Seoul, South Korea 2019

So, thanks to good old COVID-19, my Saturday plans went down the drain. But hey, silver lining alert – it gave me the perfect excuse to tackle some issues on my website and reminisce about my trip to Seoul last December. Picture this: me exploring the city, from the historic north to the flashy south (yes, Gangnam style), checking out temples, and diving into traditional neighborhoods.

Now, let's talk about the elephant in the Korean room – smog. I landed right smack in the middle of a smog alert. Picture handing out masks at the airport, minimal visibility, and an overall dystopian vibe. The first two days felt like I was breathing in a gray filter, but hey, things got better. I upgraded my mask game from KF80 to KF94 – not just for the cool factor, but because the government was sending out alerts that made me briefly think North Korea was launching missiles. Cue panic mode. And trust me, when you're on a bus, it's a symphony of alarms.

Public transport in Seoul? Absolutely fantastic. Cheap, efficient, and a unified payment system for buses, metro, and trains. I practically spent loose change on transport over five days. Sadly, my grand plan to visit the North Korean border got derailed last minute due to "wild boar" – or was it North Korea flexing its muscles with a missile test? Who knows. Despite the disappointment, Seoul was a blast, and I'm already plotting a longer trip to Japan, with a pit stop in Seoul if the world ever recovers from this corona chaos. And oh, you're probably wondering about my trip pics by now, I sifted through over 600 – smog be damned – to give you the cream of the crop!