A perfect day for a walk

The weather channel predicted that today would be cold, cloudy and rainy all day, so imagine my surprise when I rolled out of bed to discover that my corner of Daegu was warm and sunny, without a cloud in the sky. Today was the kind of day that makes a person glad to be alive. I decided to go in quest of some new winter sweaters (most of my sweaters having been worn to death last winter and all). I started by exploring the Banyawol Street Market (which appears to various extents during the week, but which appears in full force on Saturdays) - I really, really wish I had the courage to take pictures inside the markets, but I always feel that by doing so I would end up embarassing both myself and the people who work there. Although you might be quite pleased that you don't have to suffer through photos of fresh fish, squid and octopus...

As I wound through the streets and alleyways of the Banyawol district, I discovered that I didn't need to drive halfway up Mount Palgong to find stunning autumn foliage, and I *did* take photos of plenty of leaves.

I could see the mountains in the distance, already brownish red from the changing of the leaves, and I wanted to get close enough to take some decent pics, although I didn't find any roads into the hills this time; instead I hit a lot of dead-ends. But along the way I *did* discover the old Banyawol Train Station. (It doesn't seem to be operational anymore, although it was obviously once a passenger station. The railroad line through this area still supports the numerous factories located along the rails in Banywol, although it's no longer an area for passenger trains. Supposedly a new passenger station will be opening somewhere around here in the near future.)

Old Banyawol Train Station


A close-up of the old train-station sign.
It's interesting that they've transliterated it as Panyawol, not Banyawol.
It's that same transliteration problem that yields
both Busan and Pusan for the same city.

I had to stick my arm through a locked gate to get this shot.
It's very well maintained.

Boarded-up train station bathrooms

Railraoad crossing!

I figured that since the weather was so perfect, I would simply walk down to E-Mart (about 45 minutes), where I figured sweaters would be easy to find (sadly I hadn't found any worth buying in the Banyawol Market). Along the way I met the saddest junk-yard dog. I totally would have kidnapped it, if it hadn't been too afraid of me to do more than sniff my hand before scurrying away. I rummaged through my purse and found some peanut butter crackers, which I fed to the dog. It was too timid to take them from my hand, although it did eat them when I placed them on the ground.

Poor sad little doggie.

Finally I arrived at E-Mart, where I found that they were selling a good number of cheap and warm sweaters, so at least that mission was accomplished. On one hand I feel that on gorgeous days like today I should try to get out of Daegu, or at least leave my neighborhood, for the purpose of exploring new places... but I'm glad I spent the day in my neck of the woods. There's beauty everywhere, even in Banyawol, you just have to look for it.

I really liked the way these two doors looked.