Seoul, South Korea (final)

I spent the day on a tour of the DMZ and the JSA.  I highly recommend, if you ever go to South Korea.  You have to book the JSA tour at least 3 days in advance (to obtain approval from the US government), and you are escorted by US Army soldiers the entire time.  No pictures of South Korea are allowed; no pointing; no eye contact; conservative dress. 

Nowhere is the tension between North and South Korea more palpable than in the no-man’s-land known as the Korean Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ. As a divided nation, only 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) separate the North from the South in what is the most heavily armed border on earth. The 150-mile (241-kilometer) zone has served as a buffer since the 1953 cease-fire agreement between the United Nations and North Korea that put the Korean War on hold. Even with its past, the area is quite safe for tourists.

The DMZ can only be visited as part of an organized, guided tour, during which travelers get the chance to see the Joint Security Area, also known as Panmunjom, where the North and South met for peace talks during the war. Here travelers can see both North Korean and South Korean soldiers each guarding their respective sides of the DMZ.

You even get an opportunity to stand on the the North Korea side of the border! (which is very unsettling). 

At the DMZ you have an opportunity to walk down Tunnel 3 .... but be aware - it is an 11% grade in and OUT.  ha.

We made a stop at the Dora Observatory and Dorasan Train Station enroute. 

Dora Observatory is on the South Korean side of the 38th parallel. Situated on top of Dorasan (Mount Dora), the observatory looks across the Demilitarized Zone. It is the part of South Korea closest to the North.