During the holidays, my family and I went to Korea for the first time in our lives.

The women's goals were "food" and "beauty." The men had no particular goal in mind... If I had to say, it would be to "go to a running shop" in Seoul when the timing was right.

The night before I left, I sent a direct message to GOOD RUNNER, a running shop in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to confirm their opening hours from July 13th to July 15th, and received a reply "immediately" from the representative.

After checking the ladies' schedules, the first day seemed like a good time to go, so I took my son to " GOOD RUNNER ."

When I arrived at opening time, the store was bustling with customers. I wondered if it was the representative, so I checked with someone who "looked like it," but it turned out to be not a "representative" but rather the "store manager," @Keys_kiss . When I checked the whereabouts of Mangki, one of the representatives I had been in contact with, I found out that he was not at the store.

The store manager said that the representative was busy. I felt bad for not making a clear appointment about what time I would be there, so I left the store and sent another DM saying that I had come to the store and included a photo I had taken with the store manager.

A few hours later, I received a direct message from the “ manager” Mangi apologizing. Apparently he was off that day, but would be able to return to the store between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM.

Then I received a DM from the "manager's" personal account, inviting me to go for coffee. It turned out that I had finally managed to get in touch with the manager, Mangi, and that he would be able to return to the shop around 3pm, so I thought it would be nice to meet up with him and accepted the manager's invitation.

When I arrived, the "manager" showed me around the delicious coffee shop next door, MESH LOVE, and treated me to some recommended coffee. However, when I contacted the manager, Mangi, there was no response at all. My second attempt was a failure.

Then, I returned to my family, who were sightseeing in the Myeongdong area. It took 30 minutes by subway.

Then I received a DM from the "CEO" Mangi apologizing, "SORRY, SORRY." Apparently, he was off that day and had been busy with his small children.

That can't be helped. Being busy is a good thing. I sent a polite reply. Then I received a short DM saying that they would definitely be at the store at 5:00 PM.

I contacted the store to ask if they were really there, but got no reply. I also tried using Instagram's calling feature, but got no response, and I was really debating whether I should go or not. That's when I thought, I sent a DM to the personal account of the "store manager," who is relatively responsive on social media, to check if the representative was at the store, and received a reply saying, "He's definitely here." I told myself, "Okay! I have to go!", explained the situation to my family, and completed my third mission. Even while riding the subway, I was thinking, "Why hasn't the representative replied?" until I arrived at the store.

Then I saw a surprising sight: a long line in front of the store.

Inside the store, a "person who looked like him" was busy helping customers with shoe fittings. He noticed me and came out of the store. "Nice to meet you," we shook hands, and when I asked him, "What an amazing person," and "Is there some kind of event going on today?" he replied, "It's a normal day." There was an exhibition space for Nomal in the store, so I thought it might be the launch day of the new shoes, but it turns out he didn't mean normal, but "as usual." Sweat

When I told them that the running scene in Korea is booming, they said that they are also benefiting from the fact that influencers and celebrities are running as a health-conscious activity.

A commemorative photo with the two representatives of good runner.

After things had calmed down a bit, he invited me to go for coffee. We went to "milestone coffee." I thought it was a nice gesture, but I think it was just a coincidence lol.

Since it was our first meeting, we were able to spend a very valuable and meaningful time talking about each other. This is what they mean when they say third time's the charm. I'm really glad I went.

That night, Mangi, the representative, contacted me and asked, "Where are you staying?" and "Would you like to go for an early morning run?" When I told him where I was staying, he replied, "That's far away," but I thought I should go since he had invited me, and since it was early in the morning my family would be tired and asleep, so I "instantly" replied that I would be more than welcome.

The next morning, I took the subway to the meeting point, where my running buddy @incdong was waiting for me. The two of them decided to show me around the local trails.

The area around Seoul Tower is quite steep, and there were many runners and cyclists there, working up a good sweat from the morning.

The trails around here are made of rope and are extremely soft and comfortable. It was very easy to run on.

I ran 10km in the morning and it was a very productive session.

I'm grateful to my family for going out of their way to help me even though we were on a family trip. I'm also extremely grateful to Mangi and the others for accompanying me despite their busy schedules.

As we were leaving, I said I was going to run the Shinetsu Gogaku 100km ! So we'll see each other in two months! We promised to meet again and parted ways at 9am. Even after crossing the border, it seems like all the runners leave early in the morning so as not to cause trouble for their families. #LOW_IMPACT_BOYS