D to the M to the Z Baby!

Warning: This post is splendifferously long. 

A trip to South Korea is not complete without encountering some North Koreans and seeing some military right? One thing I found out about South Korea is that they have compulsory military service for all males. Within 4 years after graduating high school, they serve for 22 months in the military. It was surprising because you see the military all over. Their uniforms are almost identical to the US military (go figure) as well. US military is also a strong presence in Seoul and the surrounding areas (28,500 soldiers in South Korea). 

 I took a tour that went to the DMZ as well as the 3rd infiltration tunnel. It was kind of pricey, but when else am I going to be on the border of two nations that are extraordinarily hostile to each other? Hopefully never. The tour guide told us to take pictures and look at the North Korean side of the river (the river divides the two). The North Korean side has absolutely no trees on any of the hills. Being a starving nation that also has limited natural resources for heating, they have long since chopped down nearly all of the trees in the surrounding ares. It is like a barren wasteland. 

 A fancy diorama that gives you an idea of how the DMZ is laid out. The Korean war never actually ended, but there is an armistice that has been in effect for the last 59 years. Because the nations are still at war, they have established a line that divides the entities and a zone on either side of the line in which there is no military presence (hence the name of the Demilitarized Zone, DMZ for short). The red line you see is the Military Demarcation Line which officially separates North and South Korea. The yellow is the boundaries of the DMZ. 

 North Korea (who in essence are real tools about this whole armistice thing) has dug tunnels under the DMZ into South Korea for the purpose of a sneak attack. South Korea has found 4 tunnels thus far, but they estimate that there are as many as 20 more that they don't know about. The 3rd tunnel is the one I visited. It is called the 3rd tunnel because they found it 3rd (creative naming right there). It is only 27 miles north of Seoul and they estimate that 30,000 men per hour could pass through it per hour. 

This sculpture is calling for the unification of Korea into one nation again. 

They don't let you take pictures in the tunnel. Someone had taken a picture, and this is exactly what it looks like. You can see that the tunnel is dug out of solid granite. The blast marks and the angle of the tunnel prove that it was blasted from the North Korean side (they point this out because the North Koreans claim the South Koreans built the tunnel). They have you wear hardhats down in the tunnel, which I thought was initially just a sign of being overcautious. After going through the tunnel, I realized that they are absolutely necessary. I stopped counting after the 25th time I whacked my head on solid rock or on a pipe. The problem was that the tunnel wasn't tall enough for me to look where I was going without hitting my head. It was not pleasant.

What was at the end of the tunnel? A wall with a window in it. Beyond that was a minefield and some floodlights and another wall. These are all to discourage the North Koreans from using the tunnel in the future. 

 Also at the tunnel they had this big soccer ball. Evidently the soccer ball was a trophy or commemerative trinket of some sort. Where did they put it? In between the bathrooms. Apparently South Korea doesn't like soccer. 

 There was also this...so...yeah.

 On a hill looking over into North Korea they built an observation post. I was standing on the line where you can take pictures. You aren't allowed to take them after this point. I think the reason is so that you don't inadvertently photograph South Korean military placements and stuff. 

 After the observation post, we went to the train station built 10 years ago to access the North. They say that it is not the last station in the South, but the first to the North. They have connected the tracks that run into North Korea, but it is very rarely used. They built it big enough so that when unification happens, they will be ready to roll. 

 It was a little spooky because there was no one around, and it was all just sitting there. It felt a little post apocalyptic. 

 George W. Bush was there for the opening and donated a railroad tie to the station. This is the plaque with the text of his speech. 

 A sign talking about it being the first station to the north. 

 Here you could take pictures with the ROK (Republic of Korea) soldiers. 

 The platform to Pyongyang. 

 Through some doors they have a big luggage area and facilities for large volume. 

 We went to lunch at a Korean restaurant just outside of the DMZ. I was excited that there were chairs! 

