Destination: North Korea

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An Adventure in the Korean De-Militarised Zone (DMZ)

July 19, 2013 :: by RationalMatthew Follow :: Read 282 times :: 1 Comment

Conference Row at the Joint Security Area in Korea, seen from the South Side. The building in the background is Panmun House. The concrete line running through the huts is the MDL, the official border between the two countries. The ROK solders stand with half of their body obscured in order to provide a smaller target to those on the North, as well as to be able to signal unseen if necessary.

“The visit to the Joint Security Area at Panmumjeom will entail entry into a hostile area and possibility of injury or death as a direct result of enemy action.”

It is not often I wake up early enough to see the sunrise, let alone have soldiers giving me orders. Or visit a place where I might get shot if I don’t follow those orders. I suppose I lead a less disciplined life than some. But on this hazy Saturday, things were to be different. I was going to visit one of the last vestiges of the Cold War- the Korean Demilitarised Zone (DMZ). The scene of more than 700 acts of violence since the end of the Korean War, the DMZ and Joint Security Area (JSA) at Panmunjeom is also one of the world’s most macabre tourist attractions. I thought I’d better see what all the trouble was about and report back. Read more →

Posted in: Asia, East Asia, North Korea, Panmunjeom, Seoul, South Korea :: Tagged: Animals, History, Iron Curtain, Politics, War

List of Countries I Have Visited … Plus a Photo for Each

July 11, 2013 :: by RationalMatthew Follow :: Read 879 times :: 5 Comments

I awoke from the deepest, darkest sleep on the softest pillow and found myself staring out the window of a hotel in disbelief as the last red rays of the sun drifted below the clouds. Wow, I thought, that’s the most beautiful sunset I ever saw. But the bed was unfamiliar and it was far too early in my mind for the sun to be setting. Hang on a second, I thought- where am I?

I am often asked where I have been. But over the years I have done so many oodles of trips that the answer is blurry- several countries I have been to several times, with little rhyme or reason- sometimes I’d need to travel for work, sometimes I followed my heart someplace and sometimes my heart yearned for someone I’d met on a distant continent. I make this list as a little catelogue of memories and moments as much for myself as for you. Read more →