Because there will be many days where I will be in class for six hours and will thus have little to report, I intend to begin a mini-series of entries about essentially anything: random discoveries, information about Seoul, differences between the U.S. and Korea that I've noticed, etc. Today, before I go to class from 1-7 p.m., I want to write about driving in Seoul.
"We don't recommend getting on the road around Seoul," the Lonely Planet Seoul City Guide suggests (174). This may be the single most important recommendation in the guide. Public transportation, which includes buses, taxis, and the subway, are cheap, easy to use, and convenient, so there is really no reason to try to drive.
Plus, a novice driver trying to navigate around Seoul in a car or on a moped could easily get killed. The drivers in this city are impatient, dangerous, and out all "ballsy." One should not be surprised to find a vehicle inching toward him as he crosses at a crosswalk or a moped flying between two lanes of stopped traffic. Many of the two-lane streets are narrow and hilly, but it is not uncommon to find cars parked in the middle of the lane with flashers on, picking up a friend from a restaurant. This situation causes huge buses, vehicles, and mopeds to pass on the left, into oncoming traffic. Additionally, in these situations, the passing vehicle almost always assumes the right-of-way as it heads into oncoming traffic, often squeezing past oncoming cars with only inches to spare. I have almost had heart attacks on several occasions where the bus I am riding decides to do this. In Seoul, there is no such thing as being "too close" to the car in front of you, as you could not fit a body between two cars stopped at a light. To the outsider, driving looks like a free-for-all: cars park on the sidewalks, vehicles perform U-turns wherever they please, and buses fly down the narrowest roads at seemingly unsafe speeds. However, I have yet to see an accident!
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