Seoul Layover

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Arrived in Seoul's Incheon Airpot at 5:00 am. My connecting flight was not until 4:30 pm which is almost 12 hours away. I was not about to spend that time in the airport. So my plan was to visit downtown Seoul. However, there can't be too many places open in downtown at 5 am.

So after getting though Korea's Immigration counter (which took no time at all), charging my cell and laptop (thanks to the lovely lady at the Information Desk for lending me an AC adapter), and surfing the web, finally ventured out of the airport around 8:30 am.

Took the AREX train (Airport Railroad Express) that transported me to Seoul Station, an impressive major rail hub in downtown Seoul. AREX has 2 different trains – the Express & the Commuter. The Express makes no stops and takes you directly to Seoul Station while the Commuter makes all stops (about 8) on route to Seoul Station. Since I was not pressed for time, I opted for the Commuter service. Besides, it was much cheaper – only 3,300 won compared to 13,300 won for the Express.

The train ride took about 50 minutes. As mentioned, Seoul Station was impressive as it is a major rail hub to other cities. It is equipped with shops and restaurants. So I stepped into McDonalds to grab some coffee before I head out to the streets of Downtown Seoul. And once again, rain greeted me outdoors. IF you have read any of my previous blogs, then you will understand my frustration with rain. And this time, it was also chilly with a temperature of around 40 degrees F.

Next to Seoul Station was Concos Department Sore, a multilevel store that literally had everything from a grocery department, appliances, clothing, and food court. Thankfully it was open at 9:30 am. So with the rainy weather outside, I decided to go in.

Upon entering its doors, there was a lady standing by the security sensors we normally see at each store at the US malls. She stopped me from continuing and started speaking Korean and pointing to my rolling handcarry luggage. Of course, we could not understand each other. It became apparent to me that English is not a language commonly spoken in the city as it was at the airport. She then escorted me to an area of the store where any luggage needed to be checked in. So I finally understood that luggage are not allowed in the store. The check-in service was free and I was given a claim ticket for my bag.

Spent about a couple hours in the store window shopping, eating appetizers, and sampling food. After that, the weather cleared up a bit so I ventured out to explore the streets of Downtown Seoul.

Downtown Seoul is not known to be your typical tourist spot, I could have went to Insadong or Myeongdong but with my limited budget after spending a 3 week vacation in the Philippines and Singapore, spending another 4,000 won each way to get to those places was not an option.

After taking in the sights of downtown, I was getting cold and needed a hot lunch. I was determined to dine at a Korean eatery. They each had pictured menus posted on their exteriors. I was in the mood for soup but the soups at each Korean restaurant did not quite appeal to me. Kept walking along, even entered some alleys to continue my search when I ran into a Pho place. Yeah I know its Vietnamese, but I was freezing and the familiar menu beckoned me. Besides, I was able to eat some authentic Korean delicacies at the department store such as fermented seaweed and cuttlefish which I enjoyed very much.

After lunch, it was about 1:30 pm so I decided to walk back to Seoul Station and ride the nearly 1 hour train back to Incheon Airport so I can hop on my connecting flight that leaves for San Francisco at 4:30 pm.

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