There is an immense amount of pride associated with Toronto being the only Canadian city included in GOT7's Eyes on You World Tour. Moreover, we are the first stop of the North American leg, and thus the first of thousands to witness their performances for this segment.
Unspoken but undoubtedly understood is the amount of support offered by Toronto IGOT7s. That said, I wasn't the only one who contemplated welcoming them into the city after a long flight from Incheon.
Unspoken but undoubtedly understood is the amount of support offered by Toronto IGOT7s. That said, I wasn't the only one who contemplated welcoming them into the city after a long flight from Incheon.
While their domestic arrival in late 2016 had already summoned a large crowd, even more fans (and fansites) appeared this time around. Some Korean-, Japanese-, and Chinese-based fansites had flown with them and managed to secure several shots inside te secured premises. Others, such as myself, took to patiently waiting outside the terminal gate.
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GOT7's flight had been delayed landing to 10:13 AM, as opposed to scheduled 9:45 AM. Having erred on the side of caution, I took an early bus and arrived with adequate time to pick up a Cascara Cold Foam Cold Brew and Egg White Red Pepper Sous Vide Egg Bites from Starbucks before hopping onto the Terminal 3 Link Train. (Mind you: public transit had been operating on an hourly basis due to Observed Canada Day and I was nearly on my knees pleading the bus driver to wait for me.)
From previous experience, I had expected GOT7 to take the same exit path as DAY6. We positioned ourselves near the end of the walkway, near the Tim Hortons. A few girls snooped outside to determine whether their van had arrived. There was nothing.
The boys emerged from doors shortly after 11 AM, accompanied by countless members of staff, security, and police. Some girls began screaming, but as our view was shrouded, we passed it as a false alarm. But, all of a sudden, some girls began running.
Event staff and airport security had sneakily planned an exit from the side door, then through a back door leading outside of the building. A black van was situated outside of the terminal on industrial grounds, and a member of security blocked the door. The level of security and protection was beyond our expectations; the unexpected egress path caught us by surprise.
The boys emerged from doors shortly after 11 AM, accompanied by countless members of staff, security, and police. Some girls began screaming, but as our view was shrouded, we passed it as a false alarm. But, all of a sudden, some girls began running.
Event staff and airport security had sneakily planned an exit from the side door, then through a back door leading outside of the building. A black van was situated outside of the terminal on industrial grounds, and a member of security blocked the door. The level of security and protection was beyond our expectations; the unexpected egress path caught us by surprise.
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Many fans were spotted scrambling across the waiting area to catch a glimpse of the boys before they took off for downtown. I, myself, was no exception.
Scrambling to the other side of the terminal, a floppy green ribbon was passed on amongst some girls to surround them. I had not comprehended the purpose of this tape at the time, and merely worked to dive around the tape's boundaries. It was later made known to me that this so-called "Green Ribbon Galaxy" was meant to "protect GOT7 from harm". Personally, it was viewed as nothing more than an excuse for certain organizers to gain first access to low-quality, vertical video filming instead.
Police, security, and event staff escorted them the entire way, rendering them completely unapproachable. The entire duration of their exit probably lasted no more than seven minutes. And while there were nearly one hundred ahgases on the premises, all maintained their distance and kept their space while shouting words of salutation and adoration.
Scrambling to the other side of the terminal, a floppy green ribbon was passed on amongst some girls to surround them. I had not comprehended the purpose of this tape at the time, and merely worked to dive around the tape's boundaries. It was later made known to me that this so-called "Green Ribbon Galaxy" was meant to "protect GOT7 from harm". Personally, it was viewed as nothing more than an excuse for certain organizers to gain first access to low-quality, vertical video filming instead.
Police, security, and event staff escorted them the entire way, rendering them completely unapproachable. The entire duration of their exit probably lasted no more than seven minutes. And while there were nearly one hundred ahgases on the premises, all maintained their distance and kept their space while shouting words of salutation and adoration.
