It’s a travel day! Judy gets off to work and I start organizing the items I’m going to need. We are heading to Seoul, South Korea for a few days. After packing, catching up on my blog writing, and preparing my class materials for the Sunday make-up day, I get bored and decide to pick up some items at Metro. Our diet coke supply is dwindling.
It’s a one mile walk, and the weather is gorgeous. I get my groceries, load them in my “Canton” cart, and debate walking or riding back to the apartment. I choose the taxi, and as I’m loading my cart into the trunk of the taxi, I break off one of the wheels. It was cheap, and I had already been eyeing some upgrade versions. I drag it into the apartment, unload everything, and make final preparations for our departure.
Lillie has called and said the repairman won’t be coming today after all, and he’ll reschedule next week. Darn! I was hoping to get that problem solved quickly. Judy gets home around 4:15, hurriedly changes clothes, finalizes her luggage, and we’re out the door by 4:40. We catch a taxi and dive into the heavy “holiday” traffic.
The “Mid-Autumn Moon Festival” is very important. It’s considered the 2nd most important holiday after the New Year. We’ve been hearing talk about “moon cakes” for weeks. Judy described the festive atmosphere at school with the students and the Chinese teachers. Almost every class came in with their own moon cakes for her to sample. BISS had a ½ day with students, followed by a really special meal, “moon cakes making” demonstrations, and some less-than-exciting staff development.
We get to the airport fairly quickly (45 minutes), and start trying to figure out how to check in. It’s set-up much different than the US airports I’ve been in. The International ticketing area is almost empty. We are quick to check in and then head over to security. This is also slightly different than the US version. The “wanding” is very thorough. They didn’t miss a spot. At least we don’t have to take off our shoes, belts, etc. I don’t think I’ll be needing a massage anytime soon, either.
The gate area has many upscale shops, but not many people. I don’t remember being in an airport this empty in a long time. Maybe the domestic flight area is crowded. There was a lot of traffic coming in. Everything here is quiet and subdued.
I exchange some Chinese RMB for Korean Won (we’re arriving late in Seoul). We load with no problem, and the flight takes off after a brief time holding on the runway. Actual airtime is about 1 ½ hours. During that time the attendants make a “drink run” through the cabin, serve a full meal (yes, a meal), pick up the trash, make a drink “top-off” run, and then buckle us in for landing. We touched down at 10:00 pm, (Seoul time), one hour ahead of Beijing.
Incheon Airport is huge and modern. We make our way to Customs, where the line isn’t long, but time-consuming. We clear with no problems, find our suitcase, and are out the front door. We’re approached by several unofficial taxi drivers (we’ve been warned about them), and keep walking. We’re on the Express Bus that departs 10 minutes later. We arrive at a bus stop on a street in Gangnam, a Seoul suburb, and hour later. The driver points us in the direction of our hotel. It’s close, but not an easy walk at midnight. Not many people available that time of night to ask questions (assuming they could speak English).
We eventually find our way in. We’re staying at the JW Marriott Seoul. It’s really nice! It’s going to be hard to convince Judy to leave the hotel tomorrow. If there are enough pillows in the room (which there are), she might never wake up.