And the adventures begin…

October 16th, 2001 at 12:00am

It’s 7pm in Seoul, Korea and I’m here in the airport waiting to depart on my next flight to Bangkok, Thailand. I left New York yesterday out of JFK airport. Driving over the bridge on the way to the airport, my mom, dad and I had our first view of Manhattan after September 11, 2001. We’ve all seen the pictures on tv of course but it becomes so real when you see the skyline and there are no trade towers to define your perspective of Manhattan. It was a somber sight to see.

Mom and Dad helped me check in my bike and then said goodbye since they are no longer permitted to enter the terminal there was no point in them hanging around. The terminal was empty. Many of the stores weren’t even open. There were national guard at the security check point and also in the walkway to the actual plane. I unknowingly conducted my own test of airport security when I entered the terminal with 2 wrenches in my carry-on – one small spanner wrench and one 15mm cone wrench which I have to re-attach the pedals to my bike. I had totally forgotten they were in there and passed through security with NO PROBLEM! Then later I left the terminal to get some food and upon re-entry through security I was stopped at the x-ray and was questioned about the wrenches. I explained that they were for my bicycle and they said ok and let me through, but warned not to take them out of my bag. What kind of security is THAT?? I mean, on the news they make it seem like you can’t even get through with a nail clipper! Although I was clearly not impressed by the so-called “heightened” security, I was certainly relieved that they did not confiscate my wrenches.

The flight was less than 1/3 full and I managed to move to a middle row and had 4 seats to myself to stretch out, lie down, and SLEEP! Man it felt so good to catch up on some rest after all the days past of craziness getting ready for the trip. I slept for 8 hours in one stretch without moving! It was awesome.

So the first leg was a non-stop flight from New York to Seoul, Korea. The airport here in Seoul is probably the nicest, newest, and cleanest airport I have ever been in in my entire life. Certainly not a bad place to spend a 3 1/2 hour layover. They have digital tv’s everywhere, free internet/computer terminals, and the most hilarious “courtesy buttons” in the bathroom stalls. I guess if you’re about to let one rip you can push the button and it plays a recording of a toilet flushing!! Hahahaha! I thought it was the funniest thing – of course I had to press the button to see what would happen.

Well, I’m feeling a little more human after having had some rest. I had been so exhausted in the last 2 weeks trying to finish the website that I hadn’t even thought about the trip itself. Now it’s actually starting to sink in – oh my God – when I land in Bangkok I will actually be picking up my bike off the baggage claim, taking it out of the box, putting it back together, and then riding it out of the airport!! I am so glad that I will be meeting Kathy to start because the thought of cycling alone in Thailand is a little intimidating. Kathy is a girl from Canada that I met online and we decided to join up for 3 weeks of cycling in Thailand. She only has 4 weeks holiday so she will be heading home after that time and I will continue on my own. She actually cycled across Canada before so she’s got a ton of touring experience and hopefully she can teach me a few things because I’m pretty clueless! I hope it will be a fun time. Definitely looking forward to Southern Thailand and the beaches, warmth, and relaxation…

Entry Filed under: Korea