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Home » South Korea » My Crazy Harabeoji Taxi Driver In Seoul…
South Korea

My Crazy Harabeoji Taxi Driver In Seoul…

Matthew Klint Posted onAugust 16, 2024August 16, 2024 32 Comments

a man in a hat and headphones driving a car

Harabeoji (할아버지) means grandpa in Korean. The “grandpa” who drove me across town in Seoul was kind, friendly, but an absolutely horrible taxi driver. Is that the norm for taxi drivers in Seoul?!

My Friendly But Absolutely Horrible “Harabeoji” Taxi Driver In Seoul

I checked out of the Grand Hyatt Seoul and summoned a cab to take me across town to the Park Hyatt Seoul.

As an aside, there is not a foreign-friendly Uber-style ridesharing in Seoul–at least to my knowledge–the Kakao T app did work for me and TABA did not either. So, for example, when I stepped out at Seoul Station after we took a train from Gimpo Airport, I ended up waiting in a taxi stand for 25 minutes before a cab that was available pulled up. Certainly, there is an app because most locals were using one as they stepped into the cab…

Anyway, I stepped into a cab and a kind-looking older man nodded to me. The valet at the Grand Haytt explained where I was going, to which he repeatedly nodded.

We got underway and it was clear he didn’t speak any English (and I don’t speak Korean), but he did not know one word: Trump.

“Trump!”

“Trump!”

Trump!”

He kept saying “Trump” and looking back at me, sometimes putting his thumb up.

I said, “Biden?” (this was before he bowed out) to which he responded by shaking his head!

That was cute enough, but there was nothing cute about his driving. Traffic is horrible in Seoul (I probably should have taken public transport) and this guy did a last-minute lane change across FOUR LANES on this bridge (locals will probably know which one) and did not even LOOK in his rearview mirror. He just went for it. My goodness, you should have seen the horns.

And sorry, I could not help but think of this:

(And yes, I totally acknowledge the double standard in culture/media today, though Family Guy is a pretty good equal-opportunity offender…)

He did it again.

We were driving through the city toward Gangham and he made this sudden lane change which directly cut off the guy in the next lane. It was so blatant and so dangerous.

And of course, this wasn’t some quirky rideshare service…this was a registered taxi.

Obviously, I survived and I loved the kind Harabeoji who drove the car…but he probably should retire at this point unless that’s just what cab drives do in Seoul.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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32 Comments

  1. Willem Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 12:55 pm

    yea… driving is an experience. Stick to the buses & trains

  2. Moose Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 1:16 pm

    Seoul has an excellent public transport system…clean, easy to navigate, and usually faster than driving. Signs and announcements are in both Korean and English.

    That said, Uber works just fine in Seoul, and most everywhere else I’ve been in South Korea. It will call a licensed taxi rather than a rideshare as we know it in the US, but there’s no worry about language barriers or directions or payment. Cubbies worldwide are known for aggressive driving, but the ones I’ve had in Korea were no more so than anywhere else in the world…you just hit the rabbit “jackpot” from the sound of things.

    • Moose Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 1:17 pm

      Cabbie jackpot, not rabbit jackpot. Gotta love autocorrect!

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 3:07 pm

      Uber does not work at all.

      • rdover1 Reply
        August 16, 2024 at 5:11 pm

        Hi Matthew,
        Uber might not have worked for you, but it absolutely does work in Korea, I use it frequency, and always over a cab as at least you get to set your destination, and the price is transparent even with the language barrier.

        There are however issues with foreign phones accessing GPS type data in South Korea. so you may find that if you try to use google maps and try to get driving directions you will see nothing, ditto with Waze.

        Reinstalling Uber can help, not sure why.

      • JAMES Reply
        August 16, 2024 at 7:57 pm

        Uber is absolutely working well in Korea! You may not download app in Korea. Uber is most fast catching a cab in Korea than any other local cab app such as Kakao Taxi.

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          August 16, 2024 at 11:00 pm

          I’m so upset I missed that. I tried it once and it did not work at all for me.

