It's Daejeon! The return (Day 1)

As part of the summer vacation, I'm back in Daejeon again for a couple of days. I went here last summer (see below) and stayed for a bit, but I vacillated between enjoying it and feeling like I should be somewhere else. It's different this time because I've got a plan and more of a drive to see new places. Having spent more time researching the city and its interesting places certainly helped, too. There's another reason as well: Wanting get this right, ie to travel and not get paralyzed with indecision. Last year was a missed opportunity. 

It's been less than a full day, but the fun's already begun. The two hour ride out of Seoul on the Mugunghwa train went well. I like trains because they're much more predictable than buses and they don't stop and start as much. The ride cost 10,300won. It provided some time to catch up on my reading.

I arrived at Daejeon Station and set off for the hotel. I'm at the Daelim Tourist Hotel in the downtown area. It's a quality establishment which, to my surprise, has breakfast service! I must have missed that part of the hotel description.

Here are some pictures from Day 1:

Dinner



Bibimbap with raw Korean beef and plenty of gochujang red pepper paste. A heart meal that quenched my hunger. The vegetables tasted fresh and the kimchi had a good kick to it, but the abundant  pepper paste made the meal a little too spicy for my taste. It wasn't a huge problem though. [Korean name: 한우육회 비빔밥, 9000won)

Along Jungang-ro (중앙로)

The downtown market. That structure next to Mr. Pizza is a video screen that plays looping patterns. It makes the streets as bright as day. The shopping/restaurant area's maybe 5x5 blocks. It feels like a playground for young people.

Photo taken for the name and for the tagline. Soup as the name of a clothing store? Feminism's an interesting tagline for selling clothes, no?

The store's a modest two story affair of Synnara Record's Daejeon branch. I'm a record junkie. Buying music online (either ordering CDs or buying the digital versions) is fine, but nothing matches the experience of browsing the shelves in an actual store. While I had noting in particular to look for, I picked up Crying Nut's Flaming Nuts CD because I'd heard good things about them and because its cover art rocks. If only it were an LP:

[Source: http://kopomus.blogspot.kr/2013/06/album-crying-nut-flaming-nuts.html

Edit: The first track sounds like Dropkick Murphys. Woohoo! [I'd originally heard it as one of Flogging Molly's angrier songs, but the vocals are too deep for them]

Should've done more research dept: Synnara Record has at least three branches in Seoul. Have I been to them? Nope. Will I? Yes.

The above picture's dedicated to Andrew in WI, aka the biggest AC/DC fan I've met. Now you can write AC/DC in Korean, bud.

The Jung Gyo, or "Middle Bridge"

I liked the unique shape and design of the bridge and the park that runs along the Daejeon Stream. (대전천)

A waterfall along the stream. I wish I'd spent more time here because it looked like a good place to relax, but the humidity and heat made the air too stifling to dawdle about.

Biking and walking paths along the stream. Despite the thick summer air, plenty of people were out biking and walking. It's nice to see that.

I'd arrived too late to see any museums or parks, so I retired to the hotel and planned Day 2 after spending the evening exploring the area around the hotel. It's now a day later. The full post about Day 2 will be up shortly. I covered plenty of ground today, so it'll be packed with pictures and stories from this overlooked Korean city. I'll be heading out tomorrow (Thursday), so maybe it'll go up before I get back on the train, maybe not. We'll see. The hotel room's big flat screen TV's screaming out "Play a movie on me!" right now...

On a final note: Traveling alone works best when you stay busy.

Notes:

Last year's trip to Daejeon / Page 2 / Page 3

On the river side / photos from Seoul

Despite my rural residence, I enjoy a good city excursion as much as anyone. Here are some recent photos made possible by the warming spring weather.

Picture taken on the south bank of the Han River on a gorgeous spring day at Yeouinaru Han River Park, looking north toward Seoul Tower. Yeouinaru's one of my favorite places to go in Seoul because it's wide and offers views of the lazy Han River. It tends to draw throngs of people, but the area's wide enough to accommodate everyone. I like to come here to sit, relax, and get a respite from the commotion of the city.

Han River = 한강
Nam Mountain (남산)
Literally, 남산 means "South Mountain," but it is almost always written as Namsan Mountain even though san (mountain) being redundant.

On the pedestrian bridge by Noksapyeong Station, looking south toward the western edge of Itaewon. This intersection's always busy with traffic. Note the underpass that allows vehicles to bypass the intersection.

Noksapyeong Station = 녹사평역 

Itaewon = 이태원. 

On the same bridge, looking north toward Namsan. In the distance are the entrances to the Gyeongnidan and the Haebangchon neighborhoods. You can also see the clusters of houses on the hills around Namsan juxtaposed with the square buildings on the right-hand sight.

Here's the Cocaine Music Bar in Hongdae (홍대) area. I doubt anyone could away with such a name in the States. Perhaps some would take that name as invitation to do such an illicit drug inside the joint? Not the best idea considering Korea's strict drug laws!

Music bars dot the bigger cities here. They're basically rock clubs without the stage--same dark walls, rock posters, songs on the speakers, and Western alcohols. I've been to the Woodstock Music Bar in Gangnam before and had a good time there. Being in there brought back plenty of memories from rock shows in Milwaukee.