Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Wandering in Myeongdong (명동 明洞)

     We had lunch late and decided to walk around for a while before dinner. Myeongdong is located at the center of the city and lively 24 hours. We were searching for the best restaurant for us, but there were numerous eating houses and stalls. Anyway, we started to walk.
     The pictures were taken when we were walking in the Myeongdong area. About 90% of the motorcycles that I found in Seoul were made and used for business and so when I found a majesty that I've shown you in the first picture, I was surprised and happy. It was the previous version of my scooter. The name of my scooter is also majesty. It is shown in this URL: http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2007/09/new-scooter.html. Only around the majesty, a few motorcycles for amusement were parked. Myeongdong might be the most culturally advanced area in Seoul. After a while, I found another one, shown in the second picture. I'd never seen this in Japan. Wandering in a strange place is always fun to me because I bump into something new. http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2006/11/travel-for-me-c.html

At Lotte Hotel

     I was going to see the scenery from the bus on the way back, but I felt sleepy and found myself back at Lotte Hotel where I started the tour to Panmunjom. It was a nice and profitable bus tour.
     After the breakup of the group, we dropped in at the Duty Free Shop in the hotel. There were many Japanese at a certain cosmetic corner. I didn't know why it was so popular, but my daughter knew. It was the booth of BB Cream. BB Cream is very popular in Japan now because a famous cosmetic advisor, IKKO, who was a transgender make-up artist and also a TV personality, was promoting these cosmetics. I didn't feel any interest, but my daughter bought more than a dozen of them. It sounded like she had been asked to get it by her friends. It seemed cheaper than by mail order or shopping online from Japan. Anyway, she bought it with my credit card and would get paid from her friends in cash. Wasn't it strange?
     The second picture shows my daughter and Park Yong Ha (박용하 / 朴容夏). Of course, he was a mere cut-out for commercial use. He was also well known in Japan as the rival of the protagonist in the TV drama, "冬のソナタ, 겨울연가". Lots of Japanese started to learn Korean through the influence of this drama and I'm one of those. By the way, I use a fully automatic digital camera, which recognizes the faces of humans. That is to say, I don't need to adjust the focus when I shoot faces. I wondered if the camera could detect his face on the cut-out as a human face. The result was, it could. I was surprised. How did it work?

Korean Scooter

     I unexpectedly found a nice scooter near the restaurant. The place was at 37°50'10.70"N and 126°47'41.37"E. I'd been aware that there were few motorcycles in Seoul and was thinking that the culture of enjoying motorcycles was still underdeveloped in South Korea. That's why I used "unexpectedly". I hope that the user of this scooter sent me an e-mail after seeing my blog.
     One more thing. I found four aged people having a party in the daytime near the scooter. Two were male and two were female. I'd like to have talked about this scooter, but I hesitated because of my lack of skill in Korean. They looked to be nice and friendly. I was so sorry not to have enough ability to use Korean. I really wanted to chat with them. The place where they were is pinpointed now. If someone who knows these people reads this entry, please remember us to them. They will remember us, a middle aged man and a young girl from Japan. It was at 37°50'10.56"N and 126°47'41.23"E where they were sitting. My daughter couldn't listen to their words, either. This encounter will be a good motive for brushing up our Korean skills.

 

Korean Countryside

     We went out of the restaurant. Another group of customers were gathering outside the restaurant. They looked like they were waiting for their turn. The weather was great. I grew up at a place like this. I felt something emotional on seeing the scenery. We took a walk around taking pictures. Houses were just like what I saw on TV. I'm going to show you them. The 1st picture is the entrance of the restaurant. It looked like the entrance was designed against the coldness, and it was also seen in the northern part of Japan. I checked the latitude of here and knew that we were in the north as I expected. The location of the restaurant was at 37°50'8.23"N and 126°47'36.77"E and we went up to the hill. The pictures I shot here will be attached to Google Earth later. When we almost got to the top of the hill, I found some small bumps on the slope as you can see in the last picture. I've seen these in the Korean textbook and these were tombs. This area looked like a warm place in the sun facing south. If they use the place as farming land, the amount of crops would increase. Though it sounded like it would be terribly cold in the winter, they offer their ancestors a sunny hillside. It would be admirable for the culture of Korea that they hold their ancestors dear. I like their way of thinking on this point.

