Day 18: A Lazy Afternoon at Banpo Hangang Park
Hanging out at Banpo Hangang Park on Day 6 and watching the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain and fireworks that night was what I enjoyed the most thus far on my trip to Seoul so I decided to return to the area on this day. My mom was looking for a place to visit so I recommended that hanging out in front of the Hangang River was a really nice and quiet and peaceful experience for a sunny afternoon. Usually my aunts would accompany my mom if she went out but today we decided to ditch them and go out ourselves.
We grabbed a cab and headed out but not before stopping for some lunch first. As we enjoyed eating at Lotte Department Store so much the other day, we decided to return and have the same menu items as before: the Naeng Myeon/Guksu combo and a side order of mandoo. We were just here for the purpose of having lunch so we didn’t look around or do any shopping. It was just as good as the first time and naturally our conversation turned to how much better the food was on this side of the world.
We grabbed another cab from Lotte and told the driver that we were thinking of going to the base of the Banpo Bridge on the South side. It seems like by the way traffic flows in around the Banpo Bridge, getting to the base is harder than it looks. The bridge is two-tiered with traffic moving above on one level and below on another. I remember seeing entrances to Banpo Hangang Park on the lower level and a parking lot but the taxi driver said it was difficult to get down there from the top level as we approached and traversed the bridge from the North. The traffic when you are just about to get on/off the Banpo Bridge is very fast and not a place where one could simply stop and there were street signs forbidding it. Therefore, once across the bridge, we travelled Northeast and parallel to the Hangang River to about the mid-way point between Banpo Bridge and Hannam Bridge and got off at Jamwon Riverside Park, one of the 12 Hangang Parks.
We got to the park just after 1PM and the weather was beautiful. It was one of those days where despite the sun being hot, in the shade it was nice and comfortable, especially with the breeze coming off of the Hangang River. There were several covered benches at Jamwon so we decided to get a couple of drinks at the nearby convenience store and sit in the shade, looking out at the waters for a while. I still remember getting Chilsung Cider which is like Korea’s version of Sprite/7Up. While you can find Coke in Korea, I never came across Sprite/7Up at all. Perhaps Chilsung Cider is just too big of a juggernaut in Korea to try and compete with them. I actually think Chilsung Cider tastes better than Sprite/7Up. It has a more smooth flavour to it and feels like it goes down easier than Sprite which feels very carbonated. I had my iPod with me which has an FM tuner so we tuned into some of the local stations before settling on a 창 (traditional Korean folk) music station.
After a while, we decided to make our way southwest along the Hangang River towards Banpo Bridge. The waterfront was paved with paths lined with high reeds on both sides but unfortunately the walk between Jamwon and Banpo offers no shelter from the sun. As much as I hate wearing hats, I kind of wish I had brought one. With the scorching sun high up above, had I had one of my aunt’s ahjumma style hat/visor, I think I actually would have worn it as there weren’t too many people around along the paths at this time of day. Lucky for me, I had a pamphlet from one of the palaces I visited earlier in the trip in my backpack so I made a makeshift visor out of it. Though the sun was hot, I love this type of fall weather where you have a bright sun combined with cool air. It’s the perfect balance and reminded me of the many days I spent in Tokyo with such weather.
Along the way, we stopped at a playground for kids that had sheltered benches which was a nice relief from the sun. I think it goes without saying that almost every time I went out to a park, I had some kind of ice cream with today being no exception and the World Cone being my ice cream of choice while in Seoul.
When we reached Banpo Bridge, I have to admit, it being a Thursday afternoon, it had a different vibe compared to when I first visited which was on a late Saturday afternoon/early evening. There weren’t too many people out and about today walking around Banpo Hangang Park nor were there the same volume of cyclists passing through the area as there had been before. Absent also was the golden sky of the setting sun to the West (given that we were still several hours away from sunset) which was so beautiful to see. It made me reflect on my first visit and what made that memory stand out. It was the setting sun, the vibe and sights of people coming here to walk and talk or simply chill in front of the Hangang (usually in pairs of course), the families over at the grassy field having picnics or playing, the abundance of cyclists who were passing through or stopping here to meet or take a rest, the freestyle cyclists repeatedly practicing their tricks, the anticipation of the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain and fireworks and then finally witnessing them…
Having said that though, hanging out on this afternoon minus all of that was still very relaxing and enjoyable. We sat ourselves along the steps heading down to the edge of the waters just East of the Banpo Bridge where we fell under it’s shadow. I had mentioned before in an earlier post about the presence of brave pigeons here. On this day however, because there weren’t a lot of people around with food, they didn’t seem that aggressive. In fact, they showed quite the opposite behaviour while managing to keep their affectionate actions family friendly.
