South Korea Journal — Day 1–16.8.17
On our way to our final destination, we had one short connection in Uzbekistan. I must say that the security check at the airport, just before the transit area was intense, a full body check, it was not something I was aware of before.
The transit area was pretty small, there was one of the smallest duty-free and about two places where you can buy food from.
At least our connection was for about 2 hours.
I have seen several Korean waiting for the same flight, which made me happy. I love Korean people, for no particular reason.
Once our wait was over we had boarded a NEW Dreamliner airplane, which was cozy and small. Uzbekistan airlines choose their airplanes well.
On the flight, we were given customs forms to fill out, and I got one in Russian — maybe I am Russian but my language skills are not impressive, and I still needed assistance from the flight attendant to understand the hidden meaning behind a few fields on the form.
After filling out the form, a man sitting beside me started a conversation asking whether it was my first trip to Korea and warned me from the acidic rain.
My friend and I arrived at Incheon airport at around 08:30 PM.
We were exhausted after 2 flights.
Our total flight time was about 11 or 12 hours, lucky that each flight was about 5 to 6 hours, which is a lot but it is better than 10 hours without a single stop.
After passing the customs, reassuring the airport staff I didn’t try to move permanently to South Korea (a girl can dream) we went to pick up our luggage.
We were smart enough to book an Airbnb in Incheon and took an airport shuttle to our apartment (FREE transportation). Which saved us the hassle of traveling to Seoul, which is about one hour ride.
My main issue with this shuttle was the stairs — to get in and off the bus.
I had to deal with trying to lift my luggage, and I can guarantee you that I’m quite weak, so it was kind of a new sport to me.
Once we arrived at our designated bus stop — so we hoped at least, it was super dark, and yet, I’d immediately spotted a guy standing just by the station.
I can’t even describe the horror he might have felt, a foreign girl, not just any girl but anxiety-ridden and a jet-lagged girl had approached him and tried to blurt words in English — asking where was the building of our Airbnb.
As it turned out, the building was just behind the station.
I don’t even recall whether I had thanked the poor guy or not.
Do you know what is so convenient in South Korea?
The entrance passcode on the door, it makes your life so much easier.
Our apartment was actually a hotel room which is strange but turned out that the building was actually a hotel. Perhaps it is possible to own hotel rooms?
The room was spacious and our hosts were so kind that they left us water bottles and two cups of instant noodles.
I was so thirsty and hungry that the gesture almost made me dance out of joy.
The noodles were so good that we kept buying the same brand.
