We passed through one checkpoint, then another, our passports inspected on both occasions. North Korea was now visible across the other side of the river, including the “propaganda village” built on its banks. Our time in the JSA (Joint Security Area) was understandably brief. There were only two occasions we were allowed to take photos. One was outside the meeting rooms, and there was a sole NK soldier visible on the other side of the area. There were around a dozen soldiers on “our” side, mostly facing north. We were told that the NK soldiers usually travel in pairs, each facing the other to ensure they do not defect. The other photo opp was inside one of the meeting rooms, where if you walked to the far side of the room, you were technically across the border and in NK. “Come back to the safety of the South!” joked our guide as we queued up to leave. One of our party asked the guide/soldier if they were on high alert at the moment. His response was perfect - “we’re always on high alert, that’s the whole point of this area”. We were joined throughout our visit by a second group of tourists from Japan. Amongst them, one party of men were laughing and joking their way around the whole area, which felt really inappropriate.
Back on the bus, past the security checkpoints and a stop at the inevitable gift shop (you’ve seen the war zone! NOW BUY THE T-SHIRT!!) we were driven to lunch in a nearby cafe, and ate a perfectly acceptable bulgogi. From there we were taken to Imjingak park, built for families to gather and remember relatives that they have been separated from after the border was put in place. I could understand the memorials, but the fairground? Not so much. There was the “freedom bridge” in amongst a park that included hundreds of prayers and flags woven into a barbed wire fence, plus the remains of an old steam engine. The railway bridge actually makes it’s way into North Korea, one of the few physical links between the two countries. On the bus back to Seoul, I caught up with some sleep. It was strange to be travelling with other Non Korean people and hearing so much English again.
Arriving back at City Hall, a huge protest was taking place, the relatively small area transformed into a sea of people and flags. I never did find out what it was about, but I’ll guess it was to do with the upcoming election. We were on a tight schedule, as we had booked ourselves on a tour of the Secret Garden at Changdeokgung Palace - a secluded area that is only open a few times a year. It was a dash, but we made it, and I’m so glad we did as it was one of the highlights of the trip. As the gardens are so rarely open, there was a huge crowd to get in, but this gradually spread out into the massive grounds, home to ponds, pavilions and thousands of trees, many over 300 years old. We took in the whole area with an English language tour guide, adding some historical context to this unspoilt paradise. After the tour ended we had a little time to continue exploring before the gardens closed. It was incredibly relaxing.
One of the dishes I had yet to try was Chimaek, literally “chicken and beer”. Heading back to Noksapyeong, we found the perfect place to take this in, dining on cheese fried chicken with cheesy chips. It doesn’t sound like much, but it was delicious, a perfect final-night meal. We sat in an open front restaurant, taking in the evening. The street was packed with restaurants and bars, alive with people beginning their night out. I suddenly realised it was Saturday, and that I hadn’t paid much attention to the days of the week on this trip. Wanting to revisit past glories, we went for final beers at The Booth, on a street where each bar and shop was spilling on to the street, with dogs of various sizes and English voices shouting the loudest. A final drink was had at Made in Pongdang. I was feeling reflective and was trying to coax Angelos into talking about the highlights of the past two weeks. On the way back we got off the metro a stop early to walk to our hotel a different way, seeing our neighbourhood in the other direction.
Our flight wasn’t until the afternoon, so we had plenty of time. The final day began with a leisurely stroll around our hotel’s neighbourhood, seeing shops and markets coming to life. Then it was on to the Airport Railroad, with a little trip on the Maglev train when we got there. Magnets are the future apparently. Incheon airport was naturally enormous, so we killed time walking around the stores before settling on some fishcakes for lunch. I was pretty relaxed about going home, perhaps not about going back to work, but definitely back to a country where I could understand people and that also contained my cat. The journey back was long, our Sunday lasted six extra hours than normal, but my entertainment screen worked without a glitch, a first! We finally got home to York at around 4am, this whole adventure starting to feel like a crazy jetlagged dream.
In conclusion, if you hadn’t guessed, we had the time of our lives and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone. We didn’t speak much Korean, but people were more or less happy to provide us with whatever we were trying to point at. It was interesting to see, for the most part, people hung out with their own gender. I didn’t see many mixed groups, outside of family outings. The most common non-Korean language I heard was German by far. I kept comparing this trip to our Japan holiday, but there are several differences - I wouldn’t say Koreans were rude by any means, but Japanese people seemed to be more falling over themselves to please and serve.
Looking back through what I’ve written, and the 1,800 photos I took, I can’t quite believe we did all this. It was an experience I’ll never forget.
Korea Blogs: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
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