The Demilitarized Zone
Trip Start
Aug 07, 2007
1
17
112
Trip End
Ongoing
Panmunjeom,
Korea Rep.
Saturday, December 8, 2007
After all of my travels I'm sure I'll have grown
For when it is done
I'll have learned to walk before run
To see all of the beauty both young and old
All that this planet has and will continue to hold
-Kevin Stemp
I have done many cool things since arriving here; from climbing mountains, visiting villages, seeing temples and Buddha statues, exploring the city of Seoul, mastering the subway, falling in love with skateboarding again, visiting Japan and all its pleasures as well as having some great party nights singing and drinking into the wee hours. Not to mention all the great people I have had the pleasure of meeting and learning from. Experiencing history while being in the places where it unfolded has never been so surreal as it was today when my fellow teacher and friend, Chrissy and I woke in the darkness and rode the subway into Seoul to embark to a place that has a terrible history. Yet since the dust has settled, now stands for peace and unification. We were off to the DMZ.
My alarms rang at 445am and a moment later I had a friendly wake up call from Chrissy, time to roll. Out of bed, quick shower, down to the third floor and we were off. It took us an hour to get to the starting point of today's adventure, the USO. It's an organization that runs social activities for the military as well as running the best DMZ tour around. We checked in with our passports and showed we had the proper attire on, clothing with no labels. Chrissy had registered us a while ago for the tour. It was 44,000.00 WON each. We were the first on the large tour bus that had a nice Korean man running commentary as we made our way North. It took about an hour to get to the border. Once we arrived at the camp we were transferred to a military bus and drove to our first stop, an auditorium where we would sit through a presentation about the conflict history of Korea. Before it started we filled out a waiver and put on an ID badge. A Korean solider then narrated a video presentation about Korea that started with its occupation by Japan, on into the liberation by the allied forces and its subsequent divide and then the ensuing Korean War. The start of the war was a powerful sweep by the North all the way to a tiny pocket of the peninsula in the South. It was then that aid arrived from the UN. The battle raged on and the North was pushed way back, that's when China got involved and there was an armistice ceasefire initiated by both sides which is where the DMZ now lies. Since its inception there have been many incidents, by the North that have stirred up tension.
Particularly haunting was the story of a brigade of US soldiers that were sent to trim a tree that was blocking the view between two UN check points. Soldiers from the North attacked the men with the axes meant for the trees, killing two. Another incident was when a Soviet on a tour of the North side of the DMZ made a break for freedom and ran across the line that divides the two countries in the Joint Security Area. His blitz across caused a fire fight that left soldiers dead on both sides. The man did escape. Since this incident the North has strict orders to shoot anyone who runs.
After the video the group, about 80 people, boarded two buses and headed to the JSA. Our guide was a witty and quite humorous US Staff Sergeant. As we drove along we had a view of the world's most dangerous golf course, as mentioned in Sports Illustrated. This one hole course is surrounded by a mine field. We saw a village in the DMZ that is about 215 people in size. Daeseong-dong village is a distinct entity in which you can only live there if you were born there or as a woman, marry into the family of a man there. We then arrived at the JSA. We were given strict orders about what not to do when touring the grounds. Things such as pointing and gesturing were a strict no no. The North just looks for things to use as propaganda, so flipping the bird to the North was off limits. I snapped a couple of pics while a soldier from the North eyed us with binoculars. We then went into the building in which all negotiations take place. There were two Republic Of Korea soldiers in there. They stood fists clenched and eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses, a ruse used to intimidate the North. We all crammed into this small room and were given it's history by our tour guide as well as a reminder about how to act in the presence of these trained killers, who were there for our protection. The room is recorded constantly and it lies directly on the border of both counties. To the North is a door that leads to The Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. There are soldiers from the North directly behind the door. The door in which we entered was back to The Republic of Korea. At one point there were flags of the countries in the UN force hanging from the wall until the American and South Korean flags were used to shine the shoes of two soldiers from the DPRK, all caught on tape. Now there is a plaque with the flags of all the countries involved. Years ago there used to be one guard in the building until as he was locking the door to the North he was grabbed and dragged into enemy territory. He fought his way back and now they have two for safe measure. These guys are solid! They stand unflinching ready for anything, literally. When a woman from our tour group got to close to the door he moved with lighting speed and almost dropped her, something that has been done in the past, to keep people safe. Doesn't matter if you are young or old these guys will attack if there is a threat. An old lady was dropped in times past for getting to close. I mustered up enough courage to stand beside the one on the North Korean side and Chrissy snapped a shot and I then quickly moved to safe ground. These guys make our Footmen's Guard in Canada look like Boy Scouts, rightfully so considering the tense situation in which they work. Not sure if the ROK soldiers could handle the fuzzy hats in 40 degrees though. Later, back on the bus our guide would joke about how the woman that almost took a hit could find the video of the incident on YouTube.
