Did you know that Magicians have their own equivalent of the World Cup?
They do, and until recently, I knew very little about it.
I'd certainly never been to it.
That all changed a few weeks ago, as I was lucky enough to visit the **FISM World Championships of Magic ** (its true name).
I should note that I was very much a spectator and not a competition entrant, as some have asked.
How did I end up surrounded by thousands of magicians in South Korea?
I love travelling.
In 2017 alone, I flew over 40,000 miles (the equivalent of over one and a half times around the world!) and visited 12 countries, all while working full time. I'm a real nerd for a spreadsheet, so I even laid it out:
I've mentioned in a previous post that I'm a hobbyist magician.
Emphasis on hobbyist (I much prefer reading or learning about the art than I do enjoy performing).
It's funny in a way, being a stage-shy magician, but truth be told I'm not too worried about being world class and prefer instead continuing to enjoy my passion for what it is: fun.
In any case, I love the art of magic and have done since I was a child. I'm a member of a London magic club called the Zodiac Magical Society, which meets once a week.
Unfortunately for one of the club's members, he was unable to make it.
With only a few weeks to go, I saw this email and immediately saw an opportunity to combine my love for both travelling and magic at the same time. I was glad too that the ticket's original buyer wasn't left out of pocket either.
I bought the ticket to FISM before I really thought any of it through: flights, annual leave from work, accomodation, budget, the lot.
So, before I knew it, I was on my way to Seoul!
Getting there
I've already written about my journey to South Korea, which included a 7 and then 9 hour flight to Seoul, as well as my first impressions of the incredible city.
I spent a couple of days in Seoul to get to grips with the country, and took the KTX (Korea's high-speed rail system that crosses the span of the country), straight down to Busan in the South.
What takes 4 to 5 hours by car takes only 2 hours 40 mins by KTX, crossing the 325km that (almost) cross the entire country from North to South.
Busan, South Korea's second biggest city, is where FISM was to be held and where I'd spend the next week of my life.
I arrived in the early evening of the Sunday night, ahead of Monday's opening ceremony, and checked into my room, which I booked via Booking.com as I often do.
Arriving at the World Championships of Magic
Between two & three thousand magicians attend the World Championshops every three years, watching some of the best magic, illusion and conjuring in the world.
I naively thought that with opening registration opening at 8am, it would mean straight entry inside if I arrived at 9am.
This wasn't the case and I ended up waiting in a long queue for well over an hour.
When you've travelled across the world to be there, however, an hour's wait is passes by in a blink of an eye, and I was eager to find my was get inside.
The venue itself was the BEXCO Exhibition and Convention Centre in the heart of Busan. Its website claims to offer
spacious exhibition halls as large as three football fields combined
so this meant it was certainly important to wear comfortable shoes that could handle the mileage each day.
As soon as you entered, however, it was clear that this event was very professionally run.
Discovering the real magic inside
Whatever your interests as a magician, FISM will cater for you.
Fake tongues?
A (hopefully fake) mouse?
Cups & balls?
An Oreo?
I felt like a kid in a candy store, surrounded by all these magical props, that's for sure.
If you're after something unique to support your magic, it will be out there:
The first port of call was indeed the Dealers Hall, effectively a huge hall full of magic shops that sold everything from large-scale stage illusions to miniature decks of cards.
Being honest with you, I didn't actually know what a lot of the items being sold actually did.
I guess in a way that's the point of real magic, eh?
If you need a magic table, you're in luck! It's yours for only 80,000 KRW / £55.31 / $71.57 / €61.71.
A bargain, I'm sure, though I was never quite sure just how or why it was designed to be magical.
Elsewhere, for example, you could find a brand of playing cards that I'm a little obsessed with: Bicycle playing cards:
They're the go-to cards for almost every magician, and if you see playing cards in a film or on TV, you'll most likely see these. They're known for their consistent, impeccable finish, and if well handled can last a performing pro a long time.
I'd guess that I easily have over 100 decks of Bicycle playing cards at home. Some are collectors' editions, others I use in my own magic for friends.
The Dealers Hall was only the was only the tip of the iceberg, as I soon found out. Don't forget, this is a six day convention.
Meeting famous faces
This might be something that sounds silly to you, as it does to me in hingsight, but because the trip was booked fairly spontaneously, and I was so focused on booking flights, accomodation and thinking about food, I hadn't really considered how the convention would pan out, or who I'd meet.
The thing about the World Championships (of any sport or art, I'd imagine), is that by definitition people come from all over the world to be there.
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People I have looked up to for years just mingled around with ease amongst the rest of the crowds. This obviously comes at a stark contrast to sports or music, where the top stars would have to be surrounded by security.
I stopped by and spoke to many of the world's best magicians, many of whom I had heard about but never seen perform in the flesh, and all were gracious in offering me a few minutes of their time, which was an incredible feeling.
I wasn't huge on the idea of taking selfies with them, as although I'm sure almost all of them would have said yes, as they did to others that asked, the memory was more important than the picture.
One picture I couldn't resist, however, was with Shawn Farquhar, previous winner of the presitgious FISM Grand Prix (first prize) for close-up in 2009 in Beijing.
You can see Shawn's appearance on Penn & Teller's TV show Fool Us below: