The TriStar of Daegu: One of my least favourite Korean cities climbs a step up the ladder!

So it's been no secret that the South Korean city of Daegu has never really appealed to me. I've been there half a dozen times and, while nothing bad has ever happened, each time I returned I regretted the effort. The city, up until now, lacked charm and individuality. It seemed that the entire city was little more than a sprawling, lower-middle class concrete disappointment.

However, yesterday, I finally found something worth checking out in Daegu!

It was a gorgeous sunny and warm spring day (I can't help but gloat...while Europe and North America have been dealing with a "spring" that thinks it's the middle of winter, I'm cruising around in a t-shirt with the windows down in Korea).

So, a friend and I headed for Suseong Lake in the south-eastern corner of the city. This lake also has some cool light and fountain shows in the summer that I want to go back for!

First...the lake, which in itself is pretty cool. Nestled at the edge of the city, it provides you with a great view of the city's tall buildings, and yet it seems like you're at least a little bit in nature. There's a walkway that circles the lake with tons of Koreans - mostly families and couples - taking advantage of the nice weather and strolling or riding bikes around the lake.

There are tons of things to do, including a small amusement park with rides for kids and swan boat rentals for the older crowd. The lake - which has a cool little island in one corner - is inhabited by some decent-sized fish (easily 50cm in length!), geese, ducks and swans! The atmosphere is awesome...everybody seemed to be happy.

Then...as I was sauntering around the lake and enjoying my camera setup for the day - Canon 5D Mark II with the little 40mm 2.8 STM Pancake on it...seriously...it's a brutally sharp and incredibly fun combo to play with!! - I saw it. But it couldn't be. No way. I mean...what would a full-sized passenger jet airliner be doing in the middle of a park in Daegu?

Well, apparently the plane - which looks like a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, but please correct me if I'm wrong - has been converted into a cafe! Now...this combines two of my favourite things: 1: I love unique buildings...and 2: I love machines...and have a special fondness for airplanes!

The inside of the cafe - which is run by Massa Coffee - looks very cool and was surprisingly uncrowded! Looking from the entrance door toward the cockpit:

Looking the other way:

Near the back of the plane, they had constructed a mostly glass sitting area that looks over the wing and the fuselage with a great view of the lake, the city beyond it and some mountains in the distance:

Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to explore more of the city (though we did walk around randomly for another hour or two in some ho-hum, but not altogether unpleasant neighbourhoods on the way back to the bus terminal)...but I'd definitely recommend Suseong Lake and the airplane cafe to anyone visiting Daegu! I'll be back this summer when the fountain shows start up and let you guys know how that is!

That's all for now...except...I'm back with another musical suggestion. Even if you don't like dubstep (and especially if you do), check out Bassnectar's "Timestretch"...it's easily the most awesome dubstep track ever laid down, one I think I'd like even if I wasn't into the genre! 

Y'all take care now and stay tuned...I'll try to toss up another blog in a couple of days! 

T :)