Pics from Yeouido

I remember an commercial for B.C. Tel (British Columbia Telephone, now Telus as of the merger) where a gal was jogging with a futuristic helmet on. She was talking with her friend about what to buy her mom for her birthday, then spotted the perfect gift. She took a picture with the helmet and sent it to her friend. The year was 1994 and all of this seemed curiously possible. The marketing gurus based in on the notion of 'intenders': that there are consumers out there who are so ahead of the curve that they are looking for things that don't even exist yet, and they fully intend to buy them as soon as they come out. Of course, in Korea the cycle from intender to buyer should be as short as possible (measured in nanoseconds).

Anyways, this is what I thought of when I snapped this pic and emailed it to a friend's cell phone...the immediate response: "Wow, let's go there tonight!" (Usually it's priced at 6,500 - 8,000 won a head, so 4,900 saves the price of a bottle of soju!) Nothing like instant message and gratification. Makes you wonder where things are headed.


Get yer discount pork right here!

Also saw, later, after it got dark, a pretty wild looking car. It's a Smart Fortwo Coupe Brabus.The car company is Smart (think it's part of Daimler-Chrysler); the model is Fortwo (get it? for-two!); it's a coupe; and Brabus is an after-market customizer of luxury cars (looks like they do a lot of Mercedes). Looks like they'll be sold in Canada too, but the prices are a little steep: the Japanese models start at over 2,000,000 yen (about 19,000USD)--especially for a 2-seater. But you really can't beat the street cred.


The Brabus Smart Fortwo Car!


But for about 8,000USD you could have this Matiz...and fit an extra 2-3 people in it.

Speaking of bragging rights, which would you like to be seen on:


Your run-of-the-mill red bike.


Wow, a rare specimen...a red trike!


Fancy pizza delivery bike (note the rollbar in case of severe accident).


The old-reliable, complete with a snappy blue cargo rack.


Or this crotch-rocket/rice-burner?


Finally, the piece-de-la-resistance...the red Honda Aspencade.

The guy with the Aspencade also has a Harley, I think, cuz I also see one parked in the same space some days. (One has to wonder if red is the preferred color for things with 2 wheels here.)

Crap, time to get at it here. Til tomorrow...