Night Running in Seoul

I have this habit of intentionally getting lost while running. I've done this in every city I've lived in, from the cherry orchards of Traverse City, Michigan to the hazardous industrial complexes of Qingdao, China. I don't know what it is, I just feel that running shouldn't be done just for its own sake.

I was just twenty minutes into my run, at around 10:30pm last night when I realized I didn't know which direction my apartment was. I had followed a river several miles before veering off down random, empty alleys.   Forty minutes of aimless sprinting and gesticulating to Journey left me in a district I hadn't seen before, and my bum leg began to call.

Now, anyone who's been to Seoul can tell you that it's easy to get lost.  Seoul, like its people, is  homogeneous; nearly every square block looks like the next.  Each block invariably contains at least one or more convenient store, PC cafe, karaoke room, franchise bar, and generic Korean restaurant.  There are few landmarks and even less street signs.

So, seeing my mistake, I asked a middle-aged Korean man in Korean where is Daecheong station, which is just below my apartment.  He shouted some Korean and pointed in several directions.  I began running in the first direction the man pointed to.  I crossed several rivers before asking for directions again.  This time the man said "Let's go together" in Korean and led me a few blocks before incomprehensibly explaining the rest of the way.  Somehow I found familiar territory, and after two hours of running, I was at home.

Here's to many safe returns, I guess.