Unfortunately I ended up sitting on the floor. The food was really good though. We had bulgogi. It was like a hot pot of tasty stuff. 

 After lunch we went to the tourist park near the DMZ. This picture is of the shrine built for people to worship their ancestors whose graves are still in North Korea. 

 I don't know why I took this picture. 

 This train was one of the first things hit by the North Koreans. There are over 1000 bullet holes in it.

 It stopped working obviously, and was left there. 

A fence with all sorts of security measures. There are tags that have to be changed by patrols, stacks of stones that are impossible to reset if they fall, and rocks that are stuck in the fence that will fall if the fence is cut or too much force is exerted. 

 Ah...the coup de grâce. This pictures is inside the UN meeting rooms on the Military Demarcation Line. You can see an ROK soldier standing at the end of the table. This table precisely divides North and South Korea. The microphones and flag on the table is the midpoint of the line. In this picture, I am standing in North Korea. Jealous? 

 This soldier is standing guard in front of the door to North Korea. 

 Here people are taking pictures from the South Korean side (Suckers! I was in North Korea).

 The oddest thing was that they let you take pictures with the soldiers. You were instructed not to touch them or get too close, but you could take pictures with them nonetheless. It was a little odd to be smiling while the soldier is walking the line between two warring countries. 

 The concrete barrier separates North and South Korea. I am on the North Korean side. 

 This is taken on the South Korean side looking at the North Korean side. The soldiers you see are South Korean. They are deliberately standing in front of the building. It is a strategery. They block the view of their bodies and make it harder for the North Koreans to shoot them. 

 I tried to zoom in and take a picture of the North Korean soldier standing at the top of the stairs looking at us with their binoculars.  

 This picture is weird because I am smiling in a very tense place.

 Here is a video. It's just like you are there. 

 We had to stay in the bus, but this is the marker for a tree that stood in the Joint Security Area of the DMZ. You may ask why they have a marker for a tree, but the marker is actually commemmorating the lives and sacrifice of two US servicemen. You can read all about it here. Long story short, a team of engineers and 2 US army officers went into the JSA to trim a tree which was growing too big to allow for visual contact between the observation posts. They were trimming the tree when some North Koreans started making trouble and saying that they didn't have the authority to be there. The US officer in charge continued doing the task he was assigned and cleared to do which made the North Korean mad and when the US captain turned around, the North Koreans attacked. In the midst of the scuffle, the people retreated, but the 2 US army officers were left behind and beaten to death turn-by-turn by the North Koreans. The camp is now named for the US army captain. 

Soon after, nearly 20,000 troops were mobilized during Operation Paul Bunyan while engineers went in and chopped the whole tree down. There was fear of war breaking out anew over this conflict and troops were mobilized to combat that. As usual, the North Koreans said it was the fault of the two dead army officers picking a fight. Sickening. 

 Right near the monument is the Bridge of No Return. This bridge is where the POW's from both sides of the war were brought. They could choose to go back to their original side, or stay in the country they were being held captive in. The catch was that they would never be allowed to go back. Because of that, this bridge was so named because once you crossed it, you couldn't go back. The posts in the middle mark the line between North and South. 

Overall it was tremendously interesting to see. I would highly recommend seeing it if you are ever in the area. A lot of history and a lot of blood for this area. Incidents still happen along the Military Demarcation Line nearly every year. The North Koreans are consistently the aggressors in opening fire on South Korean military. In 2010, a North Korean ship launched a torpedo at a South Korean vessel killing 46 men on board. I tell you that we are lucky to live where we do and in the conditions we do. If the North Koreans decide that they are going to go to full scale war with South Korea again, it will be massively destructive with death tolls in the tens of thousands. 

BIFF and Street Food

Busan is host to one of Asia's best film festivals...at least that is what they advertise. It is right across the street from the fish market and has played host to all of the best movies coming out of Asia. I decided to head over there because they had street food and things to see. 