  3. JRG Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 1:28 pm

    I first went to Korea in 1981, so I am very familiar with transportation there. Personal vehicles were hard to find then; taxis were the norm; without so many cars on the road, everyone went as fast as possible from A to B. In a way, it appeared that “new” drivers learned from the old drivers, which meant everyone learned how to drive poorly since it’s the way it was/is. And so it goes. Now, with all the traffic (and it’s been heavy traffic for years), a typical driver (not just a cab) will do what they can to get where they need to go, often safety notwithstanding. As nature abhors a vacuum, so does the Korean driver – if I can get ahead of you I will, even if it breaks a law or two. I believe they have the “front bumper rule” in play, too – if I cut you off and you hit me, you’ll say I cut you off. But I’ll be in a better position because my front bumper was ahead of yours during the accident and therefore it was on you to not hit me. That’s a thing, too.

    I suspect you also did not see too many traffic police driving around during your adventure either.

    If I have any advice, it would be to: never rent a car unless you have experience driving in the country, and use public transportation as Moose mentioned.

    Enjoy beautiful Korea. But take the bus/train/subway/plane.

  4. Naquan Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 1:44 pm

    Driving in Seoul is worse than LA and New York combined on top of ending up later than taking public transport

  5. Joseph Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 1:54 pm

    The main taxi union that represents drivers of main companies is still technically striking so you can’t see a lot of taxis. As Moose mentions, Uber works really well as they employ individual taxi drivers, often elderly folks who are retired but have to keep working due to receiving poor retirement plans from their former jobs.

    It’s usually recommended to learn a couple Korean phrases as older Koreans did not learn much English in schools compared to younger folks. I learned Korean from a close friend and when I was in Korea for work, people in general were surprised and were even friendlier.

  6. Twinkle Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 2:17 pm

    I had a cab driver in LA just like this. Difference was he had minimal English but he ignored our pleas to slow down and drive more carefully.

    Give me a London cab driver! Love them!

  7. derek Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 2:17 pm

    Trump and Biden have different levels of support, depending on the country. Russia and North Korea want Trump. Iran and China want Biden.

    • derek Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 2:19 pm

      Israel (or at least Netanyahu) wants Trump. Canada wants Biden.

    • David Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 4:08 pm

      Most everyone I deal with in Africa, who brings up US politics, loves Trump.

  8. Jan Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 3:04 pm

    Hah! Even ajeossi’s (probably the more proper term) believe Biden is a piece of shit! Good stuff

    • Jesse Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 10:59 pm

      Ajeossi means “uncle” and would be used for a middle-aged man.

      • Jan Reply
        August 17, 2024 at 1:54 am

        This guy’s back doesn’t look like a grandpa to me.

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          August 17, 2024 at 2:33 am

          Sorry I don’t have a picture of his face, but he looked like he was pushing 80.

  9. JoeMart Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 3:30 pm

    Of course the taxi driver cheers for Trump. He’s the only president to meet Kim Jung Un.

    • JRG Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 8:31 pm

      Trump meeting Kim did nothing to help the Korean situation between the North and South (nor has any other engagement over 50+ years). So, I don’t think most South Koreans see Trump as the way ahead. Older Koreans are generally more conservative, and more leery of engaging the communist North.

      Of course, this whole conversation is based on one Korean driver, speaking no English, who appeared to like Trump….so not really worth trying to dissect it.

      Have a good day.

  10. dee Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 4:01 pm

    Yeah the guy gets it.. GO TRUMP for less taxes,less goverment,less illegals less WOKE nonsense…….We were in France when President George W. Bush won..They were very unhappy!!We went back when Obama wn they were thrilled go figure the Socialist system.

  11. Steve Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 5:26 pm

    Create kakaotalk account. Download Kakao T. Plug in destination. Choose general request. For payment swipe to pay driver vs adding a card (you won’t be able to). You should be able to use your credit card machine in the taxi or pay cash

  12. Rich Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 5:37 pm

    We had a huge influx of koreans to Ellicott City MD over the last 20 years due to the schools and the older generation are horrible drivers. Right turns with no warning across multiple lanes of traffic. Driving under the speed limit in the left lane of highways, etc. otherwise nice people.

