Travel Day: CDMX > Seoul

I'm taking advantage of a sabbatical benefit this year and spending a few weeks in South Korea. TBD how and when the various posts get up on the blog, but we'll start with one on the travel day, which is long. I left my apartment in la CDMX at ~4pm to catch flight one from MEX > MTY. Around 10:20pm I boarded the flight from MTY > ICN. And right on time at 11pm we pushed off for a 15 hour flight to Seoul. So that's 22 hours from getting in the Uber to getting into the immigration line.

It all starts with the obligatory departure shot from the jetway, even though that's not the plane I would be flying to Monterrey.

REMINDER: Click on pics for a higher res version of the image

Couple of pics from the in-flight display underlining just how far it it.

Multiple times I came to from a state of semi-sleep only to see there were still 9, 8, 7 hours left. We did this once before in 2017 but maybe we left at a different time of day? This one was a grind. But I got there. "Manual Inspection" sign threw me for a second.

In the end, line was not bad and the processing process was smooth and painless.

Some shots of a big, clean, organized airport in the arrivals area. While Benito Juarez did get a facelift for the World Cup this year (and, not surprisingly, suddently the price of bottled water is 3x what it was last year), we've got a long way before we're looking this sharp.

Bags in hand, first order of business was to pick up my LG sim card. I've been using Airalo for all my recent trips, but in my YouTube research I found a guy suggesting this would be a smooth option. Thought it was worth a try. You can order online in advance of your arrival. The service counters are 24/7, so my 5am arrival would not be a problem. Just need to find the service counter. If you don't see the counter but do see one of these help screens, you're in business.

(I didn't even notice until reviewing the pics later that it cleverly switches from I to AI there in the welcome graphic. Not sure any major AI was applied in my encounter. Seemed to be a straight forward enough search-and-respond type of transaction.)

Once you're in the screen you pick your language, then either search for something specific or browse by category (e.g., Telecom), find what you're looking for and get the orienation / directions graphic. Smooth.

Once you're at the service counter there is another touch screen where you take your turn. I was a bit confused upon arrival and asked someone if they were waiting. He politely gestured toward the touchscreen, which I had overlooked. Not sure exactly how long I waited, but it could not have been more than 10 - 15 minutes despite being 7 customers deep in line.

I didn't eat during my travels to Poland back in April since I was dealing with stomach issues and didn't want to provoke anything with plane food. What I learned by accident during that trip was I actually felt better not eating the plane food. So besides a few BYO cashews and a granola bar, I hadn't eaten since departing Monterrey. That was now 16 hours ago, so, hungry, I found myself drawn to Lotteria.

I'm a big fan of kiosk ordering. Got myself some kind of fried chicken sandwich and an iced Americano to start. For the record, this is 6am local. Or 3pm the day before CDMX time.

Lingering in the Lotteria for a while, wanting another coffee, I also granted myself a second chicken sandwich.

This was a good 25 minutes after the first course, so I think it can be considered appetizer and main, or main and dessert. Either way, within my first 90 minutes on the ground I got my sim card, ate two Lotteria fried chicken sandwiches, and downed two Americanos (one cold, one hot).

Fed and caffeinated and feeling semi human again, I checked the time and see it's 7am. Judy would be coming to meet me here around 11am (ish), as I didn't see the need for her to get up and make the hour plus commute to Incheon so early in the morning. So I had a few hours to kill. In past trips where I've had long layovers (thinking of a couple 4hr + stays in Madrid, for example), I would have been one of the people on these benches.

However, in my pre-trip research I learned about Spa at Home from this blog post. That sounded like interesting good deal.

First thing I noticed was it is pretty busy.

They have a few flavors of service. Shower, shower & rest, 6hrs, 12hrs (seems like a lot).

I guess if they are super busy, and you're clear on the concept, you can order up your services on the touchscreen. As a newbie, I queued up for counter service.

As I explained to Judy later, the shower was great. Like any nice lockeroom environment. Felt good to grab a hot shower after ~24 hours of travel. The nap room, though, was just okay. Felt a little bit like what I imagine a shelter environment might be. Big open room, sleeping mats on the floor, side by side (but decent width, maybe 1.5m). It was not crowded, so I had that going for me. I was, of course, in the men's area. They have 3 distinct areas for men, women, and families. Family room was pretty busy. Just a handful of us solo dudes in a room that probably had 40 + mats. I did snag one surreptitious pic while recumbent on my mat.

Anyway, I was clean, had kinda slept, and now needed to get back outside to go meet Judy. She was running a little late, so I stopped for another coffe and some water at Paul Bassett.

Sharp place, with what appeared to be a great deal for their brand Nespresso capsules (I'll look to get some on the way out; not looking to overload myself on day 1 of a 3-week jaunt).

Also had an extensive drinks selection on their touchscreen. I opted for ... an americano.

Judy was getting closer, so I made my way over toward the part of the terminal where the train comes in. Conveniently found a Starbucks and a place I think is called 'Korean Savory Bakery Salon'.

Kind of camped out and browsed there a bit. Tempted by the Starbucks merch, but I still have my two Starbucks Seoul espresso cups from the 2017 trip, so I restrained myself.

Over at KSBS, however, I did buy some of the little bread balls, both cheese and potato flavored. Both very tasty.

Held off on the bulgogi croquette and dubai syle scone, figuring it would be a little messy to deal with and that I'll have another opportunity at some point to try something similar during my stay.

Mr. Kim decided to make the ride out to meet me at the airport, too. Snagged a pic of Judy and her dad chatting while we waited for the train.

