(3) 90 in 90: Trip to the DMZ

A child's drawing asking for peace between North and South Korea

July was a busy month for me. Not only did I take my summer vacation to Japan during this time, but I also participated in a tour of the DMZ between North and South Korea. This was a trip that I had wanted to participate in since I first came to Korea, but never really found the best time to do so. After an offer from a friend, the right opportunity finally presented itself and my trip was finally booked to go and visit the DMZ.

The first thing that struck me as our tour bus made its way from Seoul to the DMZ area, was the bleakness of the landscape. While it wasn't anything like a bombed out or barren wasteland, the area was devoid of any kind of architecture with the exception of a few small farm buildings here and there. The landscape was dotted with fields and hills from all sides. The sky was grey and overcast that day, making the entire experience all the more somber. This was a very different places from the crowded and loud Seoul.

I was able to visit five places on the tour: the meeting center where negotiations between North and South Korea take place, Dorason Station, the third tunnel, Dora Observatory and finally, the DMZ area.

Outside Dorasan Station

While the negotiation building was just a simple gray building that really didn't seem too impressive outside its unique purpose, Dorason Station was particularly interesting. Its purpose was to be a link between North and South Korea in the event of unification. Currently, its just s small train station that serves as a tourist spot, but according to the tour information, it can be activated at a moment's notice and start function as the main from or transportation to the capital of North Korea.

The third tunnel was one of three underground tunnels dug by North Korea as a means to infiltrate and conquer Seoul. The three tunnels were of varying size and length, but the one we were able to go to was a tunnel meant to send troops from North Korea. What shocked me the most was just how small and claustrophobic the tunnel was. On numerous occasions I found myself having to duck to avoid the ceiling and even hit my head a few times. Luckily, the tour provided each guest with a helmet. Combined with the lack of light and moistness of the rocks, it helped to build an image of a North Korean solider marching hundreds of miles through a tiny tunnel to invade a major metropolitan city above. Despite being one of the shortest parts of the tour, it was the one part that sticks out in my mind the most.

JSA guard

The Dora Observatory was a large observation building located near the border between the North and South. From the top, North Korea was able to be seen off in the distance. While I couldn't quite make out the fine details, I was able to notice smoke trails and what appeared to be factory pipes off in the distance. Probably the best view I would ever get of North Korea without being uncomfortably close. This provided another memorable experience, because despite the constant stories of the evils and mistreatment of its citizens from within, from far away it looks like any other city you could see from a distance. Its appearance of normalcy from far away was very unnerving considering what could possibly be occurring inside.

The JSA or Joint Security Area was host to some of the more famous parts of the DMZ including the Bridge of No Return, the large flagpole and the small blue buildings guarded by soldiers. Similar to the guards at Buckingham Palace, these soldiers stood at attention, emotionless and expressionless as we passed them by. Off in the distance I was able to see a North Korean soldier at attention. His eyes focused on the land ahead of him as he tightly clutched his assault riffle. Two decades long enemies, standing only a couple dozen feet away from one another.

Once the tour was over, we we able to walk around the gift shop area. Along with the usual assortment of trinkets and souvenirs, one of the most interesting things on sale were bottles of North Korean whiskey. I was tempted to buy some for myself, but in the end convinced myself not to. I wasn't exactly a huge fan of whiskey and I was certain the whiskey from North Korea would do little to change my opinion.

North Korean whiskey

The trip to the DMZ was an enlightening experience and one that I was glad that I took. I felt that being able to actually visit the sites and places that I have only read about before helped to bring the impact home. This was a real place, the result of a deadly and ugly conflict that killed hundreds of people and tore a country into two.

I'm not sure I'll be going back anytime in the near future, but like many things in life, I was happy that I was able to experience it and will most likely hang on to the memories for the foreseeable future.

(2) 90 in 90 days: My vacation in Osaka and the feeling of returning home

Working with the EPIK program usually means having a short period of time for vacation. Typically, there are eight vacation days in the summer and ten in the winter. While most of my summer vacation was spent last year exploring the southern coast of South Korea, my time this year was spent in Osaka, Japan.

I had visited Japan previously, once in the summer of 2009 and another during the summer of 2011. Both times had been spent in the Tokyo area looking for jobs and visiting friends who were already living there. Both times also served as my first and second times out of the country and in many ways, set me on the current course I currently am following currently.

Previously, I had only dreamed of visiting places outside the US, thinking it should be something better reserved for people with ample amounts of free time and money. While the trip wasn't cheap, it was well worth the effort and willingness to travel around the world as both times served plenty of happy memories and experiences that still remained to this day. I never thought I could fall in love with a culture or city, but two years in Tokyo taught me how attached one could become to a place. In its hectic and sometimes chaotic neon drenched atmosphere, beat a soul and a pulse that gave the city its life and atmosphere. Once I witnessed that pulse for myself, it became a seductive lure that always called back to me.