(Vocabulary)
agricultural land / farming land / farmland   農地

37° 50' 8.20" N 126° 47' 36.80" E

37° 50' 9.25" N 126° 47' 39.27" E

37° 50' 9.79" N 126° 47' 39.81" E

37° 50' 10.93" N 126° 47' 40.89" E

37° 50' 12.93" N 126° 47' 41.51" E 

37° 50' 14.92" N 126° 47' 41.46" E 

Lunch

     I sometimes took pictures as a kind of note. The first picture was taken as a record of the route that our bus took. It looked like our bus took a different route from the route up to Panmunjom. As you can see from the signboard in the picture, we came here along the Jayuro road, but our driver took a straight route at the next crossroads. Finally our bus stopped at a small, lonely village. It was the restaurant for today's lunch. The signboard in the second picture at the parking lot said that this was a beef restaurant. Eri sat on the floor in a Korean formal way with one leg upright, though it was a horribly rude way in Japan, but it was ok because we were in Korea. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. However, to tell the truth, I was embarassed to wonder if the lady at the left of Eri might think how rude she was. In Japan, we never arrange the chopsticks and spoon longitudinally, but it was formal in Korea as you can see in the picture. We, Japanese usually think that it's bad manners to leave served food uneaten, but this was also the opposite in Korea. They never stopped serving till I asked them to. We tried to eat them up so as not to make leftovers, and they continued to serve many helpings to make us feel full enough. We enjoyed the lunch. It was delicious. We looked like quick-eaters and were given 30 minutes until the departure and went out for a walk. It was a comfortable walk and I'll write about it in the next entry.

(Vocabulary)
lonely   寂れた　人里離れた

Imjingak （臨津閣, 임진각）and The Bridge of Freedom (37°53'23.23"N and 126°44'19.65"E)

     Though we passed by Imjingak on the way to Panmunjom, we stopped by there on the way back to Seoul. Lots of Korean families were torn between the North and the South due to the Korean War. South Korean people seemed to pray for their relatives trapped in the North here. Religious ceremonies are also frequently conducted here. I'll show you the Imjingak (臨津閣, 임진각) and the monument below. Imjingak was located at the most northern area in Korea, but it was on the southern side of CCL (Civilian Control Line) and anybody can visit here. This facility was in the northern end so that ordinary people could access without any permission.
     The third picture shows the iron bridge across the Imjingang river. There's Dorasan Station, the last station in the South, a few kilometers ahead from this bridge. The next picture shows the Bridge of Freedom. Just after the ceasefire treaty in 1953, thirteen thousand prisoners came back across the bridge, shouting "Viva! Freedom". It is the origin of the name of this bridge. The ruin of the bridge in the last picture is the original bridge over the Imjingang river.

Camp Bonifas, The Secure Place

     We safely returned to Camp Bonifas. The U.N. showed us Panmunjom with their bus before then. We changed our bus to our original bus here. One of the military police officers and our guide were checking the number of people in our party. Though they were doing the same thing at every point, if even one of us were left in Panmunjom alone, it would be a big problem. That's why their faces were tense in the first picture.
     By the way, my daughter Eri didn't have a fearful bone in her body. She was asking him to come into the same picture with her at the observatory of Freedom House which was facing the North and was a very tense place. He rejected her proposal at a glance, saying grimly that he was doing a job . It was natural, and I scolded her. "Understand the situation and behave yourself."
     To tell the truth, she was aware of his personality, because she could understand the conversation between the officers. When we were waiting for the last permission for visiting Panmunjom from the U.N. after the briefing, he and his American co-workers (also military police officers) were talking cheerfully in English. He sometimes talked to our guide in Korean. Eri could fully understand both conversations. She thought that these officers must have been the same age as her. They must have the same feelings as her.
     She was asking him again in the second picture, and finally he said yes. A nice smile appeared on his face in the last picture. I didn't have his permission for posting this picture in the blog, but it can be considered to be a part of his job. If he found this picture and sent me an e-mail, I'd be happy.
     After he finishes his military service, I hope I'd enjoy chatting with him over makgoli.
     At the end, he was being asked to pose for a photo with other people just like he was a famous man. He couldn't refuse them due to the precedent set by my daughter. His bashful face was impressive to me. If there wasn't such a silly MDL and he could use his present precious time to learn something, which would be far better not only for him but for all over the world.

