In the Shadows

After missing my barefoot race due to an unfortunate mishap with my alarm clock, Matt and I decided to make a day of random adventures.

Matthew and his friend(Kevin) had recently bought some bikes and Kevin kindly lent me his bike for the day. Before Matthew became irritated and nervous with riding his scooter around Daejeon, we would go for Sunday afternoon rides by the river to see all the interesting happenings of people there. Every mile or two there is a bridge that shadows a cemented area next to the river. This area has been “claimed” by the unofficial and as they like to say it “recreational” gamblers. There are many casinos in Korea, though you will never see Koreans actually gambling. It is illegal for Koreans to gamble and they can be arrested for partaking in such activities. Under the cover of this bridge you will find mostly men, with only a few women, playing a Japanese game called, “Go-Stop” and a Chinese game called “Go.”

Japanese game called "go-stop"

Chinese game called "Go"

Immediately walking up to the games the men say, “only recreation, no money.” After a closer look we noticed won lying around and men exchanging playful yet intimidating words and stares. The men may believe that they are cleverly averting the police but it is clear to see that the bets aren't more than a few dollars and if the police wanted to seek them out for arrest it would not be difficult. The atmosphere is playful and there are no fights breaking out like you might see in a Western gambling environment. Under the first bridge that Matt and I stopped, the men did not allow pictures and thought we were possibly trying to get them in trouble. However, there was also a fenced in area next to the gamblers cemented platform that was a designated area for a dirt croquet course. There were a few Ajummas and Ajusshes (old women and men) playing each other with a serious tone of a world tournament.

 Under the second bridge that we stopped at, the men were welcoming and after a few minutes they were waving at us to take their picture and show them what they looked like.

After all the excitement that we had exploring the people in the shadows, we spent another couple of hours having a leisurely ride and ended with the perfect Sunday dinner of Western food at at at ….TGI Fridays. Sometimes a good hamburger and beer is just what we need to end our weekend in the land of kimchi.