In this sick and twisted world, there is an elite group of the most sick and twisted country. Adding a new layer of twistedness the tragedy of the existence of these countries, there Hockers of gawkers: those who turn a profit on bringing curious tourists shamelessly beside these tragedies. And then there are the tourists themselves, those who are willing to pay for the experience of going to the edge and watching in horror from afar, and yes, I am one of those people. I could not resist the gravity of such an opportunity. Go to the precipice of one of the biggest despotic horrors of our time
Strangely, the DMZ has become a good, old tourist attraction for both sides of the border. This has made the defection of a Soviet citizen as possible in 1984.
the visit began by boarding a yellow bus with a bunch of other people looking for the experience of looking through the border, catch a glimpse of the horror and get the T shirt. good company mainly American, college-students, men and women, and random people, like me, are drawn to the edge of tragedy. many companies organize tourist trips to the DMZ / JSA, but the -ci is managed by the United Service Organizations Inc., a nonprofit organization that provides programs, services and performances for US troops and their families, so there was a very American, red -white-n-blue apple-pie flavor right from the get-go.
"Exit through the Gift Shop." Before returning to the bus, the crowds were helplessly drawn into the first of many souvenir shops we met. the makeup and wearing fur coats, well fed ladies picked by their choice of flavored junk food while thousands of people die of hunger on the other side of the border . the startling reality is almost impossible to stomach. and who am I to judge? I am in the midst of it
Next stop :. An observation deck with telescopes operating with parts;.. our first real glimpse of North Korea the atmosphere was reckless, careless and festive stunned tourists gasped at the distant mountains covered with snow to the north he was, the other Korea, the winter fog foggy. distant. South Korean soldiers pretended not to know English. Everyone wanted to have their picture taken with them and the context of real life tragedy. . We could see "Propaganda Village" with its flag pole on the other side of super-high
We then boarded a bus for the Army of the United States to take in the JSA. Such incredible amount of time and resources provided by US taxpayers through the US army: why the US government out of its way to facilitate tourism twisted in a war zone? Puzzling to say the least. It is a huge responsibility on the one hand and, with a huge price tag.
After again strict instructions not to try to contact anyone across the border, we left the bus, walked through the "Peace House" and deposited in pairs on stairs overlooking a series of blue buildings on separating North South border. We were able to look over the top of these buildings to a similar set of stairs to a similar building on the other side. At the top of the stairs was a North Korean officer standing alone attention and looking back at us. We were allowed to take pictures of anything in front of us, the UN buildings and DPRK, but we were forbidden to turn around and take pictures of the South Korean side.
Then came the climax, one thing I really wanted to do: we went down the stairs and in the United Nations conference building. The building straddles the border. I was the first member of my group of tourists walking. There were three South Korean soldiers inside, standing, watch "Rock Ready", a Tae-Kwon-Do modified position used by South Korean soldiers serving in the JSA. Next, our US Army officer informed us that those of us on the left were technically in North Korea. The tour group was allowed to walk around, take pictures, look through the windows, and fortunately I was able to resist the spirit of North Korean control and brainwashing. Finally, we all filed back on the bus.
From there we went to a lookout where we could clearly see "Propaganda Village" and were "surrounded on three sides by North Korea." As the bus we passed the monument on the site in 1976 "Axe Murder Incident" and the famous
the last frame of the tour was boring in comparison "Bridge of No Return". A station Train linking North with the South. But the museum dedicated to the history of the JSA was fascinating. It details all the weird and sometimes horrific events that took place within the JSA. We rushed to the door , back on the bus and on our way back to Seoul. the visit was over. There was no dramatic confrontation, no breakthrough in diplomatic relations, no communication and even of human interaction with Korea North. But now, tourists could go home to their well-stocked refrigerators and warm beds. They were sufficiently amused and excited, like a sad trip in a zoo.
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