Before I continued with the tour, here is the regulation.

DMZ, The Korean Demilitarized Zone is the buffer zone between North and South Korea, running across the peninsula along the 38th parallel.

The DMZ, a heavily militarized border. The DMZ is 250km long and about 4km wide.

We visited the 3rd Infiltration Tunnel which is one of the 10 tunnels built as an invasion route for the North Korea.  So far, only 4 had been discovered. The 3rd tunnel is the most dangerous one because it infiltrated the deepest into South Korea. It is 1.95 meters high, 2.1 meters wide and 1,635 meters long. The tunnel penetrates 435 meters south of the military demarcation line (MDL) and ends at the Truce Village of Panmunjeom. The MDL goes down the center of the DMZ.

No photography is allowed in the tunnel. It is not an easy walk down the tunnel. Sometimes, we had to bend down and we often heard hard hat knocking the ceiling. Walking back up is also a challenge as it’s really tiring with the climb.

More facts about the Third Tunnel. (more…)

Back to the Seoul travel series.

We decided to join the DMZ & Panmunjeom Tour on the fifth day. We signed up the tour from our hotel’s concierge. The tour cost KRW135,000 (CAD135) per person. It’s a whole day tour, pickup from hotel at 7:30AM and return at 5:30PM.

The first stop was Imjingak. It’s a park on the banks of the Imjin River.

There are many statues and monuments regarding the Korean War in the park. The above is one of the memorial.

The Bell of Peace Pavilion.

A close up look at the Bell of Peace. (more…)

We had dinner in Myeongdong again. We settled with a ramen restaurant, Kenzo Ramen. We had a Stir Fried Noodle which turned out to be like Yakisoba served on a…

After visiting Namsan, we went to check out Insadong.

Insadong is famous with its traditional stationery shops, calligraphy demonstrations and handicrafts shops.

The sculpture Draw a Stroke by Yoon Young-seok symbolizing Insadong.

Another street view of Insadong. (more…)

After having lunch at Gwangjang Market, we took the subway to Namsan. With the height of 860 feet, it’s a great place to take in the view of downtown Seoul’s skyline.

We took the cable car ride up to Namsan. Round trip for two was KRW16,000 (CAD16).

The Namsan cable car service is wheelchair friendly with a capacity of 20 passengers.

An elevator connects the Seoul Metropolitan near the entrance of Namsan Tunnel Three up to the cable car station. (more…)

After exploring the Cheongyecheon Stream, we went to the Kwang Jang Market.

Gwangjang Market was previously known as Dongdaemun Market.

Gwangjang Market is another traditional street market with more than 5000 shops.

Here are some of the stuff you’ll find in the market; traditional Korean clothing.

Artificial food. (more…)

Finally, we had a day with good weather. Ben brought me back to the Cheongyecheon Stream to have a closer look. You'll be amazed how clear is the water. This…

We decided to have dinner at the neighbourhood again.

We went to a BBQ restaurant. They serve hot towel before the meal, a good start.

It is a charcoal BBQ for more authentic flavour.

We had pork belly and beef.

The server actually helped us with the BBQ. When the meat is done, she cut them into small pieces for us. (more…)