Driving in Korea

I have a theory: the way someone parks their car is partial evidence in how they drive. As you can see in the photo above, if my theory is correct, this driver should not be on the road. They are probably a terror on the road.

Eunmi warned me that Koreans are crazy drivers. After driving in Seoul, I’ve realized she is absolutely right. In fact, it’s a little scary at times when driving here. It’s hard to capture this on film, so you’ll have to just believe my theory in parking vs driving.

Driving in Korea is a pain. Difficulty in parking and crazy Korean drivers are just part of the story – the traffic is unbearable. The freeways were a parking lot at 7:30 pm on a Saturday night in Seoul. It took us over an hour to go 40 kilometers to “Global Gathering” near World Cup Stadium. It was no different than driving in Los Angeles on the 405 on a weekday afternoon. Seoul is similarly sized and populated as Los Angeles.

Unique to Korea, you have to leave your phone number on the dashboard of your car. Due to lack of real estate, parking is often difficult in Seoul, so you are inevitably going to block someone else in or out with your car. Everyone has their phone number on their dash out of necessity – some even have customized/fancy plaques with their number on it.

Phone number in the dash. Sounds old-school and ridiculous, but it’s effective.

This is the Daewoo I rented this weekend. I’m pretty proud of my parking job. Notice how people park both ways on each side of the street, instead of just in the direction of the traffic.  I remember getting a ticket in Minnesota for parking the wrong way, even on the correct side of the street.

Eunmi found a guy who owns a car rental company, who happened to live near my neighborhood. We met at a grocery store to sign the paperwork. He said, “Go to my house tomorrow… my father will have the keys for you. It’ll be parked in the garage below.” I asked, “What about the gas tank? Do I return it full?” He replied, “Just bring it back with a little left in the tank.” I guess this is how business is conducted in Korea sometimes. Small-neighborhood feel. Much of Seoul actually feels small-town. I kind of like it.

Decent parking job, but still needs work.