Although Incheon airport was voted best international airport in 2012, I could not really benefit from all the amenities upon landing. The plane landed around 7:30am, and I was through immigration and security before 08:30am with a to do list:
-buy T-money card to be able to travel and buy breakfast
-rent a phone with the coupons printed out from the discount website
-get a map of Seoul subway
-find the shuttle bus to Seoul Station
It was strangely very easy to perform all those, while trying to get used to the zeros on the local currency. 1$ was about 1100KRW so my mind and my morning cross eyes were not really able to deal with the conversion. As a result I ended up buying 2 T-money cards (instead of one with 10000KRW on it). It was too late to go back to the convenience store and try to argue in sign language, so I got the iphone rented across the hall for a week, which would allow me to get wifi and get in touch with the Couchsurfing community. Before leaving the airport, I had a chat with the information booth that gave me a big map of the subway system and directed me to the shuttle bus for Seoul station. She was cutely dressed in a white and pink hanbok.
At the bus stop, I was hit by the realization that there would be signs in Japanese, as well as Chinese. it was weird to be able to somehow remember the Chinese character better than the Hangul writings. I suppose those Kanji memorizing sessions was finally becoming to be useful.I also started to notice the smell surrounding me. It was a strange mix of bleach and body odor that would be forever the signature smell in the subway and in cities. It didn't stink, but it was a noticeable unusual smell that D. warned me about, and I was about to find out further during my trip.
I was expecting the long and high escalators as seen in an episode of Running Man, but instead I had a feeling it was rush hour (by 9:30am) and the temperature was rising. Outside, I could see homeless people that usually hang out in the vicinity of train stations like everywhere in Europe, except none of them had dogs. The nervousness of imminent interaction with the locals probably made me sweat as well, as I had to go through another checklist:
-pick up my KTX ticket for Daegu, bought easily online a month earlier
-buy my 2 other KTX tickets for Gyeongju and Busan using the KTX discount coupons
The station hall was huge and the ticket counters were across the food court and waiting area. I came across many uniformed servicemen, salarymen and other travellers, but the queue at the ticket counter was very quick. I had to go to another counter (the travel agency section) to buy the discounted tickets, and it was a good occasion to be in an air conditioned area and test my credit card.
Finally, after many back and forth to find the entrance of the subway station, I managed to catch a subway to Anguk from Seoul station, making a transfer in very hot tunnels at Jongno 3(sam)-ga or Chunmuro, but enjoying the wifi and air conditioning in the trains and on the waiting platforms. The idea was to leave my luggages in a coin locker at the subway station and explore the palaces nearby before checking at the guesthouse (Yoos Family Guest House Byeolhadang). Anguk station actually has a good set of lockers and my cabin luggage and backpack nicely fitted in an average size box. There were some interesting traditional craft shop in the station but I was eager to get above ground and get my bearings.
After much use of the GPS and Olleh wifi from the subway station I managed to find the direction to the Changdeokgung palace, my first destination. My visit was finally starting on this very long Friday...
-buy T-money card to be able to travel and buy breakfast
-rent a phone with the coupons printed out from the discount website
-get a map of Seoul subway
-find the shuttle bus to Seoul Station
It was strangely very easy to perform all those, while trying to get used to the zeros on the local currency. 1$ was about 1100KRW so my mind and my morning cross eyes were not really able to deal with the conversion. As a result I ended up buying 2 T-money cards (instead of one with 10000KRW on it). It was too late to go back to the convenience store and try to argue in sign language, so I got the iphone rented across the hall for a week, which would allow me to get wifi and get in touch with the Couchsurfing community. Before leaving the airport, I had a chat with the information booth that gave me a big map of the subway system and directed me to the shuttle bus for Seoul station. She was cutely dressed in a white and pink hanbok.
At the bus stop, I was hit by the realization that there would be signs in Japanese, as well as Chinese. it was weird to be able to somehow remember the Chinese character better than the Hangul writings. I suppose those Kanji memorizing sessions was finally becoming to be useful.I also started to notice the smell surrounding me. It was a strange mix of bleach and body odor that would be forever the signature smell in the subway and in cities. It didn't stink, but it was a noticeable unusual smell that D. warned me about, and I was about to find out further during my trip.
The bus fare was 10000KRW and it wasn't packed at all. The ride went through large areas of mudflats stretching to the sea, and highways along what I believed to be the Han river (but I could be mistaken). The weather was sunny and comfortable and I was looking forward to getting into Seoul.
We drove by the KBS building where I saw the crew of 1N2D in traditional Hanbok shooting greetings for probably Chuseok holiday broadcast the next week! I was squealing supersonic sounds in my head and tried not to act like a 3 year old.
Eventually, after about 40min ride, the bus dropped me off after a bridge over train tracks, and I had to walk 5min to get to the entrance of Seoul station.
-pick up my KTX ticket for Daegu, bought easily online a month earlier
-buy my 2 other KTX tickets for Gyeongju and Busan using the KTX discount coupons
The station hall was huge and the ticket counters were across the food court and waiting area. I came across many uniformed servicemen, salarymen and other travellers, but the queue at the ticket counter was very quick. I had to go to another counter (the travel agency section) to buy the discounted tickets, and it was a good occasion to be in an air conditioned area and test my credit card.
Finally, after many back and forth to find the entrance of the subway station, I managed to catch a subway to Anguk from Seoul station, making a transfer in very hot tunnels at Jongno 3(sam)-ga or Chunmuro, but enjoying the wifi and air conditioning in the trains and on the waiting platforms. The idea was to leave my luggages in a coin locker at the subway station and explore the palaces nearby before checking at the guesthouse (Yoos Family Guest House Byeolhadang). Anguk station actually has a good set of lockers and my cabin luggage and backpack nicely fitted in an average size box. There were some interesting traditional craft shop in the station but I was eager to get above ground and get my bearings.
After much use of the GPS and Olleh wifi from the subway station I managed to find the direction to the Changdeokgung palace, my first destination. My visit was finally starting on this very long Friday...
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