Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Vacation pt 1: Daejeon

The scene:
Bus from Wasu to Seoul: 10,200won.
Bus from Seoul to Daejeon: 14,600won

5:30pm, at 다유미 김밥 사랑. [Da Yoo Mi Kimbap Sarang]
Eating bibimbap and enjoying the free Wi-fi.
Price of meal: 3,500won, or around 3 dollars. You can't go wrong with bibimbap; it's inexpensive, healthy, and filling. It's good at any time of the day and is especially suited for breakfast. 3,500 is the least I've paid for the dish, as it's usually between 4000 and 5000won, but it tasted perfectly fine. This place is just cheaper than other Kimbap shops.

The ride in: the Seoul - Daejeon route ranks among the smoothest and straightest of freeways I've ridden on. It felt like driving I-65 through Indiana with mountains instead of cornfields on either side of the highway.

I'm in Daejeon from today until Friday. I booked a motel room and brought the acoustic guitar down here so I could wander around and relax in a new city. The only specific things I plan on doing here are seeing the science park and going on a city tour. Other than that, the days are wide open. Most likely I'll take a lot of walks in try to dodge the sweltering summer temperatures as best as possible. The rainy season's passed and the country's sweating out the rest of the summer with 80-90 degree temperatures every day. This will probably mean going out in the mornings and evenings and basking in the air-conditioned serenity of the motel room during the afternoons. . If you're curious about the weather here, it's the same in Daejeon as it is in Seoul and Wasu: hot and humid. The humidity has been tapering off at least. 

The total time it took to get from Wasu to Seoul to Daejeon took four hours and fifteen minutes, the 30 minute wait between buses in Seoul and the 10 minute walk to the bus station in Wasu. My motel, the City One Motel, sits across town from the Daejeon bus terminal, but the cab ride only took 15 minutes. The motel's across the street from the subway and the room's exactly like the pictures I saw on the website. I've a computer, water cooler, mini-fridge, TV, a big bathroom,  a couch, and a balcony. It should be a good time here. Motels, karaoke rooms, and convenience stores line the  neighborhood's streets. Some restaurants are here as well.  You're never too far from restaurants or convenience stores in Korea. A stream lies a couple blocks up the road and it has walking and biking paths next to it as well, so I'll be checking that out when the sun goes down.

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