Occasionally we let our imaginations run wild and gossip about what would happen if the North decided to invade (this conversation became more frequent after the sinking of Cheonan) but we can do this safe in the knowledge it will never happen, despite Kim Jon-Il's vain threats.
In my experience, the attitude of the South Koreans towards their northern counterparts is mostly made up of sympathy and loyalty. My co teacher always talks about how the South Koreans "miss" those in the North and want to be reunited with them. The kids in my school recently drew symbolic posters about their hope to be part of one country in the future and everyone was disappointed North Korea got such a hammering in the World Cup. Apparently, the media said that if they had one Korean team made up of the top players from the north and south, it would be one of the best teams in the world.
Some pictures my kids drew about their hope to be reunited with North Korea one day.
Before the current president, Lee Myung-bak, was elected to power two years ago, the South carried out a "sunshine policy" towards the North, which pretty much involved giving them aid without question. This resulted in a reasonably good relationship between the two countries. However, a long time opponont of the Sunshine Policy, Lee Myung-bak put a stop to all that and relations have rapidly deteriorated since, culminating in the sinking of the Cheonan ship in March which killed 46 South Korean soldiers. As a result, Lee Myung-bak is very unpopular with the South Korean people. I used him in one of my powerpoint slides in a 6th grade class and, when his face appeared on the screen, the kids booed. Many South Koreans even believe the North was not responsible for the sinking of Cheonan, believing it to be an accident instead.
President Lee Myung-Bak
Anyway, the reason I am talking about North Korea is because Paul and I took a visit to the DMZ last Saturday. The DMZ stands for the Demilitarised Zone and it constitues a strip of land between the north and the south where military action is not permitted. It is one of the most popular trips to do from Seoul. We did the USO tour which was the most expensive but apparently the best.
We left Seoul at 7.30am and were at the DMZ by 8.30am, a strange reminder of how close we actually are to the North. Our first port of call on the tour was by far the most interesting, the Joint Security Area, or the JSA. The JSA is the only part of the DMZ where South and North Korean Soldiers stand face to face. Before we made our way to the JSA we had to sign a form saying we would not try to communicate with the North Korean soldiers in any way. We were then led outside by an American soldier to a row of blue buildings which faced a large grey building; the blue buildings were on the south side of the border, the grey building on the north. Behind the blue buildings stood several South Korean soldiers, as still as statues, their fists clenched, staring straight ahead at North Korea. We didn't notice this at the time but they were watching a North Korean soldier who was standing outside the grey building, keeping a close eye on us.
Some South Korean soldiers we saw from the bus.
We were then led into the MAC Conference Room, one of the blue buildings. Inside the room stood two South Korean soldiers frozen in a Taekwondo pose. They were wearing sunglasses and their faces were fixed in a solid expression, all an attempt to intimidate the North Korean soldiers. We were then led back outside where the North Korean was pointed out to us by our US guide. He was watching us through binoculours and, as we zoomed in on our cameras, we saw the blinds on the window to his left shoved aside to make way for another set of binoculours. The US Soldier told us this guy was probably filming us. It was really strange to see the North Korean soldier standing there. I would be really interested to find out his life story.
Tourists in the MAC Conference room as a South Korean soldier guards the door to North Korea, Paul in the MAC Conference room beside a South Korean soldier poised in a Taekwondo pose.
Me in the MAC Conference room in front of the door to North Korea, South Korean soldier's fist clenched in a Taekwondo pose.
Our US soldier guide with a South Korean soldier in the background, two South Korean soldiers guard the border. If you look closely you can see the North Korean soldier peering out at us.
The North Korean soldier who watched us, the North Korean soldier looking at us through binoculars and another North Korean filming us from the window on the left.
The next stop on our tour was the Third Tunnel of Agression, a mile long tunnel which runs at 240ft under the ground through the border. It was discovered in 1978 by the South Korean government and was apparently designed for a surprise attack on Seoul. The North Koreans denied this of course, claiming it was a coal mine, even though it was geographically impossible for coal to be found in that environment. As we walked through the tunnel we could see patches of black which appeared to be painted on the walls with felt tip pen in an attempt to back up their dodgy claim. Interestingly, although four tunnels have already been discovered, it is believed there are up to ten more. Photography was banned inside the tunnel.
The next stop on our tour was the Third Tunnel of Agression, a mile long tunnel which runs at 240ft under the ground through the border. It was discovered in 1978 by the South Korean government and was apparently designed for a surprise attack on Seoul. The North Koreans denied this of course, claiming it was a coal mine, even though it was geographically impossible for coal to be found in that environment. As we walked through the tunnel we could see patches of black which appeared to be painted on the walls with felt tip pen in an attempt to back up their dodgy claim. Interestingly, although four tunnels have already been discovered, it is believed there are up to ten more. Photography was banned inside the tunnel.
We were then led to a lookout point where we could have a nosy at North Korea ourselves. Disappointingly, we saw no posters of the Dear Leader or gymnasts practising for the Mass Games or even one lone citizen sticking two fingers up. Instead we saw miles of grass, trees, a bridge and a road. Once again, photos of the (relatively) interesting bits were banned and our friend Brian actually got his camera taken from him when he forgot and took a snapshot. The South Korean soldier deleted the incriminating picture of the trees before giving him his camera back.
I have a peek at North Korea.
The last stop on our trip was Doroksan Station, the only international train station in Korea. Doroksan is symbolic more than anything; the only train that runs from it takes staff to and from work. However, the station has a line that goes straight to Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea and it is hoped that one day it can be put to use. Loads of South Koreans donated money to the station to modernise it and make it ready for that journey. It was odd to see the KoRail sign we see whenever we take a train display "Pyongyang."
Wonder if anyone will ever board a train to Pyongyang.
All in all, it was a very interesting day and one I will always remember. The highlight was definitely getting to see the North Korean solider. Anyone thinking of doing the DMZ tour should go with USO as they take you to the Joint Security Area which is the best part of the trip. Some tour operators do not take you there.
I will end on the same note as the posters created by the students at my school; that Korea will one day be reunited. It would certainly be nice to see in my lifetime. The current outlook is not good; even though Kim Jon-Il is on the way out, apparently he has a bunch of loony sons just waiting to step into his shoes. However, the residents of our adopted home are dogged in their optimistic determination that it will happen so it would be rather unpatriotic of us not to agree.
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