Personal recounts of the journey:
Vivid in my memory was spotting Jinyoung, then reaching over the man's raised limbs to wave a Ziploc-encased envelope bearing his name in Hangul. "Jinyoung! Jinyoung!" I shouted while waving the letter frantically, "제발 제발 제발 제발!" (translation: Please! (x4))
By this point, I could no longer see his face nor approaching body; my height had stunned me. In my mind, it felt like a century of waiting, but soon enough, the Ziploc was pulled from my fingertips and taken with him on his route out. I HAD SUCCEEDED!!!
"Thank you, thank you!" I wailed, as the staff members loosened their reins.
- Jackson: I had a very clear view of Jackson as he was at the front of the sequence. Once eye contact had been secured, I shouted a "Hi Jackson!" while waving and received a distinct nod of acknowledgement in return.
- Mark: He was camouflaged behind a member of staff/security and passed by very quickly.
- BamBam: Behind Jackson was BamBam, clad in an extremely high-fashion, double-denim ensemble with Comme Des Garcons footwear. My utterance of "BamBam!" was met with a glance and slightly upturned corners of his mouth - a faint smile!
- Youngjae, Yugyeom: Trailing behind BamBam, clad in black, were Youngjae, and Yugyeom.
- Jinyoung: My eyes scanned the parade for a sight of Jinyoung, until finally, my vision fell upon a mint green snapback. He was here!
Vivid in my memory was spotting Jinyoung, then reaching over the man's raised limbs to wave a Ziploc-encased envelope bearing his name in Hangul. "Jinyoung! Jinyoung!" I shouted while waving the letter frantically, "제발 제발 제발 제발!" (translation: Please! (x4))
By this point, I could no longer see his face nor approaching body; my height had stunned me. In my mind, it felt like a century of waiting, but soon enough, the Ziploc was pulled from my fingertips and taken with him on his route out. I HAD SUCCEEDED!!!
"Thank you, thank you!" I wailed, as the staff members loosened their reins.
- JB: Leader-nim was the last of the seven in sequence and, quite frankly, I had suffered too tremendous of a shock to remember to wave or utter a greeting.
With the majority of us pressed against the glass separating the air conditioned terminal and blazing external conditions, the boys waved farewell before entering the van. Some girls had the idea to scurry outside in hopes of catching them. Alas, the black van had pulled away without a shred of hesitation.
I suggested a stop at One Zo first, since ice cold bubble tea is the best soother for scorching weather.
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Their AC has finally been fixed - thank god - so we took to resting in the cool environment for a short while after placing our orders. We sat sipping while simultaneously checking for social media updates.
My partner-in-crime expressed her Brown Sugar Dirty Milk Tea to be tasty, in spite of her blatant dislike for tapioca pearls. Burny Caramel Milk Tea with Black Sesame Tapioca was my pick, but the result was sickeningly sweet as the sugar (or rather, caramel) content could not be lessened.
Youngjae posted two images in succession: one at Chipotle and another behind the Toronto sign at City Hall. The former had us contemplating whether he had stumbled upon the location on Front Street, but the second had proved his brief appearance at Yonge and Dundas.
It occurred to us that by the time the TTC took us to the intersection, the Supreme fanatic would be long gone. I suggested a trek along the waterfront, for I knew for a fact that not a single member had visited the area on their previous trip(s).
It occurred to us that by the time the TTC took us to the intersection, the Supreme fanatic would be long gone. I suggested a trek along the waterfront, for I knew for a fact that not a single member had visited the area on their previous trip(s).
The heat became increasingly unbearable, and soon we were on a mission to find AC and icy drinks instead. We roamed the area thoroughly, in hopes that the other members would surface soon enough. Unfortunately, there were no other sightings to be reported.
Eventually, we took to finding sustenance at Harvey's and then familiarizing ourselves with the gate numbers at the ACC - now renamed to be "Scotiabank Arena".
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Some eager P1 ticketholders had taken to lining up in the early afternoon hours of the day prior to the show, which was as commendable as it was unhygeinic and uncomfortable, especially given the heat wave.
By 6 PM, we admitted defeat and returned home for much-needed showers and further nutrition.
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