While sitting here, I think my mom was ready to pass out and take a nap right in line with the definition of a lazy afternoon.
There are two people that stood out on this day that cross my mind when I reminisce about Banpo Bridge. One was this girl who was sitting all by herself right at the edge of the water. She probably wouldn’t have caught my attention at the beginning of the trip but by this time I got so use to seeing young people always in pairs at places like this, the fact that she was by herself with no one else around made her stand out that much more so. The other person was this middle-aged lady, probably in her late 40’s, sitting off to the side and behind us looking out at the Hangang River, also by herself. At first, she seemed like a local who might have a family but she also seemed like a tourist. I don’t know why but the thought that she might be a tourist travelling by herself made me feel a little sad. There was just something about. She just had this quiet and sad kind of vibe to her like this outing was the result of the late realization of a life lived in apathy and she was now making up for lost time. Maybe it was just me projecting some subconscious self-reflection on someone who looked the part. I hoped in my head that she was simply here because her children were at some school nearby and that she was just killing time waiting to pick them up or something along those lines.
While we were chilling, the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain turned on to my delight, streaming water from the West side of the bridge (it flowed from the East side on my first visit).
Though it wasn’t as pretty as when it ran during the evening and at night with the colours of the rainbow, I was still glad my mom got to see the fountain in action. They played several Korean and Western songs over the loudspeakers while the fountain ran. We got up and headed for the West side of the bridge to get a better view of the fountain and as I passed the lady, I could see that she was holding touristy brochures and information about the Banpo Bridge. It made me think of the trip I made out here by myself almost 2 weeks ago. It also reminded me of when I was sitting on the shores of Odaiba, Tokyo, looking out at the waters and the Rainbow Bridge as night fell. I wondered if others saw me in the same way I saw her…
We stayed a little while longer and then decided to head home. As I mentioned, traffic at the start of the bridge is continuously flowing and as a result, we found it difficult to catch a cab here. Several empty cabs approached who at first seemed like they were willing to stop but then thought better of it and kept going. We had to walk south in the direction of Shinsegae and the Bus Terminal, far enough away from the bridge and where traffic was slow enough for a taxi to momentarily stop and pick up a fare. We were both tired during the cab ride home, not from physical exhaustion but because it was simply a lazy afternoon where we let everything relax.
Later that night at home on the balcony, I saw a strip of light way off in the distance resembling the Great Wall of China that piqued my curiosity.
My aunt told me it was the Fortress Wall along Mt. Inwansang that was being lit up. Seeing the wall floating in the darkness and atop the mountain like that got me into thinking that I should attempt to hike Mt. Ingwansang before I left Seoul.
We grabbed a cab and headed out but not before stopping for some lunch first. As we enjoyed eating at Lotte Department Store so much the other day, we decided to return and have the same menu items as before: the Naeng Myeon/Guksu combo and a side order of mandoo. We were just here for the purpose of having lunch so we didn’t look around or do any shopping. It was just as good as the first time and naturally our conversation turned to how much better the food was on this side of the world.
We grabbed another cab from Lotte and told the driver that we were thinking of going to the base of the Banpo Bridge on the South side. It seems like by the way traffic flows in around the Banpo Bridge, getting to the base is harder than it looks. The bridge is two-tiered with traffic moving above on one level and below on another. I remember seeing entrances to Banpo Hangang Park on the lower level and a parking lot but the taxi driver said it was difficult to get down there from the top level as we approached and traversed the bridge from the North. The traffic when you are just about to get on/off the Banpo Bridge is very fast and not a place where one could simply stop and there were street signs forbidding it. Therefore, once across the bridge, we travelled Northeast and parallel to the Hangang River to about the mid-way point between Banpo Bridge and Hannam Bridge and got off at Jamwon Riverside Park, one of the 12 Hangang Parks.
We got to the park just after 1PM and the weather was beautiful. It was one of those days where despite the sun being hot, in the shade it was nice and comfortable, especially with the breeze coming off of the Hangang River. There were several covered benches at Jamwon so we decided to get a couple of drinks at the nearby convenience store and sit in the shade, looking out at the waters for a while. I still remember getting Chilsung Cider which is like Korea’s version of Sprite/7Up. While you can find Coke in Korea, I never came across Sprite/7Up at all. Perhaps Chilsung Cider is just too big of a juggernaut in Korea to try and compete with them. I actually think Chilsung Cider tastes better than Sprite/7Up. It has a more smooth flavour to it and feels like it goes down easier than Sprite which feels very carbonated. I had my iPod with me which has an FM tuner so we tuned into some of the local stations before settling on a 창 (traditional Korean folk) music station.