And an obligatory shot of the subway car, which is clean and features some great a/c, for a comfy journey downtown.

So, that's the path from CDMX to Seoul. Many more pics and posts on the horizon, but very TBD as to how quick the turnaround will be.

Assorted Slices from the last ~24 hours of my Poland trip (April 2026)

After my visit to the Wieliczka Salt Mine I headed up to Krakow for a final night before flying home. Judy and I spent 4 nights in Krakow in the spring of 2025 (some posts over on my Poland page, if you're interested). Really enjoyed it, even though the weather wasn't terrific. I was looking forward to seeing the city again and having a productive final day in Poland.

I came in through the south side of the city, took some vibe shots along Wielicka, the big avenue / thoroughfare that feeds into town. I was around the level of the Krakus Mound, for reference.

REMINDER: click into any of the pictures for a higher res version

Waze then sent me on a little cut through (Swietej Kingi), where I was apparently pretty close to a LEGO museum. Nice little side street.

Then I think the route took me over ti Il Obwodnica to get me up to the north side of Stare Miasto. Generic urban artery type scenery.

The apartment I rented was through Cracow Rentals Zacisze, and I saw on Google Maps that this parking lot looked like my best bet. Super rare for a parking lot to have a 4.6 star rating on 1200+ reviews, so I put my faith in the internet. When I got there it was essentially full. Think I lucked out and snagged literally the last spot.

I still had maybe 90 minutes before I could check into the apartment, so I left everything in the car and found me a Bolt scooter for a spin around the city. I aimed myself for Henryk Jordan Park. My path should have looked something like this:

I say *should have* because (a) who knows how efficiently I navigated my way over there as (b) there were marathon related roadblocks all over old town. Yes, it was marathon day in Krakow. Something I learned when I hit the roadblocks. But eventually I got over to the park. I'm learning now as I drill into the geo data for my fotos that this is the National Museum.

Good amount of funky wooden benches outside in case you need to regroup and reflect on the exhibition you just strolled through.

Did a big loop around the park, which is very nice. Reminded me of the vibes in the parks along the northside of Lake Shore drive. i.e., closer to the 5600N block where we used to live and things were a bit more chill than what you see as you get closer to the Diversey / Fullerton / Oak Street stretch where it's lively.

From the park I didn't have a great plan. Or, if I did have a plan, it got disrupted by the marathon related closures and the like. I wound up zig zagging around the Dębniki area, which is circled below.

Nice and quiet down there. People out enjoying a nice Sunday along the river. Side streets seemed chill and family friendly. Nice part of Krakow to live in, I would think. Very close to the center, but separate enough to feel a world apart. Was busy scooting for the most part, but took a few scenery pics.

Having killed enough time that I could head back to my apartment, I eventually navigated to somewhere close to Wawel Castle, dropped the scooter off, and started making my way up through the heart of old town. It was a busy Sunday, amplified by the marathon situation.

I was hungry so, yes, I dropped into another McDonald's for another McCrispy.

Satiated, I grabbed my bags out of the Renault and let myself into the apartment. I had one of their superior suites, which you can see on Booking.com. I was happy to see a tidy building and an apartment with good space. Would definitely stay there again.

Even the limited view out the back over parking lot and toward other buildings had some charm to it.

A couple of my colleagues agreed to meet up for a quick bite while I was in town. They suggested Bunkier Cafe, which was perfect. I had noticed its location during my previous trip and really liked the setting and vibe. So I ducked into the center-center by the Barbican.

And then worked my way counter clockwise around Planty Park from around 12 on the dial over toward 9. It was cool but not yet rainy, so a nice walk.

The cafe is connected to (part of?) Bunkier Gallery of Contemporary Art.

Got some sweet potato fries and a ginger lemonade, I think, and we caught up on what I had been doing and seeing the past couple of weeks zipping around their country.

It was a Sunday night and rain was coming, so we kept it brief. Plus, if I hurried, I could still squeeze in one more sight to see: The Historical Museum of the City of Krakow (aka, Muzeum Krakowa), which was just a couple blocks away. So I walked through the mist across a quieter city center.

(Marathon tear down had progressed quite a bit in just a couple hours)

Paid my 45 PLN and walked around the circuit on my own. I can see that it would probably be very interesting with a guide. For something like that, even with all the great explanatory materials provided, I need someone to tell me the story. If you are into history I would expect that you'd enjoy this. I did a fast loop and snapped some pictures.

From there I ambled a bit, checked some hotel locations, took some vibe shots, and if I remember correctly, picked up food from Zabka to eat in the apartment while I packed up.

As a postscript to my trip, I did take note of just how crowded and cramped it felt departing from the Krakow airport. The year before we departed from Gdansk. And in between Poland trips I'd been through a handful of other airports and don't remember anything quite like this. It's a small airport and not a great time hanging out.

Then during my connection through Munich I experienced first hand the rough rollout of the EES program. What a shitshow that was. This is one of the check points where we were all bottle necked. A line to get into a line. German airport military people and the dude in the sport coat did not care about anyone's flight connections.

Once we got past the lower bottleneck, we got into the upper bottle neck, where our biodata was to be taken.

And then finally you could get into the actual immigration line to have your exit from the EU processed.

I had a 2hr layover and barely made my connection. Good times.

Very unrelated tangent, but when I typed 'biodata' above it called to mind the classic viral video, Curry and Rice girl, circa 2005. Doubt this is the original upload, but glad it's still online. Was uproarious at the time. Skip to the 2:28 mark for the biodata connection. B-I-O-D-A-T-A!