Gyeonggi-do

This morning I had an early start with a 7.50am pick up for a DMZ tour. First stop was Imjingak Pyeonghwa Nuri Park. An area that was built to console the South Korean refugees and families who were forced to separate during the Korean War. The park featured many statues, memorials, the last train to cross the Korean border (filled with bullet holes) and the Freedom Bridge where at one point nearly 13,000 South Koreans returned home from the North.

After crossing into the DMZ, where Korean soldiers came onto the bus checking passports, the tour stopped at Dora Observatory. It was a fairly clear day and we were able to see the large area of the DMZ and parts of North Korea.

The next stop on the tour was the Third Infiltration Tunnel (we couldn't take photos inside). The tunnel was very steep (73m below ground), wet and was 1635m long. It is believed to have been built by North Koreans with the intention of invading the South. They expect that 30,000 troops could pass through the tunnel in just 1hr. Outside of the tunnel there were some more gardens and statues.

The final stop of the day was one of the Korean villages near the DMZ. They had some pretty gardens! We then made our way back to Seoul, arriving at around 3.30pm.

I then had a quick walk over to Namsan Baekbeom Square. There were some statues, big green open spaces and remnants of a fortress wall. It was very very hot (I was getting a lot of heatwave emergency alerts!), so I didn't end up staying too long. Instead, I rested at the hostel and went to a nearby cafe.

For dinner, I went out with some friends to a Korean Barbeque in Hongdae. Afterwards we met up with a bigger group to do some Karaoke and hang out in a nearby park!Read more