After a while, we decided to make our way southwest along the Hangang River towards Banpo Bridge. The waterfront was paved with paths lined with high reeds on both sides but unfortunately the walk between Jamwon and Banpo offers no shelter from the sun. As much as I hate wearing hats, I kind of wish I had brought one. With the scorching sun high up above, had I had one of my aunt’s ahjumma style hat/visor, I think I actually would have worn it as there weren’t too many people around along the paths at this time of day. Lucky for me, I had a pamphlet from one of the palaces I visited earlier in the trip in my backpack so I made a makeshift visor out of it. Though the sun was hot, I love this type of fall weather where you have a bright sun combined with cool air. It’s the perfect balance and reminded me of the many days I spent in Tokyo with such weather.
Along the way, we stopped at a playground for kids that had sheltered benches which was a nice relief from the sun. I think it goes without saying that almost every time I went out to a park, I had some kind of ice cream with today being no exception and the World Cone being my ice cream of choice while in Seoul.
When we reached Banpo Bridge, I have to admit, it being a Thursday afternoon, it had a different vibe compared to when I first visited which was on a late Saturday afternoon/early evening. There weren’t too many people out and about today walking around Banpo Hangang Park nor were there the same volume of cyclists passing through the area as there had been before. Absent also was the golden sky of the setting sun to the West (given that we were still several hours away from sunset) which was so beautiful to see. It made me reflect on my first visit and what made that memory stand out. It was the setting sun, the vibe and sights of people coming here to walk and talk or simply chill in front of the Hangang (usually in pairs of course), the families over at the grassy field having picnics or playing, the abundance of cyclists who were passing through or stopping here to meet or take a rest, the freestyle cyclists repeatedly practicing their tricks, the anticipation of the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain and fireworks and then finally witnessing them…
Having said that though, hanging out on this afternoon minus all of that was still very relaxing and enjoyable. We sat ourselves along the steps heading down to the edge of the waters just East of the Banpo Bridge where we fell under it’s shadow. I had mentioned before in an earlier post about the presence of brave pigeons here. On this day however, because there weren’t a lot of people around with food, they didn’t seem that aggressive. In fact, they showed quite the opposite behaviour while managing to keep their affectionate actions family friendly.
While sitting here, I think my mom was ready to pass out and take a nap right in line with the definition of a lazy afternoon.
There are two people that stood out on this day that cross my mind when I reminisce about Banpo Bridge. One was this girl who was sitting all by herself right at the edge of the water. She probably wouldn’t have caught my attention at the beginning of the trip but by this time I got so use to seeing young people always in pairs at places like this, the fact that she was by herself with no one else around made her stand out that much more so. The other person was this middle-aged lady, probably in her late 40’s, sitting off to the side and behind us looking out at the Hangang River, also by herself. At first, she seemed like a local who might have a family but she also seemed like a tourist. I don’t know why but the thought that she might be a tourist travelling by herself made me feel a little sad. There was just something about. She just had this quiet and sad kind of vibe to her like this outing was the result of the late realization of a life lived in apathy and she was now making up for lost time. Maybe it was just me projecting some subconscious self-reflection on someone who looked the part. I hoped in my head that she was simply here because her children were at some school nearby and that she was just killing time waiting to pick them up or something along those lines.
While we were chilling, the Moonlight Rainbow Fountain turned on to my delight, streaming water from the West side of the bridge (it flowed from the East side on my first visit).
We stayed a little while longer and then decided to head home. As I mentioned, traffic at the start of the bridge is continuously flowing and as a result, we found it difficult to catch a cab here. Several empty cabs approached who at first seemed like they were willing to stop but then thought better of it and kept going. We had to walk south in the direction of Shinsegae and the Bus Terminal, far enough away from the bridge and where traffic was slow enough for a taxi to momentarily stop and pick up a fare. We were both tired during the cab ride home, not from physical exhaustion but because it was simply a lazy afternoon where we let everything relax.
Later that night at home on the balcony, I saw a strip of light way off in the distance resembling the Great Wall of China that piqued my curiosity.
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