signed banners to five fans. He then sat on the stairs and viewed the “Lee Sun Gyun” special with the fans. I got a few pictures taken and left for the bookstore.
The “Seoul Drama Awards” exhibit will be held until the 13th of September, from 12 noon till 8 in the evening. Actor Yoon Sang Hyun will be making an appearance on Sunday (Sept. 6th). The least popular of the F4 boys, Kim Jun, will also make an appearance on F4 Day – Monday; while the fans of Lee Jun Ki should be at the venue on Tuesday. 😉
The Awards Night will be held on September 12th, Friday from 630-830 PM. It will be shown live on KBS2 from the Olympic Hall in Olympic Park.
To visit the Seoul Drama Awards showcase at Gwanghwamun Plaza, take subway line 5 to Gwanghwamun Station or subway line 3 to Gyeongbokgung Station.