Requirements: 1. A DIY mentality 2. Doing it Cheaply 3. Courage
My gear: A used bicycle for about 90 dollars American. A 20 dollar, 3 season tent which you get get away with for four seasons. A lightweight stove about 60 dollars.A 20 dollar sleeping bag. A dollar lighter. Two athletic shorts, two cotton t-shirts, water shoes, two pairs of underwear. A 50 liter sports bag. A small athletic bag. A smart phone. A flashlight. INstant noodles. 4 2-liter water bottles. Extra parts for repairs and the tools.
Duration: 2 days, 3 nights
Costs, not including the gear:
Food and drink: Less than 20 dollars, which consisted of Sausages, noodles, and a vegetable bought fresh everyday
Subway fare: Less than three dollars
Bus fare: Less than 35 dollars but I missed a bus so I spent an extra 18 dollars so it wound up to be 53 dollars.
Total Cost for the Trip: Under 75 dollars
I left the city with its entanglements and its frivolities. I love frivolities and the joy of hanging out but it seems fun at 30 is getting too pretentious. Now, I am enjoying sharing a cheap bottle of booze on a blanket in a park and hearing street musicians. But that is another story.
A bit lovesick, I went out to the coastline to get in exercise. I originally intended to cycle a long distance from the DMZ to Samcheok and camping along the way but because of the difficulty of procuring the bus tickets on short notice and really bad traffic I shortened the trip, I found a ticket to Sokcho and cycled 13km a small way to a campsite.
It was busy with tourists but eventually I got away from the maddening crowd and felt peace and harmony riding along the shoreline.
I did it cheaply and I went without the best gear and will continue to do so to make it possible to travel and have as many adventures as popular.
I slept two nights at that camp before riding back to the bus terminal. After the first night, I went diving amongst the rocky coast and I saw cool things I never saw before. In the late morning, after diving for an hour, I packed up a small kit and rode south for hours and then returned north after my worn out back tire finally punctured after months of hard riding and unable to repair it I rode it back 40km with a flat tire.
I arrived late at night.
I took a swim in the water. Showers nearby were cheap but closed so I cleaned my body with a bar of soap and rinsed in the sea.
That night I drank a bottle of soju and chatted with my friend in China with a good breeze.
I slept the night in my tent. I woke up and rode 13km to the Sokcho bus station. Such a cheap trip, done cheaply and so many good memories.
