Korea Day 10 - The New Plan

They tell me it's Monday morning.

But really, who knows. Joe had to get ready for work, so I guess that's a clue. From now I have no hanging schedule to keep other than making it home by the 8th of August for the much anticipated Yasokoi festival in Kochi. Look it up.

I am, however, keen on starting early in the day before the sun rise to cycle a bunch before the sun gets too hot. Anything between noon and 3:00pm these days is cycling harder, not smarter.  But, being a guest on the road comes with perks, one of which is sharing the morning with your host and saying a proper goodbye.

Somewhere between all the times I was ask, "where to after Guyre?" the idea came up about this southern island of Jeju to cycle around. Joe was very encouraging to the idea, said lots of cyclists take the boat in from Mokpo, only a two days cycle from where we are. Cycling around an ancient volcanic island in Korea? I love the idea; naturally.

What's more, on Jeju there is a boat that will carry me and my steel companion to Busan! This meant that I could cycle from Busan to Mokpo, Mokpo to and around Jeju island, then ferry back into Busan and not have to relive those traffic heavy roads I used to escape the port of Busan. From there, it's a simple ferry back into Japan. It was the perfect plan. The perfect new plan. So, off to Mokpo I went.

Joe's apartment. Looks small but actually larger than most Japanese apartments. You'll notice the piano in the act as Joes education is fittingly in music composition and theory. 

Making morning coffee, the hand ground beans, steamed milk kind of way.

A finished product. There can be much said about setting an automatic coffee drip machine "on" and reading the paper for a moment while you wait for that first cup of coffee.

Watching someone go through all the steps of selecting a good bag of beans my smell, a fresh grinding of them by hand crank, and all the filtering and care that can be put into just one cup of coffee - well it makes me want to take more control of my coffee process. Maybe I'll invest in a crank when I return to Japan....

I have a friend who doesn't like bananas. So this must not apatizing to her but to me it's iconic. Not only rare to see pancakes in Asia, banana pancakes with real maple syrup. Did I mention that Joe is Canadian? So you know we weren't messing around with the Aunt Jemima stuff. 

He is also quite a baker and surprised me by making these doughnut-hole type sweets for breakfast. I sampled some, but they were actually for his co-workers that morning out of kindness.

Since he himself has been on the recipient end of generosity so many times along his travels, today Joe was imparting gifts of nutrition my way in return. Home made scones, bananas, and some Korean quick energy bars to take with me. It's about as much a power snack grab bag as anyone could ask for!

Check out my wicked tan line! I don't keep it consistent because I have three pairs of shorts and they all very slightly in length. Still....dang! I've been outside and love it.

Saying goodbye to Joe was brief. We exchanged addresses and I invited him to stay with me in Japan. He is off to work, and I am working my way towards Guwangju.

One of the things I did before leaving Guyre was to grab a paper map. So glad that I did to find this lake half way between Guyre and the next city. It's always, always nice to ride between the land and bodies of water. Totally undisturbed. 

There are a surprising amount of these signs posted along today's route. And I laugh every single time.

A cool bridge which no cars crossed.

Going over the bodies of water. I could have ridden in the opposite lane if I so choose. Literally no one around.

I really love this. Today is the poster image for why I came to Korea: to see and cycle through a bunch of nature. The lakes and rivers are completely forgotten or at least unattended. Either way, I am not complaining. 

In Japan, all the rivers are cemented along their sides, eliminating bank erosion and to more accurately control potentio flood levels. It also subtracts from their beauty. Here, like Cambodia, rivers are unconstrained and free.

A good days cycle and I was back in the thick of smog, engine throttles, and crowded lanes. Gwangju is a gamble. The sidewalks are not in a condition for cycling. Every block abruptly ends in a sidewalk cliff, without a slope to gently ease down. There are slopes however, in the middle of blocks for every business driveway. Very backwards. Oh, and cars park on the sidewalk in Korea. And motor scooters are allowed to also drive the sidewalks. This is how I came to ride in the streets.

The streets, however, weren't that better. I once had a bus silently roll up beside me and I could feel it scrapping my left pannier bags. Locking me in between it, the curb, and into a collision course with a pile of city rubbish just ahead, (did I mention it was raining?) the situation got real serious, really quick. 

I survived by slamming on my breaks as the bus flushed by and proceeded to take up what was left of the "bike lane." Anyways, these things don't get easier but they do become more manageable. 

Hey! It's Craig! A last minute warm showers I pulled in Gwangju for just a night. He's been in Korea for three going on four years and shows it. Korean is very easy to read, but listening and speaking is where most forigners get tied up. Anyways, he has it all down pat, and even a Korean girlfriend living together. Which, I must say, is extremely rare in Asia. Since everyone lives at home until they are married, it just doesn't happen. Living alone is common enough, but living with your partner is just unheard of! 

Well, they knew it. And they were joking about it. The both of them are very cool/hip kids and I enjoyed the single together.  

Oh yeah, see? As soon as I pulled into town on my bike (before meeting Craig), the sky began to leak. Typical. 

To make up for any slight speed bumps along the way, Craig, his girlfriend Emily, and I went out for delicious Korean BBQ. This food never gets old. I must have had about five huge helpings of manderine salad and so much raw garlic and meat. I could get used to this =)

I'm 50/50 when it comes to ice cream. I have a sporadic intolerance to dairy. Some things set it off easier than others. But, when Emily walked out of the store after dinner with three (what do call these? Bags? Pouches?) ice creams, I couldn't say no. 

Later on I felt good, the ice cream had no effect on my gut. Although, this might be the case that there was not actual dairy in the dessert at all.

Late at night, we watch some American TV and played cards. I felt ad though I was back in Thailand, just meeting Nick and Harmony for the first time and, same as today, being hit hard with that unmistakable American way of life.

That's it for now, I'm resting up on a comfy couch and a full belly. I was able to do a load of laundry too. Really, with a roof, new friends, and a bottle of water thrown in to the mix, I couldn't ask for anything more.

All the best, goodnight.

-A