Here are is an image of the Korean peninsula at night. You'll have to click on it for the full view. The line running east-west just north of the lights is the DMZ.
an interesting signpost.
This was the entrance to the tracks at the train station. To the right, out of the picture, two South Korean MP's were standing at the door.
Here is a view of two monuments. One is to the UN forces in general, the other is to the US forces specifically. One of the men in our group was surprised to discover that it wasn't just a US war.
Here is the fence on the banks of the Imjin river; erected to prevent North Korean infiltrators from swimming into Seoul. These fences line up along the Han too, into Seoul. Our Guide told us that up until 2002, in spots where the North owned the other side of the river bank, both sides would erect speakers which would proclaim how much better it was to be on that particular side.
If you think about that, the majority of Korea's people is within 50 or 60 kilometers of the DMZ and a large chunk of the Korean People's army; the fifth largest army in the world with something like 1.1 million men. For most of the past fifty years the citizens of Seoul have lived as the primary target for that army.
Here is a view of two monuments. One is to the UN forces in general, the other is to the US forces specifically. One of the men in our group was surprised to discover that it wasn't just a US war.
Here is the fence on the banks of the Imjin river; erected to prevent North Korean infiltrators from swimming into Seoul. These fences line up along the Han too, into Seoul. Our Guide told us that up until 2002, in spots where the North owned the other side of the river bank, both sides would erect speakers which would proclaim how much better it was to be on that particular side. Also, on the way back into Seoul, she pointed out several 'bridges'. They weren't really bridges, they were structures mined with explosives. The road that takes you from Seoul to the DMZ is the national highway. It goes all the way to Pyongyang. If the North ever invaded, its an easy route for tanks, so they have the structures that they can blow up to block the road and, in her words, 'give us some time'.
It struck me how things seemed simultaneously weird and normal. Our guild told us that the government 'kept some information' about the North and North-South relations so that during more tense times, the people of Seoul wouldn't panic.
She said that South Korea was a nation of 48 million people, and that about 20 million were in Seoul and its metropolitan area.
If you think about that, the majority of Korea's people is within 50 or 60 kilometers of the DMZ and a large chunk of the Korean People's army; the fifth largest army in the world with something like 1.1 million men. For most of the past fifty years the citizens of Seoul have lived as the primary target for that army.
Add to that things like the infiltration tunnels, and the desperate straits of the people in the North.
Its a normal situation to them, but I have to believe only in the sense that this has been the status quo for the past half century.
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