PIFF stands for Pusan International Film Festival. It is called BIFF as well. Sometimes they are even on the same map...

 Someone at the hostel I was staying at said I needed to try these. After much googling, I found that it is called Hotteok. It is like nan bread kind of. It has a filling of honey, brown sugar and sunflower seeds and maybe some other stuff. It is cooked on a hot griddle and it is delicious. The best part was that it cost less than a dollar. 

 20 feet from where the last picture was taken, I bought some corn on the cob. Unfortunately, there was no butter or salt and it was only kind of warm. Again, only a dollar. The worst part is that I couldn't find a garbage can for a half an hour after that. I ended up pretending to go buy something in McDonald's so I could throw it away. I then walked out without  buying something. I don't care. I'm a rebel and I do what I want...

 This is a poster for arguably the most famous Korean movie to come out of South Korea in the last 10 years. The movie is called Tae Guk Gi. Taking place during the Korean war, it is a story about two brothers who are drafted into the South Korean army. The older brother goes about taking on any dangerous task he can to try and win a medal to get the younger brother out of the army. He falls in love with his own legend and I won't spoil the rest. If you get a chance, watch this movie. I cry every time, and I am man enough to admit it. 

Along one of the market streets, I saw this little terrifying horror. Michael Jackson was looking at me from a balcony. It originally was black MJ, but had been left in the sun for years and had become bleached white. The irony was not lost on me.

 The next food item I got was some chicken on a stick. Pretty much what you would expect of a kebab, but it was HOT! Most things in Korea were hot. Also, it tended to get all over your face. Again, less than 1 dollar. 

 A view through the market at the tower in Busan. I thought that the tower looked a lot like the staff that takes the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles back in time in the 3rd live action movie. If you don't know what I am talking about, you need to educate yourself on your TNMT lore. 

 The Koreans had more shopping areas than any place I have ever even heard of. I think their national past time is shopping. Their national sport is spending sprees, and the flag even features a barcode for easy scanning at a cash register (only partially true).

Some people would say, "Jeff, I bet you ate all Korean food when you were in Korea, you would be stupid not to." To that I say, you are stupid. I haven't had good Western food in months. I came across this delicious burger joint with some gloriously messy burgers. The one I got was the Texas burger. I also listened to smooth jazz and watched some welders working on a building. They were not wearing eye protection...what a country!

The decoration in this place was neat/terrifying. I am all about the whole plywood theme...its cheap to maintain. Those are original dolls from the TV show, Doug. That was a little creepy. Also there were some sesame drawings with some face drawings on them. 

In the next few days, I am going to have a really long post about war and America and stuff. It will be really word heavy without too many pictures.

The South of South Korea Part Two

Day two in Busan...or somewhere thereabouts. I was on vacation time, so all the days kind of blend into one super fun time. I do remember my feet being tired pretty much constantly. Many videos following.

 As I was eating lunch, I stumbled on this treasure. If you have ever seen the TV show, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, this is familiar. There was a random bar in Busan that just stole the logo and the name and put it right on the side of their building. Evidently it was the name. Korea likes to take western things without licensing them. 

Odd to say the least. 

 I posted this picture on Facebook also, but I found a Krispy Kreme donut stand in one of the malls. This is a New York Cheesecake donut. Delicious right? It totally was. 

 I saw a bakery in the grocery section of the World's Largest Department Store. It reminded my of my friend Liz Day...because her last name was Day. If she ever decided to open a bakery with a sibling or something, this is what the name should be. That, or "Day In, Day Out." Actually, it would be better if you ran a hotel and called it "Day Inn and Day Out." When the guests leave, instead of checking out, they could "Day Out." Whenever you enter and exit a room, you should also say "Day In, Day Out" accordingly. Just my thoughts. 

 Diet Coke. Kind of. More like Light Coke. It wasn't the same, but it was closer than Coke Zero. I tried to drink my body weight in it before I left. I almost succeeded. 

