The border – DMZ – South Korea

Wow, what an eye opener.

Much to the teen Bee’s disgust, it was a 7:30am pick up for our long debated DMZ tour. Master 17 had maintained for months, he didn’t want to go. As a 6 foot 4 blonde fellow, he felt he would be a clear target…….. for what, I’m not sure because the whole point is, this is a Demilitarised Zone!

Established in 1953 at the end of the Korean War, this area serves as a buffer between North and South Korea. With a South Korean and US army base just outside the zone, visitors are very closely monitored at the Civilian Control Line (CCL). Passports are shown on the way in and the way out and there were many head counts throughout the day. Thankfully, no defectors or spies today (I should not joke).

The DMZ is very strictly controlled and we were instructed to put our phones away at various times throughout the morning. Anyone caught (and there cameras everywhere) taking photos of North Korea from this area is prosecuted.

Due to an incident at the JSA (joint security area) a few months ago, visitors are no longer allowed to visit. This is an area right on the border where summits between the countries take place and where Trump famously met the North Korean leader.

Never mind, that was a little too close for comfort in my opinion anyway! We were able to visit exhibits outlining the history which is complex to say the least, view North Korea from a distance, take photos at the famous DMZ sign and descend into the third infiltration tunnel.

This is a fascinating insight into the lengths to which the north have attempted to force their way south. When the tunnel was discovered in 1978, North Korea claimed it was a coal mine. However, there is no coal seam in this region, rather they had painted charcoal onto the rocks to make it look like coal. Rubbing some of this onto your finger can be the only evidence of your tunnel visit.

After the DMZ, our plan had been to visit a suspension bridge in a mountainous area, the site of previous heavy conflict. I had seen photos of the bridge in summer. Beautiful, but for someone afraid of heights, it looked absolutely terrifying. At the advice of our guide Marie, due to weather conditions (snow and ice), we decided instead to visit Odusan Mountain and Unification Centre (thank goodness for that!).

From here, we had a view of North Korea where we were able to take photos. We could also view North Koreans farming, walking and ice skating. Again, fascinating but I did feel slightly rude watching innocent civilians going about their business.

All the while, North Korean speakers belted out the most horrible and irritating noises. All just to annoy South Korea. Some of the antics really do belong in the school playground.

Sitting here tonight, we are still processing what we saw. Miss 14 just said ‘how crazy is that whole situation?’. Agreed, and really I have no idea how it will ever be resolved. These are two politically and culturally incompatible societies. Tensions are high once again and the speckled history is like nothing I’ve read before. The whole thing is quite literally a minefield.

TTB