Graduation!

This week Rebecca celebrated her graduation with formal Baccalaureate and Commencement services. We all cheered for her and are so proud of her (and the rest of the family is still processing the fact that our family is changing as Rebecca gets ready for university studies at the University of Ottawa next year).

Senior Retreat 2010...

While on the senior retreat up in Gangwan-do province, Rebecca had the chance to go paintballing with a group of her friends while another big group of seniors rafted some rapids on the beautiful river that served as a backdrop for our stay. It was a wonderful time with fabulous people.

Another peek at the DMZ...

After our trip up to Seoul last weekend and the disappointment of not being able to accompany Brian and Cora on their tour of the DMZ and Joint Security Area, I (LeeAnne) figured I would have to leave Korea without seeing the North Korean border. To my great surprise, though, I had an unexpected and impromptu visit to the DMZ in Gangwan-do province on Tuesday, May 25. While on the senior retreat in this gorgeous part of Korea, our "hiking" excursion turned into a guided tour of the DMZ. In this part of the country the DMZ isn't heavily protected with soldiers, although we did see quite a few military vehicles and personnel in the area. You can walk right up to a stone wall and look down at multiple rolls of barbed wire that edge a swath of forest stretching a few kilometres into the distance. That forested area is the DMZ and apparently is home to many land mines and a few military buildings on a ridge. The mountain peeking up beyond the greenbelt in these photos is in North Korea. After our surprise visit to this site (which is also home to a huge monument in honour of the 300,000 South Korea and Chinese soldiers who died on this site during a huge battle in the Korean War) we also visited a bombed-out shell of a building that was constructed by the Japanese during their occupation and later used by the North Koreans during the war. After the war ended the building was left to serve as a reminder of what happened during those terrible and traumatic years.

Tense Visit to the DMZ

As most folks know, the 4km wide buffer between North and South Korea is known as the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). This border is the most heavily defended in the world, established as part of a cease-fire agreement in the 1950s. With the recent furor over the sinking of a South Korean warship by, apparently, a North Korean torpedo, this is probably not the best time to get a closer look at the DMZ. With our impending departure, however, our options were limited so we made the effort last Saturday.

With a muddled reservation at the USO office, only Cora and Brian were making the trip. After a serious briefing by a US military officer at Camp Bonifas, we were on our way to Panmunjom, the Joint Security Area that is a multi-nation facility on a small spit of land extending past the DMZ into North Korea. The site is characterized by blue buildings arranged along a line with stern looking officers from both sides staring each other down. This is a must see: the dividing line between two nations that are still at war.

In a break from the usual plan, the bus stopped just short of the JSA. We were dumped in the "gift shop" and told that we would be there for some time. Not even a minute later, our military minder burst in and ordered everyone back on to the bus... "Now!" He literally ran alongside the bus, ordering barricades be cleared and making the way safe for a hasty retreat. Yikes! This wasn't in the brochure!

The two intrepid travelers were still able to view the North at a safe distance via the Dora observatory. As well, we saw the "3rd Tunnel", an underground incursion tunnel that was secretly carved under the DMZ through solid granite. The JSA, however, was off limits as the state of military readiness was moved to the second-highest level.

While this heightened state of watchfulness makes for high drama along the DMZ, sadly the regular citizens of North Korea continue to suffer as they are cut off from information and modern advancements that could dramatically improve their quality of life. Our friends on the "inside" still struggle to provide sustainable development opportunities and immediate relief from illness and hunger. It will be interesting to see how this changes as these fraternal nations seek some sort of future together.

The end of the year is upon us...

This past month has been a busy one as we have deliberately been visiting special places in Korea to say goodbye in the midst of sorting and packing. We cannot believe it is almost the end of May! Our movers are here today packing our boxes for Kenya and then we have two weeks left to enjoy Korea and all of our friends here. One way we enjoyed time with friends recently was on May 12th, to celebrate my (LeeAnne) big 4-0 birthday. Brian threw a wonderful surprise party at a restaurant in the mountains and it was a magical night. Here are some photos!