I went to the Express Bus Terminal to buy a ticket to the Goesan/괴산 area this past Tuesday, but the ticket machine didn't list Goesan as a possible stop, leaving me confused. I went back to my older blog entries to see what might be going on, but they offered no clue. So I did a Korean-language search for a Seoul-Goesan bus schedule, and aha—there's no bus from the Express Bus Terminal, but there is a bus from the East Seoul Bus Terminal.
So I'll be trundling out that way, probably by cab, and buying a ticket tonight. I'll want to leave in the early afternoon tomorrow, around 3 or 4 p.m. I'll get to Goesan-gun by about dinnertime, then take a cab the rest of the way to the Saejae Park Motel. I'll sleep and wake up early, meet the older couple, walk a bit, maybe do lunch if I can stand the couple for that long, and head on back to Seoul. I can think of better ways to spend my Saturday, but I made a commitment, so I can't weasel out of this. I might try backing out of my end-of-walk commitment, though: I had promised to cook the couple my Middle Eastern chicken, and we'd agreed to have lunch once they'd finished their walk. Now, I'm no longer so keen on such a meeting. With some people, small doses are best.
7 comments:
There most definitely is a bus to 괴산시 from the express bus terminal (central city side). I took it last year and they run every 90mins or so. Also, why are you going there in person? Download the tmoney go app and do everything from the comfort of your own home. Makes it easier to cancel too if plans change.
Okay, so I downloaded and set up the app, but it was a bitch to do, and another concession of my privacy. The set-up process was full of archaic redundancies and backward steps... but I'm now one step closer to being part of the Borg collective. The app's search function was no good for finding 괴산, but strangely enough, 괴산 did appear as a selectable menu item when I selected the 충북 region (didn't see it on the 전체 screen for some odd reason... I'll look again later). I'd love to hear an explanation of how all of that works.
Anyway, this pain in the ass was a reminder of why I prefer doing things old-school.
Grumble, grumble, gripe, gripe...
Right, so I looked at the 전체 menu again, scrolled down farther, and found 괴산 on the 저체 page. Probably not a good idea to engage in anger-scrolling. You miss stuff that way. But in my defense, I don't like the menu's setup: they show top searches first, so the menu doesn't initially look as if it's in alphabetical order. Then the 가나다 list is shown; you have to scroll down to see that, and that's where you find 괴산.
I apparently hadn't set up the QR-code part of the app, so I ended up purchasing a paper ticket that I'll have to pick up physically. Little point in having an app if you end up needing a paper ticket. I can pick it up, though, on the day I travel (tomorrow), although I'm inclined to go get it tonight for my own peace of mind. As I said: old-school.
If nothing else, it may prove useful for checking timetables and available seats. Although I know there is a bus station in Yeonpung itself, although I don't know where the buses go to and from or what time. There are certain interim stations that aren't shown at all.
Despite my bitching, I appreciate the heads-up about the app. I normally learn about these things from other people. That's how I found out about iHerb, Coupang, etc. It's rare for me to find these things out on my own because I never look. (Last time I learned about a Korean app on my own was years ago, when I was figuring out how to order Burger King on my phone.)
Have a good trip. I hope the meeting turns out better than you have been led to believe it will.
John Mac,
Thanks. Fingers crossed, but I'm not hopeful.
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