How to catch a bus in Seoul

First, you go to this great bus website run by the Seoul government to find out which bus you want to take. Then, you go to the bus stop. What is not clear on the website is that while there is a bus stop located along that block, only some of the buses stop at that particularly place on the block. So you have to check the sign at that stop to see if the bus you want stops there. If not, walk further up the block to check the next one. According to the website, there might be 20 or more buses stopping at that stop. But they actually stagger them, so maybe 10 stop at one, then the other 10 stop further up the street. But it's all one stop.

Once you've determined that you are at the correct stop, the next step is to position yourself. Since more than one bus can stop at a time at a single bus stop, you have to be prepared to dash up or down the street the length of a bus to catch your bus, because if one stopped before yours, yours will stop behind it. Or, if there isn't another bus already stopped, you still have to be prepared to either walk along or back towards your bus depending upon where the bus driver feels like stopping.

Once you've caught your bus and you're onboard, you need to swipe your T-Money card and grab hold of something. There are bus lanes, usually on the right side of the street. But taxis and motorcycles just stop randomly along there, so the bus has to avoid them. They don't usually slow down during the evasive maneuver, so if you aren't sitting, you need to have a firm hold on one of the hand holds.

As your bus nears your stop, you need to maneuver your way to the back door to exit. Before exiting, you have to swipe your T-Money card. Just like when you catch the bus, when exiting the bus, the bus driver may or may not stop in a place where it's convenient for you to get off. Occasionally, I have to dash down the street along the bus I just exited to get to the place where I can get on the sidewalk because they've put metal bars along the sidewalk to prevent people from ending up in the street.

I take the bus to and from work. In either direction, it's an exhilarating ride, think Mr. Toad's Wild Ride sans safety gear, that is guaranteed to get the heart pumping and the brain awake.