(Vocabulary)
Eri is without [doesn't have] a fearful bone in her body.
　～は怖いもの知らずだ。
fearless  怖いもの知らずの
grimly  厳しい表情で
makgoli  マッコリ (韓国のどぶろく)
pose  1 (写真・絵画で) ポーズをとる
   pose for something/somebody
　  (人・写真など) のためにポーズをとる, のモデルになる
   The bride and groom posed for photographs.
　  ～は写真を撮るためにポーズをとった。
　　　2 (人)にポーズをとらせる, (写真)をポーズをとらせて撮る
armistice line / military demarcation line (MDL)  軍事境界線

日本語も英語もきれいな発音だった。使う単語から判断してもいわゆるエリートに属する学生だろう。Eriが写真を一緒に撮る気になったのもうなずける。

Thanks! The U.N. 国連軍と別れた場所

     Our bus started for Camp Bonifas at the Bridge of No Return. I finally reached the place that I'd heard of 30 years ago. I was in the fullness of my heart. Our bus had been guarded by the heavily armed U.N. jeeps from the bridge to the bifurcation to Camp Bonifas. We said "Goodbye" to the U.N. soldiers here. I searched and will show you the bifurcation; 37°56'59.53"N and 126°40'50.45"E. If you can use Google Earth, find the point and enjoy the view from the sky. You should easily detect the scene of my pictures.
     After turning right of this bifurcation to Camp Bonifas, the driver looked very relieved from the stress. Our bus went south and arrived at Camp Bonifas safely.
     To my surprise, there was a gift shop in Camp Bonifas. We dropped in and bought something. I bought some towels saying "板門店観光記念, the memory of the sightseeing of Panmunjom". This place didn't belong to any country, which meant that goods in the shop absolutely had no tax.

(Vocabulary)
in the fullness of one's heart   感無量で

 

Bridge of No Return, 돌아올 수 없는 다리, 帰らざる橋

     We got on the bus again. Our bus went down the hill and stopped by at a bridge that was called "The Bridge of No Return". We weren't permited to go out of the bus and pictures in this entry were taken through the window. This point was in the most dangerous area as I wrote in the last entry so no soldier was stationed here. We were temporarily guarded by the soldiers on the jeeps before and behind the bus.
     This bridge was located at the west end of the JSA (Joint Security Area) and ran across Sa-chon river (沙川橋, 사천교), which was the MDL. The prisoner exchange in 1953 after the ceasefire treaty of the Korean War was carried out on this bridge. Prisoners chose the North or the South as their home and after their decision they would never return to the opposite side. It was because of this that this bridge started to be named the Bridge of No Return. Now, this bridge is thought of as the symbol of the division of the country.
     The North Korean side was a sleepy village and at the South side there was the scene of the Axe Murder Incident. I wrote an article about it before. The URL is http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2009/03/axe-murder-inci.html
     The second picture was the monument of the incident. The circular base of the monument showed the size of the poplar tree that was cut during the incident. We prayed silently for two victims here. The last picture is the U.N. lookout post where we had been 10 minutes before. The point where we were was being guarded from here.

(Vocabulary)
bridge that runs across the river   川にかかっている橋
armistice line / military demarcation line (MDL)  軍事境界線
pray silently  黙とうする
guard post / lookout post  監視所

　この橋は、板門店の共同警備区域西端に位置する橋。軍事境界線となっている沙川江に架かっている。本来の名は沙川橋（サチョンギョ／사천교）。

　1953年の朝鮮戦争停戦後の捕虜交換がこの橋で行われた。捕虜たちがこの橋の上で南北いずれかの方向を選択すると二度と帰って来ることができないことから「帰らざる橋」と呼ばれるようになった。以来、南北分断の象徴となっている。北朝鮮側に村があり、国連側の警備所の近くにはポプラ事件の現場がある。

 

On the Nearest Hill to the North

     We were on the small hill at 37°57'23.47"N and 126°40'29.80"E and dried-up small river, 100 meters from us was the border. We stopped by and were allowed to drop off the bus here for about 10 minutes, being guarded by the U.N. soldiers, who had big guns which I'd never seen. This point has a very wide view of the North. I took pictures and I'm showing them.

     You can see the Propaganda Village of the North behind the road that leads to the Bridge of No Return. It looked like a very sleepy area, but actually it is the most disputed area in the world.