Oknomiyaki, an Osaka specialty 

Years later, I found myself in the position to visit some of the same friends I had previously met in Tokyo, this time in Osaka. Having never been to Osaka before, and being offered a full week to stay with friends during my vacation, I jumped at the opportunity to go and visit.

 At first, I thought it would be silly to have expectations of having the same exciting and fun experience that I previously had in Japan. I was a different person back then, less educated on the world outside my own country and naive to cultures different from my own. I knew that such a wildly eye opening experience would more likely than not be possible due to having a stronger sense and grasp on worlds and cultures outside my own.

However, I was very happily proven wrong as once again, my trip to Japan proved to be another incredible experience of meeting new people, seeing new places and falling in love with Japan all over again.

Osaka Castle

Osaka is a very different place from Tokyo. Gone is the crowded streets packed with people rushing to get from place and to place, replaced with a city a little more relaxed and laid back. Osaka, while still a large city, never felt like I was being rushed or pressured to make my way around there. The general atmosphere was one of calm which made visiting different places very fun and without massive amounts of pressure.

One thing I was able to do that I did not have time to do before, was visiting more historical sites. This time I was able to visit Osaka Castle and the riverside area of Osaka City. It was an incredible site to witness the sheer size of Osaka Castle, the despite being heavily modernized on the inside, still proved to be incredibly large on the outside. Even the park area that housed the palace was large and took a great deal of time to walk through. This was a great experience for me, as someone who was used to the cramped spaces of walking through Tokyo, being able to stretch my legs and have a wide open area was almost liberating in a sense.

Lanterns in Osaka

Exploring Osaka was also a joy and new experience for me to enjoy. Having a river running through the center made for a very festive experience. Lanterns lined the river area, and at night emitted a white glow which reflect off the water along with the other neon signs. Osaka also had more open area markets and arcade areas which hosted a variety of smaller random shops and restaurants. In many ways, it reminded me of Cheonggyecheon in Seoul, with is river running through the city and smaller places and shops to explore.

The week passed much faster than I would have liked, with every day filled with exploring during the day and eating delicious food with friends during the night. We never really had a set plan or criteria of what we wanted to do just doing what we felt like at a moment's whim. It made for a less structured time but at the same time, a more enjoyable and less limiting time.

It was nice to see old friends again. Despite being apart for several years and only talking through mediums like facebook, it was both a relief and reassurance that for the most part, my friends were still the same. Spending the nights drinking Japanese beer and eating delicious Japanese food with friends brought out lots of stories and experiences being accounted from the past, along with new jokes and stories from our time together.

Old and new friends

It was a great time in Osaka, the pictures and short bits and descriptions are not enough to show just how much fun I had there. For a time, I felt like I was back in college again, joking around, acting more immature than I should for my age and enjoying my time for a brief period without worry of student loans, lessons plans and monthly experiences, the things that had come to be a form of stress in my life.


Just me, my friends and happy memories set in the city of Osaka. Once again, I am assured that my friends are still the great people that I knew from years ago and that Japan is still the same country I fell in love with years ago, and even as I write this, I know in my heart that one day I will return again.

(1) 90 in 90 Begins Again

When I was a university student, I was tasked with a challenge by my professor to take the 90 in 90 day writing challenge. For 90 days I would write a blog post everyday. The topics would never be specific, rather it would be anything that happened to come into my head. I can't remember every post, but a few still stick out in my memories. I remember writing about my final days of being a college student. I remember writing about that slight nervousness and excited anticipation of what the future would bring me. Some of the writing was introverted and deeply personal, while other bits of writing were nothing more than rambling nonsense that comes from lack of sleep or lack of ideas.

No matter what I wrote, the main objective was to always keep writing. To keep and hold onto a goal to keep my mind fresh and my fingers constantly typing. The writing wasn't stellar and it wasn't always meant to be. It made me write everyday, whether I had a fresh idea or was struggling over a single sentence. It kept me sharp and focused.

Its been a few years since I've completed the 90 in 90 day challenge and since that time I can readily admit that the time I spend writing has greatly diminished since then. The reasons are not important, I won't spend time pouring over petty details, rather I would try to spend my time fixing the mistake instead. The lack of writing, no matter what the reason is painful to see and realize, so I am taking steps to fix that.

I'm going to start writing everyday for 90 days. Whatever comes to mind will make its way to the page. Living and working abroad presents many opportunities to write about many different things. It's time to get out of the rut and time to start writing again. There's never a perfect time or mood to write. It something you do not because you have to, but like laughing out loud or crying during a sad movie, something that we do because we want to. We need to express ourselves and our lives. Writing often helps us focus on that. It allows us to reflect on the things that bother us most, and sometimes, the things that we aren't always aware of.

The new 90 day challenges begins again. Let's see if I can do it again.