DMZ Trip - March 13, 2011

"The Danga Zone Crew" boarded the bus at the Hamilton in Itaewon.  The drive to our first stop, Imjingak Resort, didn't take long at all, maybe an hour and a half at the most.  Seoul is dangerously close to the Korean DMZ (Demilitarized Zone).

I couldn't help it...I just had to take a picture.

    

This is a cargo train from the Korean War.  The train conductor is still alive.

A memorial to loved ones who either died in the Korean War  or are currently living in North Korea.

Having a little fun.

Our second stop was the Third North Korean Infiltration Tunnel discovered by South Korea in 1978.  This tunnel was discovered only 27 miles from Seoul.  It can accommodate 30,000 North Korean soldiers for an attack on Seoul.  So far only four out of a possible 20+ tunnels have been discovered.

The DMZ Theater.

Model of the DMZ.

A diagram of the Third N. Korean Infiltration Tunnel discovered by S. Korea.

"The Danga Zone Crew"

Our third stop was the Dora Observatory where we could catch a glimpse of North Korea through binoculars.

Taking a peek at North Korea.

We weren't allowed to take pictures past this line.

Everyone tried to zoom in with their cameras.  Unfortunately the weather was not in our favor.  This was my best shot.

Our fourth stop was Dorasan Station, which is not in use.  North Korea closed the border crossing in December of 2008.  

Our final stop of the tour was a market in Taesong-Dong, which is "the only authorized village in the UNC portion of the DMZ" and the safest in all of Korea.

This was my purchase: North Korean beer and soju.

There will be another trip since this one in particular did not take us to the Joint Security Area at Panmunjeom, where the cease fire agreement was signed in 1953.