This Sunday there was a kickball tournament at the US Army Base Camp Walker and a rare chance for off base personnel to get on base. There were going to be eight military teams vs eight civilian teams. A group of chilgok teachers were looking for extra players on their team so I joined to be part of the tournament, see the base from the inside, and meet some new people.

I had tried to goto Camp Walker last december, as I heard there were many english speaking business that served the residents in the approach road outside, but I followed the barbed wire wall the wrong way and ended up finding an interesting temple north of the base.

They wanted all the teams to be at base by 9am, so living the northern end of daegu in chilgok we had to take cabs all the way across town to get to the base in time. After checking our registration cards and signing us in were were led to the main field.

We were explained the rules and do's and don'ts of being on base, and what would get you escorted off base. Basically we were to stay by the field, not to wander around the base, and clearly told to stay away from the residential apartments.

From what we did see of the base was like a small american town. There was a US post office, a church, a high school, library, bowling alley, guest house for visitors, and a youth centre. They also had a movie theatre playing the latest releases, and american newspapers for sale.

There was their 'mall' which had a wal-mart type store we were told we were not allowed inside and would get us escorted off base. We were allowed unofficially to goto the food area. They had Subway Sandwich, Taco Bell, Starbucks, and a take out pizza place that delivers on base. In the food court was CNN on one tv and a sports network on the other tv at the other end.

The currency on base is US Dollars, so if you pay in korean won they will give you change back in US dollars and coins. I brought lots of small bills so I could pay exact money and wouldnt need change back. They also drove American Ford and GM cars and trucks.

The base was very family oriented as spouses and children reside on base. There were no militarized equipment, jeeps, tanks, planes, or tents. I did see the helipad and control tower from the outside last time but that was the other side of the base we were not allowed access to. They had lots of recreational facilities such as the football/baseball field we were using, a golf course, and a tennis court.

As to the game itself, kickball is the same as baseball except the pitcher rolls the ball and the batter kicks it instead, otherwise pretty much the same game. From 10am to 4pm we were supposed to play the first round which was one game every other hour against four different teams. After that would be the elimination round which was the knockoff stage to determine the ultimate winner.

Our first game we did pretty bad and lost 8-1 I think. However, our second game was against a military team and we actually played a lot tigher and only lost by 4-1. Our third game was our best in terms of innings but we lost by 8-5. Fourth game we lost again but I dont remember the score.

All the games were running about an hour behind schedule as they should have had time limits on each game. There was lots of waiting around and we ended up playing a lot of frisbee with some of the kids from the base and other games, which used a lot of our energy and made us more exhausted throughout the day.

Having lost all four games in the first round, and because they were running almost 2 hours behind now, there were going to drop our team in the final elimination round, but after a meeting with the team captains they decided to keep the bottom two teams but keep the rounds to three innings each.

Our first elimination game was against another military team, and we actually held them to a 3-3 draw but lost on some rule. So after 7pm we were free to go after a very long days play. Weather was perfect as it was very overcast, so no baking heat, and gentle breeze, despite being almost 30 degrees.

They are looking to open the base to more activities for more off base personnel so there might be opportunities again for more sporting activities. All the base personnel, their families, and children were very friendly and welcoming to us. I'm sure they're tired of seeing the same faces on base. 

I'm not aware of anyone actually being escorted off base for breaking any of the rules! So a fun but exhausting very long day.

Here is my first blog entry from December with more pics of the outside of the base
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/londone7/1/1291842141/tpod.html