05.02.11 [Fan Acct] Rain @ TIME 100 Party in NYC

Fan Acct & Photos by scorpiola@rainlegend

I finally got some time to sit and write my fan account. I was so busy in the past few days, really didn’t have time to write it. I used to think that may be I should probably just leave it, not writing it at all, but then I wanna share some of the lucky parts we had @ the TIME100 party when we’re meeting Rain. So, let’s just get this done as quick as I can.

On the 26th, because I wasn’t sure when would the red carpet event start and wanted to grab a good spot, so I arrived at Time Warner Center at around 3:50pm after called off early from work. There weren’t many people around the exterior part of red carpet other than staff when I arrived. I met up with few Clouds I knew around the red carpet area inside the mall and we tried to figure out our ‘The Fugitive: Plan B” for seeing Rain later of the day. We found a really good spot we thought where was the end of the exterior red carpet part, right in front of the glass wall of Time Warner Center by the entrance that the guests of TIME100 party would walk through to continue to walk on the interior part of the red carpet. At that spot, fist of all, we thought there would be not too many photographers standing right in front of us and blocking our views to the red carpet. Second of all, after Rain entered the mall through that entrance next us, we could continue seeing him walking on the red carpet to the check-in desk inside of the mall through the glass wall. Third of all, by the time Rain enters through the entrance, we could enter the mall immediately by the mall entrance behide us, run as quick as we could to the end of the red carpet inside the mall when he walks on the red carpet and stops by the check-in desk, so we could see him walking toward us when we’re standing at the end part of the red carpet. Really, this was a more than perfect plan ever.

We asked one of the staff members and she told us guests would arrive at the red carpet @ around 6:30pm. OMG~ It means that we would have to wait for another 2 to 3 hours at least. We stood at the spot we picked and looked around the red carpet area. The area across of us was spot for reporters. We found that there were spots for Chinese, Philippines, Korean reporters, and spot for “Rain (in house)” next to those. The sign for “Rain (in house)” spot was the only hand written sign so we could find and see it easily.

It’s good that the weather wasn’t that hot. The reporters and photographers started to arrive when we were talking in a Clouds group. Then we found a problem in our more than perfect PLAN B. The design of the red carpet liked a hot dog. The red carpet in the middle of the area liked the sausage in a hot dog. The top piece of bread was the reporters’ area. The bottom piece of bread was the photographers’ area. Areas for us, the public audiences, were the wrapping paper of the hot dog, behind the reporters’ area and the photographers’ area. We’re wrapping around them. Although there was only one photographer who’s from a Chinese news standing right in front of us, but there were so many big size photographers blocking our views to the ‘get off from limo’ spot and the front part, around 1/3 of the whole exterior red carpet. They were all big and standing on the steps they bought, totally blocked our views to the front part of the exterior red carpet. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do anything for it.

The guests started to arrive one by one at around 6:30pm. Ah~ we couldn’t see the front part then how could we know if Rain arrives or not? When should we start scream and shooting?? We looked around. Ha! We found someone was holding a sign written something like “Cloud-USA” standing across of us, at the very front part of the red carpet behind the reporters. We knew that they’d scream when they see Rain gets off of his limo. We could start shooting and start scream when we hear their “signals”. At around 7pm, we heard some noise from the front. “Is that Rain?” “Is that Rain?” We started asking within our group. Actually that was a Black lady. She wasn’t Rihanna. I wasn’t sure who she was really. When that lady was doing interview and doing photo shoots at the front part of the red carpet. There was a much louder noise from the front part. This time, we could vaguely hear they’re screaming “Rain~~” “BI~~” We started screaming and shooting without confirm if that was Rain or not. Because our views to the front part of the red carpet were blocked by the photographers, so I held my camcorder as high as I could and started to look for Rain in the monitor of my camcorder. After searching in a group of heads, I finally found a familiar face in the monitor of my camcorder. Mr. Shin (Rain’s camera man) dressed casually and walked first. He was recording Rain with a camcorder. Mr. Yang, who we used to call him Rain’s “English Teacher” but actually he’s not after confirmed with him, was there too. He dressed in suit and was standing next to Rain.

Rain stopped at the front part for a short time for doing photo shoots and stopped at the middle part for a short time for interviewing with Korean TV ‘YTN’. Then he was finally walking toward to end part of the exterior red carpet, walking toward us. He almost didn’t stop his steps in front of us at all and went straight to the entrance and to continue walking on the red carpet in the mall, walking toward the check-in desk.

By the time he entered, we started running immediately. However, we all know how fast he walks. By the time we entered the mall, he was already checking in at the check-in desk. The worst part was the shortest path we planned to get to the end of the carpet to see Rain was blocked by TIME. We had to run around the big circular area in the middle to get there. I thought he’d have disappeared already when I get there. Surprisingly, when I got there, Rain and his people were standing there, waiting to get to the elevator area where was the spot for official photo shooting. Because there were still people doing photo shoots and interviews in that elevator/ official photo shooting area, so Rain had to wait in front of us until his line starts moving. Rain was standing there facing front to his people, I was standing about 2 feet behide him and facing his back. I was recording him and kept saying “Rain, say “Hi” here, say “Hi” here” and a girl next to me said “Hi” to him too. Then Rain responded with turning to us, saying “Hi” and waving to us. He looked a bit shy when doing this, so cute!

