Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)



The DMZ,  is one of South Korea’s largest tourist attractions. On the day we went there was in excess of 4,000 visitors.

Crossing from South Korea into the DMZ through check points.

Takes about an hour and half to get there from Seoul.

(We notice this after we took shots of each other at the fence, opps...)

The military demarcation line (MDL) of separation between the two sides at the close of the Korean war forms North Korea's boundary with South Korea. A demilitarized zone (DMZ) extends for 2,000 meters (just over 1 mile) on either side of the MDL. Both the North and South Korean Governments hold that the MDL as only a temporary administrative line, not a permanent border.

  

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We decided to take the half day tour and recommend this is ample to anyone considering it…it is about as much time as one wants to spend on buses, being shuttled from site to site.  We were glad we didn’t take the 8am tour and found that 11am - 6pm was plenty of time for us. It is  a really interesting excursion.



  The main sites we took in were:

Imjing Park; home of the remains of a train called ‘the Iron horse that wants to run’ (Thomas’ cousin), the Freedom Bridge, Unification Pond and the Freedom bell.

 

       The 3^rd Tunnel. This was probably the most exciting and challenging of our stops. North Korea attempted to build four tunnels under the DMZ, which were discovered by the South in 1978. Each tunnel was constructed to enable 10,000 soldiers to pass through in one hour!  The 3rd tunnel is 1.7km long and we were allowed to travel 115m down into it and walk a 246m section of it. Quite incredible the thought of it all.
     They give you hard hats, which was just as well - the soldiers passing through it must have been oompa loompas, some of us kept hitting our head every two steps or so!

What is wrong with this picture?!

Well wishes left by visitors from around the world for a successful unification.

      Dora observatory, this was a chance to look out through binoculars at North Korea and see a North Korea Village, a North Korean city, industrial sites and agricultural areas. On really clear days you can see Kim Jong Il, well a statue of him anyway. If you manage to see the real KJI it might be time to leave.

·   This Dorailway station is completely ready to go, a fully built 'transcontinental railroad' just waiting for reunification. We were able to buy a ticket and go out on the platform - no trains obviously, but great to see preparations are being made for reunification.

As is always the case on tours like this in Asia we had a ‘bonus stop off’ at a few places where we could buy goods on the way back. On this occasion a ginseng factory (Korea is ginseng heaven), a North Korean food outlet and gem factory. We bought some North Korean Govt alcohol,  chocolate soybeans and ginseng.

On the whole a really interesting day - we recommend you take the tour if you are ever in Seoul.