Day 1, Leg 1

What a day. I was up at 4:45 and out the door by 5:10, hoping to catch the 5:55 A'Rex train going one stop over from Geomam Station in Incheon to Cheongna International City Station. Alas, I got to Geomam Station right at 5:55. My subway was pulling out of the station just as I was ascending to the platform. Fuck-knuckles. I had to wait an extra fifteen minutes for the next train, which meant not beating the sunrise. 

That didn't matter much today: it was sporadically rainy all morning and didn't clear up until about 1 in the afternoon, so even at 6:30 a.m., there was barely any sun to speak of. I think the cool weather helped me to walk faster. I wasn't a fan of the rain, but I had my rain gear, including my new, ridiculous hat with the wide brim. The rain did keep me from taking too many photographs: most of the time, I kept my phone sealed up inside a Ziploc bag.

So I concentrated on just walking, which may be a good thing. I arrived in the neighborhood of Gayang Station at around 3:40 p.m. (9.5 hours of walking and resting), which is better time than I'd made during the Chuseok walk.

I'm currently staying at my old nemesis, the EG Hotel, which had a base charge of W70,000 but added W5000 per hour of "early charges" for coming before 7 p.m. I guess that's the ass-end of capitalism when everyone's out to fuck you. I tried two other hotels before EG, and they were both wallet-rapey as well. I think I just have to reconcile myself to the fact that motels and hotels in this part of Seoul are all predatory. EG, to its credit, at least had a price chart so you could follow along to see in detail how you're being raped. I'll be happy to get the fuck out of Seoul, where such nonsense is less likely to happen.

Below, you'll find a map of my route (it helps to read Korean), my pedometer stats, and the promised ten photos from today's adventure. I wore the Skechers today; they felt comfortable, but I've got several small blisters on my feet all the same. Comes with the territory.

today's route

today's stats, but ignore the distance: it's exaggerated by 20%

Drug trap! for the unwary

Joro spider at sunrise

halo

straightaway

reflection

mrowr

The black-and-white cat approached me when I started fumbling with my Ziploc bag to pull out my phone and get a picture. The cat probably thought the plasticky sound meant food. Sorry, kitty! All I had was scritches. 

shitty day for a boat tour along the canal

cosmos flowers

the most loyal seat you'll ever sit on

Dr. Heo Jun, a.k.a. Gu-am (Turtle Rock), a famous physician

The lack of rain in the afternoon was nice. It made the final part of the walk a bit more pleasant. I'm hoping tomorrow goes well, too. Saint Ibuprofen will doubtless help on that score as well. 

The above photos don't give you the normal sense of the path that my usual photos do. The full photo essay, to be posted once I'm back from my walk, will provide more details. For those wanting a fuller look at the Day 1 walk, see my main blog here. But today, frankly, I took barely fifty photos, mainly because of the rain. I crave your pardon. 

PHOTO ESSAY

sculpted plastic models of food... and I was hungry

Wang donggaseu/왕돈까스, or king-sized pork cutlet (as the sign sort of says)

exiting the neighborhood near my motel, approaching the main street

Watch out, druggies!

shadow pic before sunrise

Geomam Station/검암역, 5:55 a.m.

Where I got off. A couple kilometers to the trail's official starting point.

I took this Joro spider to be a good sign.

This was about as close as I got to the rest area, which wasn't open at that hour. As you see, Mama Bear and Baby Bear are peeking over the trees.

one of the windmills that make this place distinctive (but tons more in Jeju!)

St. Kevin of the walk, halo in place, about to start the real trek of the day.

From my motel  to the subway was a couple kilometers, then from where I got off the train to the starting point was another couple of km. Altogether, add about 5K to my total walk for the day. Total distance for the day: about 35 km.

traveling alongside the Ara Canal; bike lanes to the right

Obnoxious biker on the walking path; he'll veer away, but it's still rude to go off-piste.

fucker (and another asshole behind him)

Another one strays onto my path. Hard to enjoy nature when people are being rude.

All the cool stuff seems to be on the other side of the canal, like this circular observation deck.

reality plus reflection

Cats at a place where I stopped for a bit. It's been raining on and off.

I can't imagine that this tour boat had many passengers with the weather being this bad.

Because of the rain, there's a lot I didn't photograph. We've diverted into town.

The Ara Canal stretch was roughly 15K. We're back in civilization now, and the remaining 15-ish km will be more urban for the most part.

The price of fuel on October 14, 2023, at 12:32 p.m.

cosmos flowers, always reminding me of Mom

It's been a miserable day, weather-wise. I have no reason to look self-satisfied.

I saw this burd as I got close to the Han River.

The place where I turn east from the Ara Canal to the Han River is not right at the confluence: it's an inland turn, but the path eventually takes one back toward the river.

A little bit of an America vibe as I walked through this green space.

What the sign says (roughly):
Personal Moving Device: Information on Use
kickboard: use on bike path is possible
speed limit: under 20 kph
on walking paths: get off your device and walk
compliance with safety rules: use a helmet
personal mobility devices in parks: do not neglect
There could be a FINE if you violate the above.

Below: a smoking zone. I've started to see more and more of these lately. Are they really stopping people from throwing their cigarette butts on the ground? I doubt it.

I stopped here and got snacks. This was my tablecloth. The top part is warnings: "Don't bring food not from our store," "No smoking." In the middle of the table are the three brands/products being hawked: Jinro Soju, Cham Iseul Soju, and Terra Lager. The wise frog is saying, "No smoking is love," which sounds very Khmer Rouge. Below the frog is his company's name: Jinro, a soju-making firm. Three bottles in the ad next to the frog: Jinro Soju, then Cham Iseul (Real Dew) Soju, and finally Terra Lager.

the faithful-hound bench

a plane made of hoops

final stretch before I turn away from the river for the day

maybe a tunnel of love that looked more flowery a season ago

At this point, I've crossed the freeway and am in Gangseo-gu, River-West District.

Dr. Heo Jun is apparently famous and merits a statue and a bio. Enlarge to see the English.

I guess his method was a combination of Vulcan mind meld and bad touch.

Don't ask me what this says.

a big church in town; Jesus with his flock (the lower-left Korean says: "Good Shepherd Jesus")

memorable church tower (0.5X digital zoom)

This will be a constant trope during this walk: abstract sculpture, which Koreans love. Balls!

The walk from the Han River inland to my hotel is a bit over a kilometer.

my hotel, as seen from across the street

I went to this Chinese place that I'd gone to before and ordered their rice-flour tangsuyuk (sweet-sour pork) and fried mandu. I bit down on a bit of gristle in the pork. Not being a gristle-eater, I gagged a bit, then choked down the rest of my meal. Encountering gristle is, for me, a lot like encountering a stray hair in my food—gross and meal-ruining. I won't be back at this resto. Ever. If you can't trust the tangsuyuk, why bother?

A shame: the meal looked good.

I'd eaten most of the mandu before I had the wit to take a pic.

The glutinous rice flour makes the tangsuyuk paradoxically crispy and chewy. Sauce is served separately.

right big toe already showing signs of wear

painful bruise on the right foot, below the pinky toe

left big toe has a multi-lobed blood blister

from another angle

dark bruise under my left foot, back from the fourth toe