Deflated and happy!

As Danny Bhoy so eloquently put it, you often don't know what's in your own back yard - unless you're Fred West. So, with that in mind, today Jo, Michelle and I ventured west on our bicycles to explore Daegu a little more.

It was a stinking hot afternoon, with temperatures around 33 degrees (that's around 91 fahrenheit for you non-metric folk). After meeting in Seongseo, we headed to Hands Coffee for some respite from the heat. Yes, that's right. Within ten minutes of setting off from home, it was already hot enough to seek out air conditioning. We were melting.

Jo had decided not to bring her bike as it looked like rain, however we managed to convince her otherwise and headed down into Seongseo subway station to hire one of the station bikes. This little system is yet another one of my favourite things about Korea - you simply turn up to the station, hand over your identification (in our case, our alien registration cards) and hey presto - you've 'hired' a bike! 

Of course it wouldn't be a true Di afternoon if I didn't create some sort of unintentional drama. So, I decided to avail myself of the free tyre pump upstairs at the station and reinflate my back tyre which was starting to look a little sad. And of course, in true Korean fashion, it was considerably more complicated than we initially thought, and all I succeeded in doing was allowing every last little bit of air to escape out of my tyre, leaving me to ride on the rims. Not quite my aim obviously, but at least I wasn't alone in my mechanical oblivion. One of the subway staff had come upstairs with us, and set about attempting to rectify the situation. He had no luck either, and after insisting he get his car and we drive it to the bike shop (a very generous offer which we declined), he summoned a colleague from the depths of the station to assist. The second guy was ex Korean army which apparently still wasn't enough to qualify him in the tyre re-inflating stakes. His determination however was admirable, as was the steady stream of sweat that quite literally poured off him.

After realising that we were fighting a losing battle against the bike pump, we abandoned my bicycle at the station and 'hired' another one with the intention of heading to the local bike shop after our ride. The subway workers were so sweet - the ex army guy disappeared and re-appeared with my rented bicycle, I didn't even need to go back down into the station for it! Free, AND hand delivered. You can't ask for more than that! 

We finally set off from Seongseo and headed west towards the river. As far as Korean city rivers go, it's quite a pretty spot. The eastern side of the river is lined with trees and cliffs, while the western side is undergoing considerable urban development. We rode along the side of the river and spent some time relaxing on the rocks, together with approximately half of Daegu's oversized ant population who seemed to take quite a liking to Jo's feet.

Returning home, we stopped to look at a very old abandoned riverside Korean house I found on my last ride out to the river. In true 'dynamic Korea' style, the beautiful old house has been demolished and in its place lies a pile of rubble. As is the way in this country, there will most likely be a brand new high-rise apartment building or store in its place within the next three days. The Korean ability to get things done never ceases to amaze me! They can quite literally raze and rebuild an entire apartment block in a matter of days - it's incredible. It definitely keeps you on your toes - it's entirely plausible that you can eat at your favourite local 불고기 restaurant, only to find on awakening that it no longer exists and the new 8-storey building which appeared in its place houses a Samsung megastore, 3 PC bangs, a luxury jimjjilbang and six hagwons. Ah, dynamic Korea!

But, I digress. Our return home was relatively uneventful save for a calorific encounter with an icecream freezer at Gangchang station - Korea's ice cream selection has never failed to disappoint, and today was no exception. Cookie dough cones with chocolate and nuts - disgustingly unhealthy but a great 'reward' for a hard afternoon's cycling in ridiculously hot and humid weather. In other words, any excuse!

We stopped by the corner store on the way home and picked up a few small bits and pieces to say thank you to the kind subway workers who tried to help us. I then wheeled my poor, flat-tyred bicycle through the streets of Seongseo and up into Keimyung where I finally reached the bike shop and had my tyre reinflated (in about ten seconds flat, might I add) and checked for leaks. I also had the brakes replaced, as the screeching from the front ones was beginning to attract neighbourhood dogs. The entire exercise cost me the princely sum of 10,000 won (around GBP5, or NZD11) including labour. Yet another reason to love Korea!

Tonight will be a very lazy night in with a DVD, as my body is suffering from sleep deprivation once again thanks to the 2010 World Cup (and soju). Tomorrow promises great things, beginning with a trip to the pool in Yongsan to awe/terrify the locals with my rather ugly and ill-fitting one-piece swimsuit. 아싸!