Today was my first day in Seoul. We got up bright and early, as in 5am, to get over to the USO office and get on the tour bus for the DMZ(DeMilitarized Zone). I’m basically an expert now having been on the tour, so I’ll give a very brief summary for those of you who aren’t experts like myself.
The DMZ is a 4 kilometer wide area that goes from coast to coast across the Korean penninsula. This is 2 kilometers back from the official border or Military Demarcation Line(MDL). There was an armistice agreement but no peace treaty ever followed, so the two sides are still technically at war. Thus, both sides patrol and watch for invasion from the other.
We had the opportunity to enter into a building where meetings are held. A table is set on the MDL and half of it is in North Korea, the other in South Korea. We were permitted, under protection of the ROK(Republic of Korea) guards to enter the Northern side of the building, thus entering North Korea. This is one of the rare areas where there was not a souvenir shop and thus I did not bring anything back from North Korea.
Our tour went through the area known as the Joint Security Area, or JSA, and we saw many guard posts. One such post is technically surrounded on 3 sides by North Korea. The weather was not cooperative as there was a fog and rain, so we could not see into North Korea very far. Still, the landscape was beautiful and very green, as this area has become a natural preserve due to the DMZ.
Our tour also took us to one of several tunnels that the North Koreans dug into South Korea. This tunnel, called the Third Tunnel, is over 200 feet below ground, dug through solid bedrock, over a mile long, and was only 27 miles from Seoul when it was discovered. We were permitted to walk all the way up to the barrier system which is placed at the MDL. So, we’ve been under the DMZ as well as through it!
The tour was exciting and there are many more things I could talk about. However, as we drove around, I spent time thinking about how extremely lucky I am to live in the United States. We have had our struggles, but often times I think of how it pales to the great histories of the world and what currently goes on in other areas. I’m certainly thankful for the service men and women who dedicate their lives to freedom. (queue the Star Spangled Banner now)
Until tomorrow,
-m
PS- For more photos and updates, visit my gallery here: http://gallery.me.com/mitchellmilliron
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Sweet history on the DMZ. You actually went into No. Korea, you rock. That is almost as cool as the sleeping Korean you took a picture of on the flight over. You rule.