12-Nov-2016 -- Visiting Seoul for a week (for a conference), I spent my first day trying to overcome jet lag by visiting this point - the “Visitors’ Confluence Point” for Seoul. ("Visitors’ Confluence Points” are those points - near major cities - that are easily accessible via public transit or rental car. They are often among the most visited points of all.)

From Seoul, I took metro line 1 southwards, making several stops (and one change of train), before eventually arriving at Jije station (at 37.01849°N 127.07063°E). I then began walking westward, towards the point, more than 6 km away. The countryside here reminded me a lot of the rural countryside near 36N 140E - outside Tokyo, Japan - that I had visited one year earlier. The area was filled with several small farm plots, fertilized with manure (apparent by smelling the air). There was one big difference from Japan, however. In Japan, the rural roads were immaculate, with almost no trash anywhere. In Korea, however, it was completely the opposite: I saw lots of trash strewn alongside the roads as I walked towards the point. This was a big surprise to me. I’m sure that Koreans hate being compared negatively to Japan, but this is one aspect in which they come off second best.

As I continued walking towards the point, I realized that I would need to take a major highway across a river, but there seemed to be no sidewalk (for pedestrians) on this bridge. Therefore, I changed plans and decided to continue by bus. Fortunately, South Korea is one of the most Internet-friendly nations on Earth. Even in this semi-rural setting, I was easily able to find an open WiFi access point that allowed me to find a bus route (using Google Maps) that took me closer to the Degree Confluence Point. I ended up at a bus stop at 37.01317°N 127.00065°E - 1.4 km due north of the point.

I then continued on foot southwards along a narrow paved road to reach the point, which lies in a rice field, just off the road.

I returned via bus to the town of Pyeongtaek, and then by train back to Seoul.