Walk Thoughts #42: today's photographic journey

I walked from Daecheong Tower in Seoul to Hanam City Hall today. Here's a series of pics that I took along the way.

Dawn mist along the Tancheon (T'an Creek, which feeds into the Han River), 5:40AM:

Lotte World Tower off to the east (I'm walking north to the Han River):

The thing that looks like white rags is actually the white plumage of a cock pheasant. Pheasants were all over my path this morning, squawking. Is it mating season? In any event, I know pheasant used to be the food of kings, so all that squawking just made me hungry.

On the right track:

Eastward along the Han. Passing the Lotte Tower took forever.

Huge concrete staging area for... something.

I saw several Corgis this morning—the offspring of a dalliance between a German shepherd and a dachshund. Thanks to some bad experiences, I don't like this breed.

These vines looked suspiciously regular:

What much of my path looked like (and will look like all the way to Busan):

The sun was still low enough that this construction-site wall provided some shade:

Olympic Bridge:

I think this is the Gwangjin Bridge:

BMX bike terrain, from a distance:

7.25 km to Hanam City limit; 15.7 km (three or so hours) to Paldang Bridge:

BMX terrain, up close:

Me and my shadow:

Selfie, before I got sunburned (I do have lotion with me):

Soccer field with chairs for spectators:

Nifty bridge in the distance:

The path changes character frequently:

Only 2 hours left (9.7 km) to get to Paldang Bridge:

And now I feel as if I'm in Europe:

A view across the water:

Bizarre-but-fascinating piles of dead vegetation forming evocative, pachyderm-like shapes, like a parade of reanimated animal carcasses:

Can you see the huge carp playing across the water? That was amazing to watch.

I walked past several baseball fields. Here's one:

Another straightaway. Note the islands in the river:

The same stretch:

At last: Paldang Bridge! I'm not far from Hanam's city hall.

Walking south and turning west (i.e., right) toward City Hall:

Upon seeing "Daecheong," I felt as if I had gone nowhere since I live at Daecheong Tower next to Daecheong Station. By now, I was dead tired and ready to flop into a yeogwan bed.

Walking toward Hanam's modest city center:

After knocking on several love-motel doors, I finally ended up where I am now: the Baro Hotel. It's a spacious room, and expensive: I'm being charged a Saturday rate plus a fee that's normally charged to randy couples who normally pay for such rooms by the hour.

And we end this photo essay with a shot of the luxurious bathroom, which I'll be using in a moment to shower and to launder my clothes.

That's about it for Day 1, Leg 1 of this walk. I'll soon be typing up an entry that gets more at the inner experience of today's périple.