Ever since I knew I was coming to South Korea, and I think for most of my friends here as well, there was always this voice in the back of our minds saying “North Korea”. Currently from my apartment, I am about a 45-minute drive away from the most heavily guarded and fortified border in the world. Yesterday I went with 6 other friends of mine to the DMZ through the USO (United Service Organization). We all signed up for a tour, and luckily they had spots available for this weekend – we wanted to go before it was too cold since much of the tour takes place outside.
Quick blurb about this for those of you who don’t know (or just didn’t read my first blog entry): The DMZ stands for the Demilitarized Zone and is at roughly the 38th parallel. It is the dividing line between North and South Korea, who are technically still at war. The Korean War ended after 3 years and 1 month (1950-1953) in an armistice, which is basically just a loose cease-fire. The DMZ is 4 km wide, and spans from coast to coast of the Korean peninsula. Directly in the center of the DMZ with 2km to the north and the south, is the MDL or Military Demarcation Line. This is the official line that separates North and South Korea. The 2km on either side of it belongs to the respective countries, but the territory is considered neutral. There is not much to see as far as “lines” goes. Fences delineate the DMZ, but the MDL is really just a bunch of white posts every few meters, and are about 1 meter high. In some of the taller grass they’re difficult to see, and you can really only see them from up close.
Once we arrived at the USO office in Seoul (felt like home…American signs, newspapers, and the Yankees vs Red Socks game on ESPN) we checked in, showed our passports, paid for the tour, and boarded the bus.
The drive took about one hour, and as we headed further north, it was obvious that there was more barbed wire and more watchtowers. It felt like we were heading into no-man’s-land. Soon enough, we were at the DMZ...
Our first stop (after going through a security checkpoint on the bus) was Dora Mountain lookout point. The drive to get there was up a winding mountain, with yellow steel barriers with spikes on them standing out against the grey concrete. Trees lined the road on either side, with ropes strung along the trees nearest to the road. Hanging on the trees were signs warning “MINE”. Definitely no hiking allowed through that forest. Like I said, it’s the most heavily fortified border in the world, and landmines are plentiful.
Here we were given a quick rundown of what we were about to look at, and rules to follow. We were allowed to take pictures only from a secured area behind the yellow line. Binoculars were available if we wanted a closer look, but no pictures hanging over the edge of the lookout point. Once the group cleared, I was able to get my first real look at North Korea. I was surprised. I had expected to see something different on the other side, but it was just a city and some scattered buildings. Mainly what I was seeing was a propaganda village. Its basically just a shell of a city to give the impression of wealth and vibrant life, but it really doesn’t have anybody fooled.
That's North Korea RIGHT THERE!
North Korea also has the tallest flagpole and the biggest flag in the world. They built it to compete with South Korea’s flagpole just across the MDL. They hated that the south had a big flagpole, so they built a bigger one. Our tour guide told us that the average monthly income in North Korea is around $20. The people make about $60-80/month, but most of it is taken by the government. We talked with a South Korean soldier for a little bit. Turns out, he had lived in Iowa most of his life so he spoke perfect English, but he had chosen to serve out his military service for his country. In Korea all men serve a mandatory 2-year service to the army. Located near this lookout point is Dorasan Station, which is a brand new fully operational train station (the last stop before North Korea) that literally just sits empty. The intention is that the line will connect Seoul to North Korea's capital, Pyeongyang. It was built at a time of greater hope for unification as a symbolic gesture towards the north by South Korea. Until that day comes though the station sits there just waiting…
After lunch (bibimbap!), we went to the 3rd Infiltration Tunnel. We watched a short video on the DMZ, which to me felt more like propaganda than accurate information, but was still interesting. It briefed us on the Korean War, and then explained how the DMZ has been positive in some ways other than just to prevent another devastating war. It acts as sort of a nature preserve, being home to wildlife and plants. With tensions rising, it was clear that the video was made at a time when things were better in Korea. I thought the positive message of the video was about the furthest thing from the current reality, but I think it’s a message that many hope will return soon.
Group at the DMZ. Nothing says "peace and love" like a military helmet and a flower connected by barbed wire...right?
The plaque in front of this statue reads: "Unifying Earth: This piece of artwork expresses the people's hope to realize peace and the reunification of the Korean peninsula. The arches over the two hemispheres represent the Seoul-Sinuiju railway that will extend into Europe. The divided sphere symbolizes a lasting Cold War vestige - the divided Korean peninsula. Statues surrounding the leaning halves are elements that work together to reunite the Korean peninsula."
After that, we were led to the entrance to the 3rd Infiltration Tunnel. There are 4 known tunnels that were dug by the North Koreans after the Korean War ended, in order to launch a sneak attack on Seoul. More are suspected but have yet to be discovered. The first one was discovered in the early 1970s, and the last one was discovered as recently as 1990. The 3rd tunnel was considered one of the most dangerous because it is the closest to Seoul.
The tunnel is only about 2m high, and so we had to wear hard hats and crouch down. We walked down into the ground in a cramped dripping cave-like tunnel. It was pretty uncomfortable (although I didn’t have to crouch as much as some people) and an example of what war can make people do. Cameras weren’t allowed here, but I snuck mine in and was able to get a few grainy pictures without the flash.
"Here I gooooo"
And towards the end, I snuck in a few with the flash, just for good measure.
Sara, Rebecca, and me in the tunnel
When this tunnel was discovered in 1978, the North went to great lengths to paint the tunnel black to make it appear to be coal, in order to convince the south that the tunnels were part of a coal mining operation. This defense fails however, because the rocks underground here are almost entirely granite, and there is no coal in this region. It seems to me that the north goes to such great lengths to cover things up, wouldn’t it be easier to just play by the rules? I don’t get it. We were stopped about 150 meters from the actual MDL (so technically we were within the boundaries of the 4km of the DMZ) by the first of 3 blockades that cut the tunnel off. Just on the other side of this steel barrier is a minefield. I was dying to get a picture of it, but there was video surveillance on us at this point, and I wasn’t about to risk anything. So if you want to see it…guess you’ll just have to crawl down into that dark drippy tunnel in the DMZ yourself.
