Subway Tourism: Cheap and Convenient

By Pri hantoro

I am a newcomer to Seoul. Let's say, less than a month. I didn't know a lot about the subway until my friend asked me to go on a trip on the weekend. Unfortunately it was at the end of the month. Plus, there was not much money left after I bought a new laptop.

``Well, I am not sure, but let me give you a call later,'' I said, in response.

There was no reaction. It took time for him to process my answer, not because he did not understand, but he was trying to analyze the situation.

``Are you worrying about money?'' he asked.

``Not really,'' I answered not too honestly. He knew I had spent a lot of money on the computer we were both looking at.

``You don't have to worry about money so much. If that's what you are concerned about,'' he said.

Jokingly, I replied, ``Are you paying for my lunch?''

He smiled and told me, ``No. But we can do subway tourism. It is cheap and convenient.''

After 30 minutes of questions and explanations, my friend finally managed to assure me that subway tourism would not cost me a lot. ``If you spend more than 15,000 won, I will pay for your expenses,'' he said. Well, that was quite convincing. And that day, his words were proven to be true.

The subway is one of the main public transportation facilities in Seoul. It is clean, reliable, traffic-free and cheap. But actually, it is also useful to guide you to tourist attractions. I just noticed that besides stations, maps above the subway doors showed us some places to visit in Seoul. Some of them are free of charge as well.

A decision was made. Rather than the apartment-campus course, that day we took another course. As he suggested, we took Line 7, which is located near my apartment. After a light breakfast, a piece of bread and a small cup of tea, we got on at Taeneung Subway Station around 9:30 a.m.

Our first stop was Yongmasan Waterfall. It is quite unique, because the artificial waterfall is located just before an apartment complex. This facility is also equipped with a football pitch, open ground and a jogging track. If only the hiking track were open, I was sure that we could go for a walk.

We continued to Children's Grand Park, where families and friends usually spend their weekend together. It was really huge. The main attraction of this place is its zoo and amusement park, but I really liked the botanical garden. Although it is small, the design is so elegant. Parents usually bring their children here to teach them about tropical plants. Just like them, my friend taught me some Korean words about trees. Feeling tired and hungry after a long walk, we had lunch in one of the small restaurants in the complex, and then continued to our next destination.

Only five minutes later, and we arrived at Ttukseom Resort. There we enjoyed our coffee accompanied by the beauty of the Han River. We decided to take the ferry next time, but for the time being, ferry pictures would be enough.

The final destination was Boramae Park. I thought it would be the same as the park near my apartment which has a small basketball court, and simple fitness facilities, but I was wrong.

If you start from the west gate of Boramae Park, there is an open airplane museum, displaying various planes: ranging from World War II planes to modern jet fighters. In Boramae Park you can also find badminton courts, football fields and a barefoot plaza. If you feel sporty, or if you are looking for a place where you can spend time with your family and friends, or maybe you just feel like having some fresh air, I think you should consider going there.

Well, that was the end of our trip. We took Line 7 back to Taeneung. What a great trip it was! And, it was not expensive at all! I even had some money left in my pocket. If you know how to arrange your trip, it can be cheap and convenient.

Next week, we are thinking of taking another course. Are you joining us?

The writer is a Korean Government Scholarship Student from Indonesia, studying at the Graduate School of Linguistics, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. He can be reached at prihantoro2001@yahoo.com.