A visit to North Korea

Hehe..almost! The nearest I went was Imjingak. Min Young and I missed the last bus to DMZ, hence we couldn't visit North Korea, I mean the border. ^_^


Imjingak (임진각, pronounced Ihm-jin-gak)located on the banks of the Imjin River in the city of Paju, South Korea. The park has many statues and monuments regarding the Korean War. It was built to console those from both sides who are unable to return to their hometowns, friends and families because of the division of Korea. Source: Wikipedia


Anyone interested to go to DMZ, please check TourDMZ website.


DMZ tour booking need to be scheduled at least 1 day ahead - around 65 to 80,000 won (depends on tour agencies). The Korean Demilitarized Zone (Korean한반도 비무장지대) is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula that serves as a buffer zone between North and South Korea. Source: Wikipedia.


Panmunjom tour booking need to be scheduled at least 7 days ahead - around 70 to 85,000 won (depends on tour agencies). Panmunjom, in Gyeonggi province, is a village on the de facto border between North and South Korea. Source: Wikipedia.


Each tours could be completed for half a day.


If you are interested to see both, the tour costs about 120,000 won for one whole day.

A is Panmunjeom; the border between South Korea
and North Korea
파주시 (Paju-si) is where Imjingak is located. 



DMZ tour video by GreenKorea2007
Go here to view North Korean Invasion Tunnel dug under DMZ.

I visited Imjingak on Parents' Day in May with Min Young and her grandparents. We were so close to visit the DMZ but we missed the last bus from Paju. Not our luck I guess. Next time when I return to Korea, I will visit with Min Young.

We had lunch at nearby temple before reaching Imjingak. 
The restaurants served vegetables gathered from the mountains. 



Nice right? Although it is so sunny but the temperature is cool.



Min Young's grandparents and Min Young.

Mushroom and vegetables jjigae

Nokdu jeon (Green bean pancake). The taste? I have never tasted
one before, a bit different than normal but very delicious. Two thumbs
up.

Min Youngi..

sanchae banchan - mountain vegetables side dishes

Another family celebrating Parents' Day.

Me and the family.

We visited Imjingak after lunch. That red bus goes for DMZ

Good move, the website for Paju right on the bus.

The ticket counter for DMZ

Behind us are the well wishes ribbon for North Koreans and 
South Koreans during Korean War.

Old locomotive




The Bridge of Freedom

The flower in spring

The barb wire and behind those mountains is North Korea.

Touring train around Imjingak. 

Korean Memorial for US soldiers and countries
assisting Korea during Korean War.

^_^

I don't know what G&G means. Any guess?

Displays of equipments used during Korean War.

No admission fee.

I couldn't meet the real one. This is the least I could do with
a North Korean soldier. 

We walked to Imjingak Plaza and walked up towards
the observation deck, on the top left side. 

Min Young with her grandmother.

Taegukgi

The owner of this coffee shop probably likes the movie starring
Keanu Reeves - A walk in the clouds. 

The owner must be a close friend of Hyun Bin 
too, cause the flower read from the movie actor
Hyun Bin. 영화 배우 현빈



Military fashion the DMZ way.



From the observation deck



The view from top.



The sign tells it all.
0 Responses

댓글 쓰기

abcs