  13. PM Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 5:47 pm

    Kakao T probably is the way forward, although I have had better luck with cabbies in both Seoul and Busan. I have also rented cars in Busan and the surrounding areas and driving there is much easier than in KUL, JKT, China etc.

  14. GUWonder Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 8:50 pm

    One late evening several months ago, I had a car drop me off at a highway-side food stall in a relatively poor country where I don’t speak the local language beyond a very basic Q&A at most. Due to phone problems and no internet connectivity out by that place, I couldn’t call anyone for a ride back to my hotel, and there were no free taxis along the highway. I eventually walked over to the closest gas station and hoped a taxi would pull in. A grandpa taxi driver rolled in for gas and tried to tell me he isn’t working or is just going home in a family member’s old car. I told him where I was staying and tried to hand him a generous wad of cash and he still refused. Eventually the guy took pity on my being stuck out there and offered to take me to my hotel, and so off we went together. The driver had a cell phone but not a smart phone and just my luck his phone battery died in the car mid-call to the hotel. He didn’t know where the hotel was, and so he kept driving and hailing other taxis to pull over and give him advice. We spent like 2 hours going around like that, and it was sort of scary because there was serious risk for getting nailed by fast-moving cars on the road at night and he would stop and get out of the car and walk over to whomever he could get to pull over. Eventually, I saw the hotel from a distance and pointed it out to him. But the guy couldn’t figure out which exits or roads actually led to the hotel, and so we spent another hour after seeing the hotel trying to access the hotel from the highway. I eventually tell him I know where the road exit is for us to access the hotel, and so I get him there. So great, right? Well, we get to the outside gate of the hotel driveway and are waiting for other cars to clear. So I give him a wad of cash that he refuses. When we get up to the hotel security, they stop us and check the vehicle and him for ID. I get asked by hotel security to get out of the car and walk to the hotel or wait for them to call a car to get me, and so I pay the grandpa driver. I wait there to see what is going on. The security folks tell me there is a problem with the driver and he will be arrested. I ask why and they tell me he is not licensed to be a taxi driver and even his driver license is not valid for some reason. I told them the guy refused to drive me and only agreed to take me to the hotel because he felt bad for me being stuck and that I am not leaving until they understand he should not be hassled for doing me a favor that he tried to refuse doing. They eventually let him go, and then I did the last stretch to the hotel lobby by foot.

    The grandpa driver could have gotten me killed with his stopping all over the place to try to get directions, but somehow I survived the night and I wasn’t going to ditch him when he refused to ditch me.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 17, 2024 at 2:42 am

      Love this story. Kudos to you for standing up for the driver.

      And I have to know, what country?!

  15. Sam Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 8:58 pm

    Sounds like a pretty normal Korean cab ride.

    Enjoy!

  16. SLee Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 8:59 pm

    As other have commented, public transportation is usually better in Seoul..
    If you want a taxi that guarantees a better experience, take a 모범택시(Mobum Taxi which is often translated as “Deluxe Taxi”). You can tell them by the color – these taxis are painted black with a gold stript.
    Mobum Taxi drivers need a different license that requires at least 10 years of accident-free driving history and they’re usually far better English speakers than normal taxi drivers.
    It’s hard to grab a Mobum Taxi in the street because they’re usually reservation only. Their customers are mostly corporates and wealthy people. It costs double, but taxis are cheap in Korea anyway, so it won’t cost more than Uber in the United States. If you stay at a hotel, you’ll be able to ask the staff to call a Mobum Taxi for you.

  17. Maryland Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 9:20 pm

    The driver did not speak English. Where and how he learned the thumbs up and his understanding of US presidential election is disturbing but not of great concern. I remember in Thailand many vendors would say Hillary! Sometimes we read too much into what is meant to be a communication outreach.

  18. Nate Dyer Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 10:45 pm

    ‘My Naked Jjimjilbang Experience in South Korea’ was a better article.

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      August 16, 2024 at 10:59 pm

      I thought so too, but I could not help but to share this story too.

  19. emercycrite Reply
    August 16, 2024 at 10:48 pm

    Love that Family Guy clip LOL.

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