Outside there were more ROK soldiers standing facing the enemy. They stand half covered by the walls of the building and half peering across the short distance to the buildings of the North, so as to be better able to dodge bullets when they come screaming across. They all have ball bearings in their pants. The story goes as this: during the war the South Koreans put ball bearings in their pants because 100 men walking with them sounded like 1000 men. Today they are a custom for the soldiers. We took one last look and then headed to the next part of the tour, a look at the borders, the location of the axe murder, and a monument for the UN nations involved. We saw the bridge of no return. A place our guide hates to patrol because the UN has limits on the size of gun used there whereas the North has no limits. It's a narrow bridge in which at the cease fire, soldiers were given a choice to cross and never return. It makes my decision about what beer to buy seem so insignificant. The history of this place was amazing. We looked out over an area in which we were surrounded by North Korea on three sides. Particularly interesting was the flag of the South erected just south of the border. This 98.4 meter flag pole was outdone by the North with a towering 160 meter pole (the tallest in the world) with a huge flag that has to be brought down by 50 soldiers when the weather gets bad, an interesting pissing contest. We had a great view of propaganda village erected by the North which is uninhabited and use to blare propaganda telling inhabitants from the South how great it is in the North and that they should come over. The South replied with pop music. These shouting contests have ceased to occur.
Finally on a positive, the bridge has been made between the countries. There is a road and railway heading South and North. I looked though binoculars form high atop the ridge we stood on and saw it. The project was supposed to be a joint effort however when the North did not help, the South finished it off, a measure of good faith perhaps. There is also a South Korean factory just inside the North. Is this the beginning of the roots of capitalism in the North?
Our last stop of the day was one of three tunnels that were discovered by the South in the mid 1970s. We put on hardhats and descended into the earth. Down deep into the earth we walked for a good 30 minutes. There were a total of four of these tunnels discovered all presumably designed to move units underground, one big enough to move 30,000 personnel. The North has stated they are for coal mining, to which none is present and the South has evidence that they were blasted by the North. We walked to the end where there was reinforced concrete walls blocking passage. Interestingly enough the last of the four was discovered in 1990, sneaky. I had a thought of what the sister tour on the North side is like, maybe when I can understand Korean.
I finished the day with some tuna and read a good 25 pages of 1984. That book is really taking off and I couldn't't seem to put it down except when to ask my favourite tuna chef how business is.
As I glance up from my computer I can see my ticket to Taiwan which Jamie and I each got on Friday. I bought a bottle of Yellow Tail for my supervisor who got us the tickets. Gave it to her at lunch and there was comments form the other Korean ladies such as "Lets drink it now". A hint of a past wild side!
Today served to crack the sphere of routine that I have slipped into and Taiwan will shatter it completely allowing me to be free for a short while before returning refreshed and ready for a new year of adventure and my new life here in the far East. Tomorrow I'll be studying for my first Korean test on Tuesday as well as getting a jump start on report cards all the while counting down the days as my colleagues are, for the arrival of Christmas.
Thanks for reading.
