KOREA!!! I Have Arrived!

Hello all from Seoul!

I woke up in Denver at 5:00am and set off at 8:00am, nearly missed my flight in San Francisco. I had to run to catch it, but at last I made it. As a heads up from anyone doing the San Francisco to Seoul haul: you will suffer at the end of it. It's bright the entire 12 hours, and if you're flying coach, you've got all the kids and people moving about and being cramped. It's alright getting up and walking around, but you look on the screen thinking you must be there by now and then find out you're only just over Alaska and have another 6 hours to sit there. It's hard to sleep on the flight (and I can sleep anywhere, so that's saying something) so by the time you hit Seoul you're exhausted.

Incheon Airport, however, is brilliant. Even the boarding ramps are glass, so the moment you're off the plane the world opens up again. They've developed a reputation as one of the best, most efficient, passenger-friendly airports in the world, and they certainly live up to it. Signs are posted in Korean, English, and Chinese in the international terminal (and from what I gather, excepting Busan, all the flights are international) so you don't have to look about in confusion trying to work out where you're going. The immigration line was the shortest I've ever stood in, and you go immediately to the carousel. The only confusing bit was trying to work out where to find the Hanjin Express to pick up my Arrival Store boxes, as it was hidden behind some construction on the far end of the third floor terminal. The rest is easy.

Seoul as a city is really dense in some areas and then spread out in others. When we arrived, the sun was setting and a hazy fog covered the place, but the lights of Seoul were everywhere when we got in the taxi. Another note here: don't take the black taxis unless you're pairing up with other people, as they're the more expensive. I teamed up with Eva, who I met in the terminal looking for Hanjin Express, so our cost wasn't as bad, but if I had been alone, it would have been really expensive.

Traffic is Seoul is as bad as you might imagine starting at about 6:00pm from what I could see. It took an hour and a half to reach the Coatel Hotel from Incheon Airport via taxi. The guys who took the bus to the central station, then a taxi back to the Coatel Hotel paid less for the taxi, but arrived a little after Eva and I, and so the timing was about the same for a bit more effort.

I am now sitting in a room with my roommate Christine. It's done in traditional Korean style, with the spot at the front door for taking off your shoes (the hotel even gave us slippers, but we're all favoring socks for now). Our bathroom contains a massive shower, and a toilet with way too many buttons. It took Christine and I a good ten minutes to work out where the flush was (it's round the back). There was also some surprise when I sat down and discovered with a very tired brain that the toilet seat is heated. I could have easily fallen asleep right there at that point.

We met Rebecca and Eva down on the ground floor to visit the little shop in the back of the lobby. You can buy coca cola in Korea, as well as twix, skittles, many types of yogurt, and digestives (McVities at least in this shop).

Anyway, off to bed now. Got work and exploring to do in the morning. I leave you all with some pictures, and I've made it home safe.

P.S. My new phone is really awesome. It's got a touch pad screen with a special metal pen thing to navigate about, and it plays music and all that jazz. Considering it's not a special phone over here and is used anyway, it's still better than my phone back in the U.S.

Love you all!
-Sam

Christine and my shared room at the Coatel Hotel, Seoul. This picture was taken from the small smoking room (it won't be used, but it's like a closed in balcony, complete with sliding glass door).

See, Mum, I can leave my shoes at the door now. In fact, it's encouraged.

That's the massive shower and the sink, the mad electronic heated toilet's on the lower right. ;)

This is my roommate, Christine!