North vs. South

The DMZ and North Korea in the distance 

The borders and the DMZ (not the same thing!!!) 

This past Saturday I took a trip to the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone), which is the border of North and South Korea, scary I know!!!!  A group of us went with the USO, which is a US organization that supports our troops; they also sponsor trips for Expats such as the one we took.  So we were safe, or as safe as you can be while visiting the border of a pretty hostile, communist country.  Anyway, the bus ride took about an hour; along the way we saw where the South has put up posts to protect the border, after failed attempts of the North trying to infiltrate.  We began our tour at one of the many tunnels that the North built in an attempt to gain access to the South.  Apparently the North tried to pretend these tunnels were created for mining, but after realizing there was nothing to be mined and that the path was clearly coming from North and heading South, it was determined that these tunnels were built by the Northern troops to weasel their way into the South and attack.  The trip down to the tunnel was a fairly steep hill, which was cold and wet.  I was afraid my Toms wouldn't provide the proper traction, but thankfully I stayed on my feet!  We finally got to the tunnel, wearing yellow hard hats and walked down it, having to duck the majority of the way...clearly built by tiny Northerners (apparently it is known that North Koreans are smaller in size due to the lack of nutrition they receive).  When we got to the end of the tunnel we were able to see a concrete wall that the South had built in order to prevent any Northern troops from entering.  They built three walls, only two of which we could see.  The hike back up was pretty rough, I was thankful that I had started working out again, although it was still pretty rough!!!

Our next stop was a look out point where we weren't allowed to take pictures except from really far away, which was pretty stupid and I snuck one anyway :)  We were able to see the DMZ, which is actually just an area of land that is between both the North and South borders and apparently is very appealing to scientists because the land has never and can never be touched because of the location!  Up next was the train station that takes you into the North, it is used for Southern citizens that go to the North to work...yes people actually go there to work, crazy!!!  

After the train station we headed to Camp Bonifas, where US Army soldiers are stationed.  We were met by a solider from the US Army and escorted into a conference room to watch a brief slideshow summing up the history of the Korean War and the state of the present day border.  We signed a waiver that pretty much said that if war breaks out they can't guarantee our safety and we could easily die...very reassuring!!!  The US solider and US Army bus took us to the JSA (Join Security Area), which is where both sides stand face to face on a daily basis, it is also where military negotiations between the North and the United Nations Command are held.  The UNC is a council that supports the South and consists of other countries that try to prevent future attacks on the South.  When you are at the JSA you are told to be very respectful because anything that visitors do on the South can be used as propaganda against them, so we couldn't point, or speak toward any Northern guards or anything of that nature.  We all kinda just stood there because we didn't know what was and was not allowed, so we opted to be safe and keep our mouths shut and just take pictures.  The Southern guards stand facing the North, with half of their bodies behind the building to protect them from potential gunfire.  One Northern guard stands at the top of the Northern Welcome Center with binoculars, watching us all.  We were brought into the room where negotiations are held, which was also very creepy.  Both sides use the building, but when the South uses it two guards protect it.  It was originally protected by only one, but one time when a Southern guard was locking the door that led to the North, a Northern guard tried to pull him out of the room onto Northern soil, so now two guards go in together and when they lock the Northern side door one guard holds the other incase anything happens.  

The JSA.  The blue buildings belong to the South and the UNC, the big building in the background is the Norths Welcome Center 

Always facing North 

Creepy Northern guard watching us

He's in front of the door that goes to the North.  This is where the Northern guards tried to pull a Southern guard onto Northern soil, not cool!

The guards always stand in a martial arts "ready" stance and the guards that are posted at the JSA are the best of the best!!!

After we left the JSA we went to another area where we could see the North!  We had a good sighting of Propaganda Village, which is a fake village that the North set up to lure people to.  There is nothing but empty buildings and an ENORMOUS NK flag.  The South has an area called Freedom Village, which was a village setup in the DMZ for Southern citizens.  The people that live there harvest crops such as rice and ginseng and make around 80k a year, regardless if they sell all of their goods!  The people that live there must live there for 240 days a year in order to maintain citizenship, unless you are a student and decide to continue your education outside of the village.  If you leave for school the government pays for your education, pretty nice!  ALTHOUGH the people in Freedom Village live by strict rules, have a curfew, etc, etc.  

The village in the South called "Freedom Village"

The Northern village that is empty

The ENORMOUS NK flag in Propaganda Village

Next and final stop was the Bride of No Return, which was where they had the POW exchange after the Korean War.

The Bridge of No Return

The DMZ overall was amazing, so informative, so creepy and so very interesting!  If anyone ever comes to Seoul I recommend going!  We all really enjoyed our trip and even more so, enjoy living in the South!!!!

North Korea, very pretty actually!