DMZ: an evidence of the division

Have passed around 50 years since the Korean war finished with an agreement of ceasefire and building the DMZ, demilitarized zone, from one side to the other of the peninsula, dividing the country in two parts North and South Korea; symbolizing war and peace at the same time.

Since that moment North Korea has tried four times to dig a tunnel to reach South Korea but just the 3^rd Tunnel can be visited. This is the closer one to get Seoul. To see the tunnel first you have to go down around 30 metros before being actually walking through it. It was quite impressive to be there thinking that they almost reach the capital of South Korea. Even taking pictures inside is completely forbidden.

Near there it is the Dora Observatory. This observatory supposes to be the only place where you can actually have a view of North Korea and see Gaeseong city. It is really exiting the idea of being there. I had the opportunity to visit it but because of the weather it was impossible to see anything and, moreover, taking pictures was forbidden. But, anyway, when you are there, it is almost impossible not to think in how many times people that have family in North Korea have gone there just to dream about meeting them again.

And this hope of unification is what people could get from the visit to woljeongri station. This provisional train station would join the last station in South Korea and the first one of North Korea. You can notice the sorrow of the divided country since the first step into the building. And the day that both parts get together again, will affect also the whole Asian continent and South Korea won’t be isolated any more. Asian continent and European continent would be joined.

The division topic and the hope for the reunification have been represented in several films such as JSA (dir. Park Chan-wook, 2000), Taegukgi (dir. Kangh Je-gyu, 2004), Silmido (dir. Kang Woo-suk, 2003), Shiri (dir. Kang, Je-gyu, 1999), Manmubang (dir. Aum Jong-sun, 1994).