What is that damn noise?

If you were to see or imagine a busy city street in Asia, what do you think you would notice the most? Would it be the narrow roads? How about the vertical signs that line the busy sidewalks? Could it be the laundry drying in the hot sun? Maybe it would even be the fashion or the old men drinking all day and night. Sure, all those things are prevelant, but there is one thing that I know you all have thought of and a sight I will never forget: the millions of motorcyles.

When I say motorcycle I mean all motorbikes. There are mopeds, scooters, racing motorcycles, touring motorcycles, and of course, the Harley (I've only seen two Harleys and both were carrying foreigners). They are everywhere. There are three parked outside of my apartment building which houses only seven people. Rhett owns one and we road it yesterday on the way to the Han. I was on the back and I'm not sure how hundreds of people escape from wrecks everyday. They show no regard for their own safety when driving. They weave in and out of traffic. They cut people off and run lights. They disobey every traffic law imaginable, yet no one cares. Why? Why do reasonable people put up with this? Honestly, I do not know. I bothers me that they can do what they want on the roads. Now, I will not be able to write much on this topic as it is still so foreign to me, but I will try to give you guys a clear picture of how crucial the motorcycle is to Seoul.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Seoul has the largest city population in the world. They have managed this only because Seoul is surrounded by mountains and this, I assume, made it geographically impossible to sprawl into areas that would be otherwise deemed "metropolitan". I know I have not put up a lot of city pictures, but perhaps from my Han river pictures you can tell that this city has sprawled not out, but up. They stack apartments right on top of each other and then build them as tall as possible. It doesn't make for the prettiest architecture, but it sure is unique. So, with that in mind, you can imagine how congested the roads are all the time. I think the only time I've seen the roads free of traffic was when I was walking home at about 5am or so after a late night with friends. Other than that, it's bumper to bumper.

The motorcycle can get around the traffic. The motorcycle can drive on the sidewalk. The motorcycle can do whatever the motorcycle wants to do. Typically, it's the motorcycle that delivers food. They are the ones who do anything and everything that needs to be done fast. It's as dangerous as it sounds, but I have not seen a wreck. The seasoned teachers at my school have not seen a wreck. They are skilled and apparently feel comfortable sneaking between a bus and car that are stopped in traffic while they casually cruise at twenty to thirty miles an hour. It's insane, but I think the city would come to a hault if they were not out there delivering for businesses, the military, the government and everything else they do. The police all drive bikes too.

Of course, when I travel to Cambodia and Vietnam for my Christmas break, I will be even more shocked. They do not favor the car, but the bike. Aaron, a fellow teacher, went down the Cambodia last year and said he actually fell off a motorcycle taxi. He was okay, but decided to walk it from there. I do not know what's safer: Walking alone at night in Cambodia or risking another fall from the bike.

I have not been covering gas prices at home, but I can guess you guys are lucky in comparison. Gas prices here are astronomical. Seoul has the seventh highest gas prices in the world. America doesn't even make that list. According to CNN Money, the average gallon of gas is 5.01 USD in Seoul. The highest is Great Britain with 7.02 USD, followed by Hong Kong, Denmark and Germany. They do not even sell gas by the gallon in Korea, they sell it by quarts. So, maybe the motorcycle isn't such a bad idea. (By the way, gas in Iraq costs .05 USD and Caracas is .12 USD. Chavez look out, the next American dictator might be back for you.)

When I walk here I often listen to music. I might be on the sidewalk, a small alley, a parking lot, at a crosswalk or a main road, but I walk everywhwere. Often times I think my headphone are acting up, so I'll say

"What is that damn noise?"

I'll pull out my Ipod and adjust the sound levels. No change. I stop to get a better look and BAM! The motorcycle that had been honking at me for some time finally makes his way by and starts his weaving. Maybe I slowed down progress a little? Who knows? I'm just glad I could help.