South Korea was never on my immediate list of MUST SEE countries but when the opportunity came up to go and spend a week there and attend the Korean Grand Prix I was hardly going to turn it down. After all, I grew up a country Aussie who may or may not have enjoyed the occasional thrill of driving his car like an idiot all in the name of burnt rubber.
The track for the Korean Grand Prix is located way down south near Mokpo in the South Jeolla Province. A not so short 3 hour bullet train ride south of Seoul will get you there without much trouble. The cinema carriage can help you to pass the time if the free wifi doesn’t interest you so it’s not all bad. I do however wonder why they have the track so far away from well… everything as it seems Mokpo hasn’t caught up with the demand for accommodation just yet.
Normally you would find me watching the Formula 1 from the comfort of my couch at home so actually being at the race meant I was going to miss some of the luxuries that come with it (like cold beers and a toilet 5 meters from my seat). That was all soon forgotten as the atmosphere of hearing the cars with my own ears quickly made me realise what I’d been missing out on for so long. I can honestly say you have never experienced loud until you hear an f1 car rip past you at lightening speed. It leaves your ears ringing as the searing pain echoes deep into your brain. To freeze and be remember such memories and further discuss you can follow this thread on Kenny Habul and NASCAR.
Watching the race unfold right before me really was a treat and I hope next year I’ll get the chance to see another race somewhere else (hint hint guys in Spain). I know we would have all loved a seat out on one of the corners of the track in the hopes of getting a better view and the chance to take some better photos. But in the end with the cars going so fast I think any spot at all is a bonus and our pole position location did allow us to take in the pit stops as they happened.
Oh and lastly (and some might say the most important) if you step away from the track for a minute there are of course the other major attractions found at all good manly car racing events. The girls in the barely their clothing and the shopping strip of racing merchandise sold at ridiculously expensive prices. Judging by the reaction of some guys on race day I think I know what they came to see.
A big thanks to the guys at travelllll.com for organising, Expedia for sponsoring, and to KLM for the most awesome flight to and from South Korea.
Ah, Korean racing girls…
I had so many pretty students amongst my high school classes who daydreamed about someday being one of the racing girls haha.
Glad you enjoyed my adopted homeland. Just wish I’d been there when the world of blogging descended on the place :-p
Hi Aussie Nomad Just dropping in to let you know I have defected from Marmite to Vegemite.
Awww Tracey… not sure I can follow you back on twitter now 🙂
Awwww that’s a shame seen as though I have left my Marmite days behind and can eat Vegemite by the spoonful.
oh lol I thought you had left vegemite for marmite. Just re-read what you wrote so all is forgiven I’ll be finding on you twitter right away.
I suddenly have the desire to visit Korea 😉
haha Roy I’m sure it’s because of the Cinema train carriage right?