한국 안녕하세요! (Hello Korea!)

After 14 hours in a plane we arrived in Korea at 4:30am on  Saturday.  Incheon airport is super nice and modern.  We were able to blow through customs and immigration and caught a 5:30 am express train to Seoul Station, which was full of middle aged Koreans in full hiking gear. Apparently hiking is a national past-time in Korea, and everyone suits up for the occasion. From there it was a few minute subway ride to Ichon Station where Paul's friend Megan lives in a nearby highrise.

David in Inchon Station - not very busy so early on a Saturday morning!

So what should we do just hours after landing in South Korea? Why, head straight to communist North Korea, of course! Before we left the US we scheduled a tour led by the USO of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The DMZ serves as a 4km buffer between North and South Korea.  Think barbed wire, active mine fields, and palpable tension. The tour lasted from 9am until about 4:30 pm and was pretty interesting.  Our tour guide was a spunky Korean college student nicknamed Bok Choy. We visited the 3rd infiltration tunnel, the Dorasan Observatory, the Dora train station and the Joint Security Area (JSA) where the Koreas will occasionally meet up to talk.  The 3rd infiltration tunnel is 75m underground and the North Koreans dug it as a route of invasion. Our journey through the cramped tunnel was occasionally punctuated by loud clanking thuds as the taller tourists hit their hard hats on the granite ceiling. At the JSA you can actually cross into North Korean territory in a conference room that straddles the border. So yes, we technically went to North Korea!

North Korean soldier looking at us with binoculars.

South Korean soldier, technically standing in North Korea.

This is the concrete line that marks the border - North Korea on the left, South Korea on the right.

The lighter side of the DMZ.

After the tour, we made our way back to Seoul.  We walked back to Megan's apartment through the Yongsan Electronics Market and the iPark mall.  Later that night, we went out to dinner in Myeongdong.  Taxis are super cheap in Seoul!  It was about a 15-20 minute ride but only cost  around $6.  We ate at a Taiwanese dumpling restaurant called Din Tai Fung.  It was delicious!

Mmm... dumplings

Shopping area in Myeongdong.

The weather on our first day was phenomenal. It was supposed to be a bit warmer than normal but rainy. Instead, it was sunny and 76 degrees, which is actually a record high for Seoul for November! Perfect T-shirt and jeans weather.