Once we were out of the tunnel, we boarded the bus, and head for what was, in my opinion, the highlight of the day. We were driven to the Joint Security Area (JSA) or Panmunjeom as it is called in Korean.
The JSA is at Camp Bonifas, which is named after an American soldier who was murdered in 1976 along with another soldier by the North Koreans. There was a poplar tree blocking the view of North Korea, and when they went to chop it down to free up the view, they were ambushed and murdered…with axes. Incredibly gruesome, and also part of the grim reality of this divided country. The JSA is guarded primarily by the ROK soldiers (that’s Republic of Korea…aka South Korea), U.S. Military, and UNC (United Nations Command) soldiers. Guarding the other side? You guessed it, North Korean soldiers, and Chinese volunteer soldiers.
The bus was boarded by an American soldier, who checked our passports, upon our arrival to Camp Bonifas. South Koreans are not allowed into this area. We were driven to the JSA building where we had to fill out a declaration form. The first line? “The visit to the Joint Security Area at Panmunjom will entail entry into a hostile area and possibility of injury or death as a direct result of enemy action.” Um ok…where do I sign?
We also had to wear a UNCMAC Guest badge, that we were instructed to keep visible at all times.
Another American soldier gave us a quick presentation and explained how hostile this environment is. They literally stand face-to-face with their enemy every single day. Next we had to board a secured UN bus, to take us….to the border. The actual MDL border. We arrived and were made to get into 2 single file lines behind the officer giving the tour. No bags were allowed. We could bring our cameras, but couldn’t even have them in a small case. We were given strict instructions not to wave, talk to, provoke, or interfere with in any way any of the North Korean soldiers that we may encounter. We were led through a building called the Freedom House. Just on the other side of that was the MDL.
The scene before me on the other side of the Freedom House was the eeriest moment of my life.
The previously chatty and light-hearted tour group I was in, was suddenly completely silent. I don’t even know if any of us were breathing for those first few seconds. Facing the Freedom House was the “welcome center” to North Korea, literally just a few meters away from where we were standing. Welcome Center is quite deceiving though, because I felt the complete opposite of welcome in this place. Staring at us through (completely unnecessary) binoculars was a North Korean soldier.
Several small buildings separated the Freedom House and the North Korean building. The blue buildings belong to the UN/South Korea, and silver buildings are the property of North Korea. The concrete slab you can see running through the center of the buildings, where the ground changes colors, is the MDL.
We were literally just feet away from North Korea. The grey building on the right is the “recreation” center for North Korean soldiers…which is ironic because apparently there is no recreational equipment in that building at all. North Korean soldiers like to look out the window and make vulgar gestures to US, UN, and ROK soldiers and especially like to try to provoke people like us who come as tourists. They will flip you the middle finger, or make slashing motions across their throats as if to say “we’ll kill you”. Completely terrifying.
Surveillance cameras on top of Freedom House
We were led into one of the blue buildings where we were allowed to cross the MDL…INTO NORTH KOREA. I did it. I went to North Korea and lived to tell the tale.
Behind enemy lines
3 ROK soldiers, who apparently are hand selected to work at the JSA, guarded the room. I can see why. Its not every day you see a 6’1” nearly 200lb Korean man. These guys were huge. Extremely intimidating, but it was also somewhat comforting to know that they were the “good guys”. They were on our side.
Rebecca and me hanging out in North Korea...no big deal or anything.
On the wall in this room are several small flags in a glass case. These flags used to be out on the tables, but when North Korean soldiers went into that very same room when former President Bush was visiting several years ago, they used the U.S. and South Korean flags to shine their shoes and blow their noses.
So the flags were placed in a glass case in order to prevent any unnecessary conflicts. After we walked out of the building and turned to look at the Welcome Center of North Korea again, we were surprised to see that the front of the Welcome Center was now crowded with North Korean soldiers all staring at us.
That was pretty much our cue to get out of there ASAP.
The tour was basically over from there and after a quick stop in the gift shop, we peaced out and went back to Seoul.
On the ride home, I had a sort of overwhelming sense of gratefulness towards the U.S. and the fact that I have been lucky enough to have never had to experience such horrible conditions. I had stepped into a Communist country, a country with egregious human rights violations, where propaganda is part of everyday life. Families are torn apart by this division, though the division is not between the people, but rather the people in power. This isn’t what the people want. They want to be unified. I’m not sure I’ll see it in my lifetime. Things have been this way for close to 60 years. The hope of unification is strong…but until then, we’ll just have to wait.
I’m sorry this entry 1) is so incredibly long and 2) reads like a depressing history report. But the reality of this divided country is sad and seeing some of the things I saw didn’t give me much hope, especially understanding the politics and history as I think I do.
On the bright side, however, only Monday classes this week! Then on to Osan City for 3 days for “orientation” aka go to yet another strange Korean town and drink with a bunch of other English teachers. No school Friday or the following Monday in observance of Chuseok (sort of the Korean Thanksgiving). It’s a pretty big deal here, so we all plan to make the most of it by continuing to be as touristy as possible because the holiday really has no significance to us. So we’re going to hit up the Korean Folk Village hopefully, and do some other things we might not have time for otherwise. Say hello to my 2nd week of paid vacation since my arrival...
“The use of traveling is to regulate imagination by reality, and instead of thinking of how things may be, to see them as they are.” –Samuel Johnson.
