incheon: where my budget cried and my curiosity thrived
okay so i just got here yesterday after a 12-hour bus ride that cost less than my phone bill, and let me tell you, this city doesn't mess around when it comes to being aggressively average. i just checked and it's currently feeling like your freezer after the power's out for three days, so maybe skip the flip-flops unless you're into that whole 'frostbite chic' look. the locals keep saying it's 'character-building' but i think they're just messing with broke students like me.
first thing i did was wander over to the free port area because someone told me that's where you can see the sea planes and pretend you're in james bond for five seconds before reality hits. pro tip: the public restrooms near the ferry terminal have heated seats - a small mercy in this arctic wasteland.
food situation is wild. i found this tiny dumpling place near the fishery market where they serve 50 dumplings for like 3 bucks. heard from this drunk guy at the next table that the owner once refused service to a celebrity because 'they looked too happy' - take that, k-pop stars. the place smells like fish and regret but my stomach's never been happier.
if you run out of free things to do (which happens by lunchtime), seoul's just a 30-minute train ride away and won't bankrupt you. though i heard that the express buses near the university are faster but smell like regret and cheap perfume.
someone told me that the rooftop bar at this one hostel near chinatown has the city skyline view, but also that it's basically a trap where you'll spend your entire weekly budget on one cocktail. meanwhile, i've been surviving on convenience store banana milk and the free samples at the supermarket near the station - which are apparently not meant to be eaten in bulk. oops.
found this tiny temple hidden between apartment blocks where the monk offered me tea and told me to 'breathe through the cheapness'. not sure what that means but the free tea was great. the taxi drivers here are either saints or demons - no in-between. one tried to charge me 20 bucks for a 5-minute ride until i showed him google maps on my dying phone.
for actual recommendations: check out this cheap eats guide before you come, and maybe avoid the tourist trap ferris wheel unless you like paying for mediocre views. also found this student forum with actual useful stuff unlike this ramble.
honestly? this place is perfect if you're broke and slightly suicidal. the humidity feels like breathing soup but the free museums make up for it. just don't trust anyone who says 'it's not that cold outside'. liars.
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