I actually did something else this past weekend than go get drunk at a baseball game, though I had the opportunity and was planning on it. I took a whirlwind trip up to the little village of Seoul to pick up my beloved bicycle. It took 16 hours and included the following forms of transportation.
Subway-KTX fast train to Seoul-Seoul subway, with three line changes-taxi(dude doesn't know what "dong" to take me too. A dong is a neighborhood.-Car.( I call the people I'm picking my bike up from and they come pick me up. -Bike. I assemle my bike and ride it to 6 miles back to the subway.-Subway-Bus. 5 hour ride back to Busan. This ride has much more comfortable than the fast, expensive train. And there's no problem putting the bike in the storage bay below deck.-Subway. A 1 hour ride back to my "dong." So in 8 easy steps you too can have a bicycle in a city where it seems like everyone is trying to run you over!
The folks I picked my bike up from, Ashley and Chad, bless their hearts, lived near a US army base in Seoul. Chad is actually in the Army, he fixes helicopters. When my taxi driver couldn't find their neighborhood he just took me to the base where Chad and Ashley met me. Since they're in the military they have access to all sorts of tasty treats, like root beer, paper towels, Mrs. Butterworth's syrup, and chewing tobacco. They also got hooked with a sweet apartment. 4 bedrooms, hardwood floors, oven. It's awesome. Once again thanks again to Ashley and Chad for letting my bike tag along on their shipment of boxes from the states. And good luck to them as they enter parenthood in the next couple weeks.
I thought I would pose for a photo with my bike. what a cute couple. I had the chance to put a few miles on it as I needed to get back to subway. It was a smooth ride, as long as you avoid the sidewalks, not exactly bike friendly in the Seoul suburbs. I also got to break in the middle finger when a kid tried to spit on me from their passing passenger window.
Back in Busan, I spotted a bike club for bikes with 2o inch wheels. They take their appearance very seriously here. As well as their posing. All these bikes were really cool. and small. My bike with it's 700cc/29 inch feels and looks massive. Like an F150 amongst a bunch of Prius'
Though this isn't one, I've seen a few fixed gears about town. My friend Janice picked one up to cruise around town on. And when I say cruise, I mean avoiding bikes and taxis and people and spit and pot holes. it's pretty hectic in the city. But you can put your bike on the subway, take it to the end of the line and hop on a rural bike path to explore.
This guy had a triangle bike. it didn't even have a chain, just a belt lie you'd see underneath the hood of a car. It also had a leather brooks saddle and disc brakes.
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