The video explains itself. True to my word, I went to Papa John's that night. 

A view around.

 Aside from terrifying the people in the restaurant, it was pretty good. I walked in, and they seemed genuinely alarmed. Either they aren't used to tourists in Busan, or I am terrifying, but people would stare constantly at me on subways and in public. It was kind of rude because they would have conversations and point as well. The pizza itself was really good. It had the right toppings with no corn and other garbage on it. They also brought out nacho cheese!

 Then they brought out the side of pickles...so close Korea...so close. Needless to say, I didn't eat any of that garbage. 

 I also went to the fish market. I had heard that it was worth a stop, and I think it was. It was really interesting...people pulling off the skins of eels like they were banana peels, and some guy punching an octopus into submission (true story). 

 Outside the fish market, they have a statue of a fish fishing. Irony? Cannibalism? 

Here is a whole tour around. About the one minute mark, you see the guy who punched the octopus. At the very end, you see a paralyzed man dragging himself through the market pushing a boombox. He was asking for money. It was a little creepy. 

 Some guys were fishing for fish near the fish market. They didn't appear to be trying very hard though. I wonder if they catch octopus here. 

I also went to the World's Largest Department Store as I mentioned earlier. Here is a video:

I actually went into a not-so-impressive department store thinking it was the biggest in the world. After looking around, it was clear that it was not the biggest. I eventually found the real one (which is connected to the other one). You can see me discovering that this was the biggest in this next clip. 

Yup.

This was the not impressive store. See how much less big it was?

On top of the buildings. 

Discovering my musical muse. 

I went to a movie in the World's Biggest Department Store and checked out the skyline at night. I went to Wrath of the Titans. It was wonderfully mediocre, but it didn't cost 22 dollars like the theaters in Japan. It was normal price! Oh Korea, how I love thee!

Busan-dy Beaches and The Terrifying Ocean

Busan is the famous port city of South Korea. It was the last bastion held by the allied forces when North Korea attacked in 1950. Sometimes called Pusan, either spelling is ok. I don't know why. The most famous beach in Korea is in Busan. The beach is called Haeundae beach, and my hostel was about two blocks away...but why take my word for it in written form when you can take it in video form?

I really liked this ad for the Mini. That is a full size car parked on that building there.  

On the beach there is an aquarium (that is entirely underground for some reason). I decided to go in and reinforce my longstanding fear/hatred of the ocean. Consider my anti-aquatic convictions reaffirmed. 

Turtles and fishes.

Playful otters. I don't know why this was a theme, but this was the first of several one-footed animal encounters. One of these otters had a missing foot. It was really kind of sad. I happened to show up while they were feeding them. 

 Only the classiest of piranha tanks in Seoul. You can see the human bones there in the bottom. Surprisingly, there was no top on the tank...just a sign that said "Don't put your hand in the water."  

 Saw these little buggers. Reminded me of crawdads...I am pretty sure they are related...or the exact same. 

 Harder to see, but these are scorpions that glow in the dark. 

 I am not sure if the penguins are jackasses, or if it is Engrish. Either way, it is hilarious. 

 I saw this fish in the blowfish tank. I don't think I could imagine a stupider looking fish. You can almost here it saying 'Der...'

This is the jellyfish tank. These guys are evidently not poisonous or anything, but I still don't want to encounter them in the wild. 

 An eel coming out of the sand...I have eaten this guys cousin. Take that ocean kingdom!

 Electric eel. The recording said it was not actually an eel, but some kind of other thing that looks exactly like an eel. Also, this one was about 4 feet long. NO THANK YOU!

Stop 2 on the hall of horrors: the giant ocean crab. The legspan of these nightmare wardens is up to 12 feet. 

A giant jellyfish whose tentacle things can extend for 6 feet. Also it looks like a neon light...which makes it more and less fearsome at the same time. 

I totally ate this guys cousin while I was in Korea. Luckily these particular giant monsters live off the coast of Washington State. 

