…has got to be better than All Hallows Eve.  At least in Itaewon.

This picture does not do justice to the crowds on every street and sidewalk shuffling forward at a zombie-like pace.

It was sheer madness on the streets and in the bars.  So, why was I there?  I had a dart match to make up in the afternoon (which I lost 14-2) and then I had scheduled a rendezvous for 6:30 with my old friend Dennis.  Dennis retired back in January and has been moving about various locales in Asia every since.  He’s been in Cambodia of late and now he has come back to Korea for a brief visit. He doesn’t own a lick of cold weather clothes however, so I brought along a sweater for him to wear.  And he did in fact look quite cold when he walked through the door and then donned the sweater without hesitation.

After a couple of drinks at Dolce Vita, we made our way ever so slowly through the jam packed streets (including the back alleys off the main drag) to Don Valley for some Korean food.  We both opted for a steaming bowl of bulgogi and rice, which did indeed hit the spot.

As we said our goodbyes for the night, I was happy that Don Valley is right around the corner from the subway station.  Still, I could barely move in the human gridlock and it took several minutes of pushing my way through before I reached the stairs leading to my escape from the madness of Itaewon.  Alas, the subway station was packed in a manner I had never seen in the decade I’ve been haunting Itaewon.  It was around 10;00 p.m. and people were still pouring into town, while a similar number of us were trying to flee.  It was pure chaos.  In fact, they had the station attendants waiving us through the turnstiles without swiping our fare cards in order to move the crowd along.  This proved to be a problem when I reached my destination because without an entrance swipe, your card doesn’t work at the exit point.  I tried three times without result, and then just pushed my way on through the turnstiles.  I really had to pee.

My bar owner friends had all told me that Halloween was their busiest night of the year.  I had no idea it would be so scary!