Wa~ He was trying to kill us in a second with that facial expression. “Rain, I don’t wanna die yet. I have to spend my today with you.” If I knew he would do what we ask, then I should have ask him “Rain, say “I Love You” here, say “I Love You” here” instead. Too bad~

We were standing there with him and waiting for his line to move. This path to the elevator/ official photo shooting area was blocked by TIME and it’s for guests only. If the public like us wanted to get to the elevator/ official photo shooting area, we had to get out of the mall, go back to the exterior red carpet area, make a left turn at the corner of the building and enter from the side entrance of the building. It was a minute or two run for normal people. When his line started moving and he’s getting into the elevator/ official photo shooting area. I immediately used all the energy I got from the lunch I ate and ran as quick as I could to the side entrance.

Luckily, when I got there, Rain was standing at the entry area and doing interview with Korean TV ‘KBS’. I was standing face to him and watching him. Then he moved to his left, standing in front of the TIME board to do photo shoots for the medias. I couldn’t see him starting from this point because all the photographers were big and standing on some steps. This human wall totally blocked Rain from my view. I could hear they asked him to look this way, to look that way but I just couldn’t even see his hair at all. Then I vaguely see the top of his hair moving to his left and entered into the elevator to the party on the fifth floor.

According to the schedule last time in 2006, Rain probably would leave at around 11pm, so I met up again with few Clouds. We went to the basement of the building for dinner and planned to go back to wait for him at around 10pm, an hour ahead his leaving time we expected. We sat at the food court and chit chat until around 9pm. The area we were sitting had to close for cleansing, so we went back to the ground floor and thought may be we could go to Starbucks at the corner across the building to wait until 10pm. When we were passing the elevator/ official shooting area, we saw Mr. Shin was waiting there alone. Don’t tell me he has no place to go so he was waiting Rain there for the next an hour and 30 minutes. Mr. Shin was a signal for us, meaning Rain would show up soon, so we didn’t go to Starbucks and waiting Rain there with Mr. Shin. There were only four of us, Mr. Shin, two security guards and 2~3 strangers passing by in the area. Mr. Shin knew us. We looked at him and he looked at us sometimes. After 2~3 minutes, one Cloud and I decided to take some pics in the area with the TIME board and TIME posters by the elevators for background. After a few shots, when I was posing with my back facing to the elevators for a photo shoot, the Cloud who’s taking pics for me said “Rain!” Rain was getting out from the elevator behind me. That area was blocked so I wasn’t very close to it. Then Rain stood in front of the TIME board and started doing interview with Mr. Shin. I think it’s for Mnet JP Rainy Day. Oh right, a very short part of it was in the interview of KBS Yunyegajunge yesterday (4/30). Because that TIME board area was blocked and security guards were there, so we could watch him only from far quietly. We didn’t want to disturb him when he’s recording. Rain saw us by the time he got out from the elevator, so when he’s doing interview, he looked at the camcorder once, looked at the Clouds once, looked at the camcorder once, then looked back to the Clouds once. His facial expressions were very cute.

He seemed a bit nervous probably because we were watching him face to face. I was the only person recording him at that moment. When I was recording with my camcorder, there was an American man at around 25~30 years old came next to me. He took out his phone and started recording Rain like me. He suddenly asked me “Who is it?” I told him “Rain” and I introduced Rain and ‘Ninja Assassin’ to him. I believe introducing Rain to people who doesn’t know him is part of Clouds’ responsibilities.

Rain finished up his recording in 3~4 minutes. Mr. Shin and security guards directed him to go the way out on the opposite side from us. He had to pass the check-in desk, pass the exterior red carpet area, and go back to the spot where he got off from his limo earlier because his limo was already waiting for him there. When we saw him walking toward the opposite way from us, we started running to him. One Cloud in four of us was able to stop and get him sign her copy of TIME magazine. We followed him to the outside. Few people out there started running to him when they see him and us. I was able to stop him after we passed the exterior red carpet area. I said“Rain, sign, sign, sign, sign!”, Please forgive me for not saying “Please”. We were really in rush and I had to make my sentence as short and as clear as possible for Rain immediately to get what I was saying. He received the BTTB album and my silver color sharpie from me with both hands politely. When he was signing for me, more and more people, whom I really didn’t know where they came from, came to him and asked him to sign. Rain sighed for one or two people after me. Then one person from us gave him another BTTB to sign. Unfortunately, his people and security guards kept telling him to get to his limo, so he returned the album to her without his autograph on it and said “Sorry!” to her.

Rain’s limo left about 30 second after he got into it. We didn’t tail him further and our mission was successfully achieved at that moment around 9:45pm. It was more than an hour earlier than we expected. We’re lucky because if we didn’t get to the elevator area early due to out dinner area closed, we wouldn’t be able to see Rain that night. If we get there at 10pm as we planned, we even wouldn’t know that he has left already and we might wait for him there until midnight.

credit & source: scorpiola@rainlegend