Wednesday 25 October 2023

Seoul

I am starting to get to know the city a little bit. I have a subway/bus pass which helps me get around, but there is still a lot of walking to reach the places I want to see. The city is divided into many official neighborhoods, each with its own attractions. What they all have in common is a great deal of traffic, a mix of new skyscrapers and older shopfronts and houses, long waits at traffic lights to cross streets, and people rushing everywhere. The visitor has to work to find the special places amidst all the sameness.

Sunday 22 October:  Osaka to Seoul

My airport driver picks me up right on time at 8am for the long ride to Kansai Airport (KIX). The airport is on an artificial island in the middle of Osaka Bay and it takes 45 minutes to an hour to get there. But I have plenty of time and there isn't much traffic on Sunday morning.

Check-in for Asiana Airlines is very easy and there is a special "fast lane" for Business/First Class passengers to use through security and immigration. In fact, passport check is done with a biometric reading of your face and takes less than 10 seconds. No human needs to see you at all.

I spend the rest of my waiting time in the Star Alliance Airlines Business Class Lounge--eating and drinking again. The flight is under two hours and I have a very large and comfortable Business Class seat and am served a first-class meal.

That's filet mignon with a thin potato pancake on top

The flight lands on time at Gimpo, the closer of Seoul's two international airports. I have arranged for a car to drive me to my hotel . . . but then things go asunder. There is a huge line at immigration (they check passports by hand here), and it takes over 90 minutes for me to get through. Even though I have pre-paid for the ride, the driver will wait only 45 minutes after the flight lands. I am in continuous contact on WhatsApp, but the driver refuses to wait any longer and I lose my ride and my money! You can be sure I will make a note to fellow travelers never to use this particular service, which I booked through Booking.com.

So it's off by taxi to the center of the city, Seoul Station, and my Four Points by Sheraton Hotel (which is actually part of Marriott now). At least the taxi ride is not very expensive and the hotel is welcoming. But that's the end of the day for me.

Monday 23 October:  Seoul

After yesterday's difficulty I decide to spend a leisurely morning enjoying the hotel's included breakfast buffet. The hotel is attached to a major subway station with access to two subway lines and Korean Rail for long-distance trains. Even luckier, the office where I can pick up my subway/bus pass is also attached to the station. With a little help from local strangers, I find my way and obtain my pass.

Before coming to Korea I purchased a booklet, Seoul Korea Subway Tour Guide, with detailed maps of each of the nine lines and the stops for places of interest to tourists. The booklet also has small maps that show how to reach the destination from the subway exit. This is an indispensable guide and I have already well worn many of the pages.

Subway (not called "Metro" here) Station on Older Line

The first stop on my morning walk is a very busy market and shopping area in the center of the city. But this busy area, thronged with merchants, shippers, and shoppers is right next to a lovely creek-side walking area built below the surface of the street.

After this calming space, I enter the mad rush of the markets, starting with heaps of clothes and household goods:

Of course the food section is much more interesting, even though I have no idea what most of the stuff is.

There is even a special section, indicated by the sign below:

I enjoy a very filling lunch at a fine Chinese restaurant in an up-scale mall:

Most of the major historical sites are closed on Mondays so I head to City Hall Plaza, a large open space with excellent views of the old (1925) and new (2012) City Hall buildings. There is also some sort of festival, involving food and entertainment in the Plaza.

Time to relax back at the hotel and think about dinner. . . until tomorrow's adventures.