A rare sight indeed! The Manfish.

Of course the underwater hall of horrors would not be complete without an up-close encounter with a Great White or two.

 After the aquarium, I emptied out into the food court. Popeyes Chicken!

 Much to my dismay, they were closed. I was really looking forward to some Cajun style cookin'. 

 Aqua Hyundai. Those are water plants and fish near that steering wheel. 

 Somehow this is a compelling advertisement for Hyundai. Maybe they are going to introduce amphibious cars.

Always remember kids: Keep off the Grass and Save the Finless Porpoise. 

What is a Finless Porpoise? Glad you asked...

Blerg...This Will Take a While

I just looked through the pictures and videos and stuff, and this is going to take a long time to chronicle. It is going to take a long time to write, and it will take you a long time to read...hope you have time (of course you do...that is why you read this blog). I spent 8 nights and 7 days in Korea alone. During most of that time, I was taking pictures while doing stuff and thinking of witty things to put on this blog. I guess this will be like the delayed conversations I would have had if you were there in Korea with me...but you don't get to enjoy the food like I did. 

To start, I headed by bus and train to get to Narita Airport. Though it serves Tokyo, it is actually stupid far away. On the express train, it takes a minimum of 40 minutes to get there...This means it is over 3 hours from my house to the airport...not super convenient considering it is only about 100 miles. Anyhoo. 

An exclusive look into the train ride out to Narita Airport. Here you can clearly see buildings and hear the soothing sounds of incoherent Japanese babble. Also, a great shot of my bald head. 

 While I was sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to leave, I decided to combine two famous Japanese symbols...Robots and Massages. Robo-massage! In reality it was just a massage chair. I decided to give it a whirl. It was not until I was in the massage when I realized that it is not designed for people like me. The neck part of the massage didn't clear my shoulders, my arm massage was a lot like getting my blood pressure taken, and my feet and calves didn't begin to fit in their allotted places. The chairs also had a shoulder massage feature which ended up just trying to fold me like a taco. Overall, I give it a 2/5.

 I took a picture of the view I had while I was getting my robo-relaxation. 

In a truly wonderful turn of events, I saw a bunch of foreign folk on the plane who were dressed up real nice. My first thought was that they were a choir tour group or something...after I sat down, I took a surreptitious look back to see if they were American or otherwise. I then noticed the indicative badge of Mormon missionaries! Crazy right? I was seated directly in the row in front of them. I naturally struck up a conversation after pointing out to them that they were missionaries (as if they didn't know). We chatted for almost the whole flight to Busan. They were all arriving to serve in the Busan mission. 

 Being a flight going from Japan to Korea, they served sushi on the plane. What else right? It was pretty good.

I tried to catch some of the nighttime view of Tokyo. It was pretty incredible because it was an endless network of lights. It was like Vegas, but impossibly bigger. 

After going through customs, I stayed with the missionaries to meet their mission president...why not right? I was also very, very lucky because the Mission President offered to help me figure out where I was going. This was a great blessing as I was travelling alone and had no idea what I was doing and how I was supposed to get on the subway. After chatting for a while, he had one of the assistants drive me (with the luggage) to a subway station near the mission home and point me in the right direction. Couldn't ask for more. 

The first thing I noticed about Korea? People use smartphones and tablets...a lot. Korea has consistently been the most connected country in the world due to its small size and love of doodads. Riding the subway you get a feeling for that. Everyone, including old people, had their phones out and were surfing the net or playing Angry Birds. I took this video so you can see for yourself. 

Yarr...there be a storm on the horizon

Ye best beware. There be a storm comin'. I took a vacation to Korea by meself which makes it so I be takin' lots o' pictures. I arr in the process of uploadin' and categarrizing them fer yer benefit. Look out in the next few days for all them posts about the scallywags in Korea. 

Seriously though, there is a literal avalanche of words and pictures on the way.