May 6

Seoul

Time to meet the group.........  Meeting at 9.  Everyone is present and accounted for.  Most of these riders are soooo much more experienced than I.  One example - one of the women has just (2 weeks ago) finished the full Tour d'Afrique.  She's on this trip until June 21st and then on July 4th starts The Divide (mountain bike route from the Canadian border to the Mexican border).  That might be a bit on the extreme side of things, but other resumes are pretty darned impressive.  Looks like a good group, though, and a strong support team.  We spent a few hours going over lots of info.  I'm official now..........

 

Not sure why it's sideways; may try to fix that later. 

Out for lunch with a couple from Wales.  They found a great spot in a food court in an office tower not too far from the hotel.  I think our hotel is in the "financial district".  So many office workers out and about during mid-day.  

Back to the hotel in the afternoon.  Ezhil helped unbox my bike and put it back together.  Or rather - he did it and I watched.  Additional help from Harry and Baba, and I think I'm set to roll.  

There's a lovely park not too far from our hotel.  Yeouido Park.  I went there for a stroll before dinner.  Judging from what I've seen in my three days here, I can certainly see why the city scores well on "liveability".  Just a few observations..... sooo many coffee shops.  And they all appear to be doing well.  Just about all the pedestrians have either a coffee/drink container or cellphone in hand.  Or both.  

Just a few picks from the park.

Yes, they have a designated barefoot walking path


King Sejong the Great (again)


A tethered hot-air balloon.


Cultural event plaza. It would hold a lot of people


Yes, those are bicycle wheels at the top of the lamppost.

A bunch of us went out for dinner.  One of the British guys has a daughter who is good friends with a local young lady (they went to university together).  She very kindly came to the hotel bearing a selection of Korean desserts for us to sample; so tasty!  And so very thoughtful of her!

We have an early start tomorrow, so it won't be a late night.  And I still need to catch up on sleep and adjust to the time zone.  Our weather has been glorious, but showers in the forecast tomorrow.

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