Seoul Korea - 4/7/12 & 4/8/12

Back in Seoul after our fantastic DMZ tour, Mr. No treated us to a traditional Korean show and dinner buffet afterward, with Steve & Alex.

 Short Video from the Show

We enjoyed the dinner buffet after the show with Mr. No, Steve, Alex, Roy, & me.

This was our last night in Asia and we were back in the

Lotte Hotel sharing a last drink.

The conversation was hilarious mainly concerning learning the English language. Mr. No was taking lessons and Steve & Alex commiserated. Steve: I pronounce walk and work the same. Alex: loyal and royal are the same. 

The next morning we were on a bus back to the airport for our Seoul to Detroit flight.

 

A new plane design gave everyone aisle access, which was a great ending to a trip of a lifetime, for me, in Asia.

 

 

DMZ, South Korea, Part 3 of 3 - 4/7/12

Still at Imjingak, we opted in for the underground journey to the Third Tunnel, discovered by South Korea in 1978. After a tip from a North Korean defector, the South Koreans drilled down into the tunnel and blocked it. There are 3 other known tunnels with a suspected 15-20 more. 

A descent into the tunnel required hardhats and the giving up of all personal possessions, particularly cameras & phones (I really need to acquire a spy-camera). The tunnel is narrow and somewhat claustrophobic as the monorail took us down. At the end we could see where the tunnel had been blocked, and then we quickly headed back up.

The last stop on our tour was Dorasan Station, a railroad line that was intended to connect North and South Korea. Constructed in 2000, the hoped for connection didn't happen, and today the station lies vacant.

Tour guide and map.

 Soldiers on patrol.

Maybe one day we will be able to take this train to Pyeongyang.

But for now we say goodbye. One more night back in Seoul and then home to Michigan.

 

DMZ, South Korea, Part 2 of 3 - 4/7/12

After Dora Observatory, our tour bus took us to Imjingak, which was an interesting combination of shops, history, food, and information, and is also home to the Third Tunnel, discovered in 1978.

Posing in front of the DMZ sign

 Pushing the Korea halves together.

Food!

This old locomotive is on display, a relic from the Korean war.

Freedom Bridge refers to both a railroad bridge connecting North & South Korea, and a connecting footbridge built after the war to allow an exchange of prisoners. The footbridge is closed and is decorated with ribbons marked with messages from those wishing for reunification. Both areas are highly secured.

 

Here's the now closed, once adjoining foot bridge, used for the prisoner exchange in 1953.

 

  Very poignant.

DMZ, South Korea, Part 1 of 3 - 4/7/12

I was so excited to take this tour and the day did not disappoint. Accompanying our tour guide was a North Korean defector who shared many of her stories throughout the store. The most amusing was an accent discussion between the two of them. The North Korean said she can understand South Koreans but they have trouble understanding her. Our tour guide said that North Koreans have "thick" accents. I completely get this as I usually need a translator when I am in the deep south :-) 

The first stop of the tour was Dora Observatory. We reached a checkpoint and a South Korean soldier hopped on the tour bus to check everyone's passport.

Passing through the checkpoint ~ 

As we arrived at the observatory, we were told by our tour guide to absolutely follow the photography regulations or our cameras would be confiscated. Alrighty then. Here is the crazy rule: no photos taken from the edge of the deck. There was a line drawn about 15 or 20 feet back and photos were permitted only behind that line. So here's how far back we had to be in order to point a camera (see the woman on the right with a soldier eyeing her, and she's in front of the line).

Here's a few more pics of the deck & binoculars available.

There was maybe some stealth shooting going on but I didn't dare with watchful eyes everywhere.

But this photo is my favorite - 20 feet back holding the camera up as high as I could with the zoom magnified to its limit. You're looking at Propaganda Village/aka Peace Village in North Korea. Even if you're too young to remember there was a 3 year "war" here and you're not familiar with the movie or TV show, M.A.S.H., this was an incredible place to be.