Thanks Seoul..!

Posted on by helenhmk

Our brief stop in Seoul is over. This was taken in the lounge, courtesy of our cycling friend reflecting on the fabulous time we had cycling. w

While checking in the person assisting/overseeing staff had a Brompton himself… and our friend also promoted the Brompton rides he does in Tokyo. He was amazed our friend was travelling with his bike without a case.

The last few days have been great in exploring the capital and the cycling paths (and not-so-good paths) and the back streets.

Here’s to being back in a slightly warmer climate… and not having to wear 6 layers!

Informed…

Posted on by helenhmk

After watching the video on the train, I now understand how to use the equipment should there be a gas attack.

It’s good to be informed. Other videos have been on how to use the trains and being aware of the impact of your behaviour on others.

Good morning Seoul

Posted on by helenhmk

They say it’s not cold, it’s just wrong clothing choices. I will remind myself of that later this morning….

By the way, apologies for typos. Sometimes I’m not wearing my glasses, or the auto-spell word is selected, meaning I haven’t read it again. Kym always picks me up on this…. Can’t have everything!

That perfect back street experience…

Posted on by helenhmk

We were near the end of the 42+km ride today and we had departed the rivers we had been following and moved to the back streets of Inchon winding our way to the train station. Suddenly there it was – a coffee shop and a fancier place on the corner of the intersection we were passing through – so of course Kym stopped.

Once we had parked our bikes (as. Lose as possible to the building) opening the door – the smell of better permeating the place was heaven. Kym then used google translate to read the labels and we choose something each and a drink. It was completely perfect. The presentation of the drinks and food.. was delightful. This is it we had reached the perfect South Korean afternoon coffee/drink experience.

Some time ago I had discovered a show on Netflix called “would you like a cup of coffee?” about a young South Korean man who changes his life course after having a amazing cup of coffee, and learns about making coffee – but also customer service. Not sure what streaming service it’s on, but we do recommend watching the show.

This reminded me of that show (including the background music). The shop owner even invited us to have more water with the lemonade to reduce the sweetness, and gave us an extra biscuit – ah. Perfect. This reminds us of the beauty of cycling back streets, and why it’s important to always explore and never just stick to the main route – you never know what you will find.

…and if you are ever Inchon look for a shop called Millo.

Sticking to the right

Posted on by helenhmk

It’s a truth universally acknowledged where there is a separated pedestrian and cyclist path, both will use the one not designated for their transport mode.

I have experienced this many times this week (and today) but I was polite and did not take photos of this happening! Please enjoy a couple of photos from today’s 42+km ride instead.

There have only been a few instances of where we were on the wrong side when other vehicles have also been approaching – “Kym get on the right side…”. Thankfully we are avoiding all diplomatic incidents.

Landmarks…

Posted on by helenhmk

There are a large number of iconic landmarks in Seoul. Given the scale of these they are pretty impressive. Yesterday, there was a little rain, while we were undecided for a while we did continue on the bikes. Here are some photos from the day..

Cycling the river…

Posted on by helenhmk

The best place to cycle in Seoul is along the Han River. Think wide cycle paths, clearly signed for each direction (thankfully we can’t mistakenly be on the wrong side).

There is a separate walking path, not always next to the cycling path. There are even lots of outdoor physical fitness equipment spaces, and toilets.

There are also a number of parks with lots of seating – and used by lots of people.

The paths have speed signs, but like always they are not necessarily followed by road cyclists, or is for that matter (not that I know how fast we were going).

One of the quintessential Korean experiences is cup noodles. We were cycling along, and our Japanese friend said hey let’s have lunch. So we stopped, bought cup noodle. Outside you assemble your food in the bowl, add the onsen egg, cheese, little sausages and put on the machine to heat. Perfect meal within 4 minutes. Oh and we also added kimchi. there were lots of cyclists who were doing this – perfect Saturday afternoon activity.

A parking..

Posted on by helenhmk

A funny thing happened at the Starfield Library in the COEX Mall. We parked our bikes in the bike parking place opposite the library entrance. Locked our bikes up, left the bike parking station and went into the library.

After an hour or so we went back around 5pm as it was getting dark to get our bikes to catch the train back to our accommodation…. and we could not get into the bike station. Hummmmm this is a problem.

We then translated the sign (which we did not do on the way in as there wasn’t a door as it was open and we paid no attention).. oh apparently you needed to apply online before use to use the bike parking station. Well clearly we did not.

We looked at each other, Kym called the number on the sign… who referred him to another number. A person then entered the bike park… and we followed in behind, unlocked our bikes and left. Weph, close call!