Right now I’m in a pretty serious love affair with Korean
transportation. I think buses are
amazing! Granted, to date, I’ve never had to wait for a late bus or stand in
the rain and they’ve always taken me where I wanted to go. I’m not sure if this
new love will last forever but I’m enjoying it right now!
Part of why I like buses is that it gives me plenty of time
to just watch the world. I find the chance to sit on a bus and stare out the
window incredibly relaxing and a great way to see the city and find new places
to go and explore. As much fun as it is to be in the midst of the hustle and
bustle I love being able to sit back and watch the ins and outs of my new city.
So today I present 5 observations* I’ve made about Daegu by
bus thus far.
(*I reserve the right to revoke, edit, or change these
observations at any future date. After all I’m still pretty new to Korea and
all…)
1) White, black or silver cars only, please.
Ok, maybe not the biggest deal but for some reason I find it
fascinating that 95% (according to my very advanced analysis) of vehicles are
these colors. I think the day I see a bright red car I’m going to make a fool
of myself by yelling due to the shock.
2) Scooter drivers with nerves of steel
Food delivery by scooter seems to be incredibly common here
in Korea. Because of the demand there are scooters zipping in and out of
traffic at all hours of the day.
And when I say “zipping in and out of traffic” I mean it! When it comes
to scooters, traffic laws seem to be merely a suggestion. If there’s a few feet
between buses they’re gonna take it! Traffic slowing down? Why not just drive
up onto the sidewalk for a few blocks to get around it. Oh and pedestrians?
Don’t worry, they’ll move out of the crosswalk pretty quickly when they see you
coming…. and all with an earbud in one ear and cell phone at the other. It’s
really pretty amazing!
3) Hold on tight (no, really, hold on!)
So when the bus arrives the first order of business is to
get on the bus and pay your fare. After that don’t stop, don’t think, grab on
to something! Because as soon as you are on far enough for the driver to start
closing the door he is going to take off at a velocity I’m still amazed such a
large piece of metal could reach so quickly. If you are not sitting or
clutching a pole for dear life you will end up in an ajumma’s lap, and she
probably won’t look upon this kindly.
4) Hospital fashion?
This one I’m not really sure how to explain. I have seen an
interesting number of what appear to be hospital patients, in their hospital
attire, out for a stroll. Perhaps my bus routes just happen to be near the hospitals
but it still strikes me as odd and I’m always tempted to go ask the elderly
gentlemen if he doesn’t need help getting back to his room.
5) In case you couldn’t tell by our coordination, we’re
dating
This
is my favorite! So if you finally find that love of your life you obviously
want to share the good news with the rest of the world, right? What better way
to do this than by matching shirts, shoes, hats… no really, this is a thing.
Sometimes couples appear to just color coordinate their outfits. But the most
hardcore lovebirds wear the same shirt, similar pants and even the same shoes.
Although, the really pressing question I have is- what is the phone
conversation like leading up to the date? Do they have more then one matching
outfit? Who gets to pick the outfit for that day? Do they take turn deciding?
Can you wear the clothes when you’re not with the other person? So many
questions….
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