The DMZ for short. It’s funny how the words (or letters) carry so much weight even before you see the place for yourself. It runs the width of Korea, not quite at the infamous 38th Parallel, and is now not only a geo-political boundary, but a cultural one as well. Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that North and South Korea are very different places.
For me, personally, the DMZ carries quite a bit of weight. As an Anthropologist, the sharp cultural divides that the DMZ has created between the two Koreas is fascinating and terrifying. The global political impact that has developed out of arbitrarily cutting a country in half nearly 75 years ago keeps the world’s eyes on Korea. (And no, my math is not off...I am counting from the initial divide of Korea after World War II, not from the establishment of the Korean DMZ in the 1950s as it is recognized today.)
As a Korean-American, raised on M*A*S*H reruns, it seems like the DMZ defined my life well before I even came into existence. I was lucky enough to be born in South Korea, but unlucky enough that it was at a time when the South had not fully adjusted to a democratic government. If was going to have any type of quality life, it would not be in Korea. Had I been in born in North Korea, I may not even be alive today. Its a heavy thought...that just by virtue of being born south of that line, not only I have I become the person I that am today, but that the fact that I am even alive is an accomplishment.
I took a “cheapskate” tour of the DMZ. I wanted to do the full tour, but I could not pass up the “deal” that this particular tour offered. I didn’t have the chance to go to the border (that will have to be on another tour) or see some of the more famous sights, but I did at least get to go...and for not a lot of money. The downside was, seeing that this was a cheap tour, I was on a tour with some of the most disrespectful and ungrateful foreigners I have ever met in all my travels. I’m not talking about rude “stand in your way while you are taking a picture” tourists, but actually “I will completely disregard everything my tour guide and the staff at the destination say” tourists. And can I point out that the “staff” at the DMZ is mainly Korean military? Probably not your smartest move, folks. Anyway, I chose to ignore them and do the best I could with the time I had.
It’s interesting. The first thing you do at the DMZ is arrive at “Freedom Park” which is a giant kitschy touristy area. Like there’s a little amusement park area right there where you sign in to go into the DMZ. Then it’s onto the bus, which stops and South Korean military soldiers board the bus check the passenger manifest and passports. You are warned not to take their picture and there is a definite feeling of “$h*t just got real.”
There are several destinations inside the DMZ and as you bus from one spot to another, it is like a scene right out of M*A*S*H with overgrown military netting, camouflage army jeeps, armed soldiers, and barbed wires that mark of mined areas. Then it’s contrasted with the natural beauty of the area...since no one lives there it had become a nature preserve...and the droves of tourists at each location. To say it’s surreal is an understatement.
Our first stop inside the DMZ was the Third Infiltration Tunnel. It’s located inside another park-like area. You watch a remarkably movie trailer-like account of the divide of Korea, the Korean War, and the DMZ as it is today. There’s beautiful movie images from all of those moments that is lost with the extremely upbeat and excited voice-over. Then you exit the theatre to a small exhibition that outlines the history of the area in a more somber/less Hollywood style presentation. The Tunnel is self is amazing. After traveling down into the earth nearly 200 meters (a bit over 200 yards) you travel inside the earth another little bit. The tunnel is roughly 2 meters high...and just to give a little perspective, I am 5’2” and the hard hat gave an extra couple of inches and there were places I felt I needed to stoop to avoid hitting my head. The walls of the tunnel are marked with holes that were dug out for the explosives used in digging the tunnel. The most eerie moment is at the bottom of the tunnel. You look though a hole cut out of a door, through an “airlock” (for lack of a better word), and into another hole in another door. You almost expect to see another (North Korean) face look back at you.
We moved on to Dora Observatory. You can actually look out into North Korea, although the MP at the observation deck will yell at you if he catches you taking pictures past the “photo line”. You can go pray at a small Buddhist shrine or listen to a lecture (in Korean) about the DMZ lines. (Just FYI, there are three lines: the actual DMZ line, the Northern limit line, and the Southern Limit Line.)
Last stop on this particular tour was Dorasan Train Station. The station is the northernmost train station in South Korea and briefly operated as a cargo station between North and South Korea, until North Korea decided to be all “North Korean” about it and shut down transport. Even though there are no operating trains, just bus loads of tourists visiting, the staff still shows up for work everyday. Partly because there are plans to reopen this train station as part of trans-Asian railway by connecting with Chinese rail lines...via North Korea. That’s interesting in and of itself. Interestingly, its the hope of unification that the station stands for.
I guess that is the thing about the DMZ...it’s a sharp, black and white, physical line that separates geography, politics, and culture. But it is also a place of hope. The hope that one day the line will be erased and that Korea will be healed. It’s a beautiful thought.
No comments:
Post a Comment