Quickie in Korea

laelene Post in lifestyle glimpses
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On our way back from Hong Kong, we had a long layover in South Korea so we decided to take a quick trip to Seoul. No point in staying cooped up in the airport, right? We weren’t prepared for the cooler weather up there, so we didn’t stay out long. Just a quick walk from Seoul Station for a few blocks and a failed attempt to buy street food before returning to Seoul Station for breakfast. (When I tried to ask about the street food, the guy didn’t know English and eventually told me “no” and gestured for me to go elsewhere.)

reading glasses at incheon airport

Upon arrival, they even had reading glasses to help folks fill out customs forms.

view of sunrise from arex airport express connecting incheon airport to seoul station

AREX takes you straight from the airport to Seoul. As we headed out, the sun began to come out.

map of seoul station and surrounding area

Taking pictures of maps helped us get around.

sungnyemun gate

Sungnyemun gate wasn’t open yet (at 8 – another hour to go).

sungnyemun gate and surrounding area with large buildings in background

History among the growing modern surrounds.

namdaemun market with flags strung overhead

Entering into Namdaemun Market. The city was just waking up.

korean shoe stall at namdaemun market

No time to shop!

bottles of ginseng wine in korean stall

Fancy ginseng stuff. I didn’t realize it was wine until just now.

storage closet in underground walkway with supply of gas masks and other relief supply goods

Get your gas masks here.

plastic columns of red and green baskets outside of seoul station

Columns made of plastic baskets, outside of Seoul Station.

soap on a stick in korean bathroom

I thought I had to squeeze the blue thing to dispense soap. Turns out it WAS the soap.

korean tofu soup and sides for breakfast at seoul station

Tofu soup breakfast! Exhaustion made it hard to eat much.

button on restaurant door to open them

Buttons to enter!

buying arex tickets from seoul station back to incheon airport

We were in Seoul for less than 2 hours before we headed back to the airport.

money tray for collecting tickets and money

At first I didn’t know what those trays were for. Turns out that’s how you complete transactions, instead of handing money and tickets directly.

view from arex airport express train from seoul station to incheon airport

I could barely stay awake on the ride, but managed to snap this as I noticed water.

lounge room in incheon airport near arex airport express

Back at the airport, we explored its many amenities. By this point I managed to lose my wristlet – didn’t realize it until hours later!

airbus a320 double decker plane at gate

Our Airbus A320 from Seoul to LA. We got to sit on the second floor!

hallway in tom bradley international termina with colorful bands

Whoa, Tom Bradley looks quite different.

It was a whirlwind trip to Korea for the first time, but I’m sure we’ll be back for a proper visit. I learned that I have trouble telling the difference between Korean and Japanese. They both seem to have a lot of syllables and softer sounds. I’ll know next time to bring some key phrases with me so I can interact with the locals more. And I should definitely visit in the summer months or I might not want to go outside!

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