     You see a blue small house at the end of the road. It was the checkpoint of the U.N. and stood at the forefront. If this checkpoint was assaulted by the North, the guards deployed here would be on the risk of their life, so it is vacant now. However this point was monitored from the place where we were. We dropped in at this point later.

     This is the Propaganda Village of the North, where no one lived. The North looked like they wanted to show how nice their houses are. The North is a real miserable country, I realized from the bottom of my heart. They just put on a front as if their country was nice. What a silly theory!

     It's the Armistice Talks Hall in the North Korea's territory. The location is 37°57'39.93"N and 126°39'52.59"E. I could see it within close reach, but naturally I couldn't get there.

     This is the scene of the Axe Murder Incident about which I wrote before. (http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2009/03/axe-murder-inci.html) There's a checkpoint of the North across the bridge. You can see also a small monument between the trees. I'll show you in the next entry. This bridge is called the Bridge of No Return.

(Vocabulary)
climb out // drop off  （乗り物から）降りる
stand at the forefront   最前線に立つ
a front (違法行為を隠すための) 隠れみの みせかけ
The cafe was being used as a front for prostitution.
そのカフェは売春宿の隠れみのとして使われていた．
His arrogance is just a front. Deep down he's really insecure.
彼が傲慢(ごうまん)なのは単なる見せかけにすぎない．内心は本当は不安なのだ．
put on a front  見せかける
Jane put up a brave front, but I could see that she was upset.
ジェーンは平静を装っていたが私には動転しているのがわかった．
within close reach   手の届くところに

(KW: 帰らざる橋)  

The Border

     Can you notice the raised, long and thin structure between the concrete and the graveled space in the center of the picture. It is the border between both Koreas. A few decades ago, one of the visitors from the North abruptly started to run and come out toward the South, who was a Russian student. He wanted to escape out of the country. The North Korean soldiers fired at him, and the U.N. responded to save him. He was successful at last, but some South Korean soldiers were injured or killed. Quoting this incident, the guide explained the possibility that an exchange of fire might happen just now. She continued that ordinary South Korean citizens weren't allowed to visit there, because of the prevention of escape to the North. Some Koreans might have relatives or friends in the North. If South Korean people wanted to visit Panmunjom, they have to apply to the government. The government investigates the applicant's profile, background and resumes thoroughly. If there was no problem, the application would be approved. However, it usually takes a half year to get the permission, and besides all the private stuff gets recorded in the documents of the government.
     The second picture shows a part of the declaration form for Japanese. It means, I will never complain about what happens to me in Panmunjom, even if I lose my life.
     How do you feel about Panmunjom?

(Vocabulary)
long and thin   細長い
graveled   砂利を敷いた

From the Bus

     The picture was taken through the window of the bus.
     The building in front of us was called Panmungak, which was just like the Freedom House for North Korean people. Freedom House was built for the place of meeting with North Korean relatives, because Panmunjom was located just on the border between both Koreas. Unfortunately, however, this facility had never been used for the original purpose. It was just the visitor center. The Panmungak seemed to be the same place for the North. Anyway, it was miserable that the same people couldn't freely meet with each other. The three officers in the picture were deployed for us, and you can see a North Korean officer on the left of the main entrance of Panmungak. There were soldiers of each of the countries, I mean doing the same job. If they could chat, it would be enjoyable. By the way, I found a trip memo of a Japanese young man who had visited Panmunjom from the North, and I'll show the URL:http://www.inapon.com/dprk4.htm. When you visit here from the North Korean side, you will be guarded by the North Korean officers. The U.N. officers looked very harsh on his website. In other words, both Koreas are said to be facing the same situation. Isn't there any solution?

     We were at 37°57'21.04"N and 126°40'37.36"E

 

Conference Room

     The cease-fire conference of the Korean War was conducted in this room in 1951. Finally we stood on the historic place. I'd like to explain something for the people who haven't visit here.
     Look at the first picture. We were in the North Korean Territory at that time. The man who was standing behind us was guarding us at the risk of his life against the abduction by the North. The door of the backside of him lead you to the North. I couldn't believe, but some North Korean officers seemed to have abruptly stormed into this room and tried to capture some tourists before. I heard this story from our guide, but I wondered if it was true. I know, the North is the rogue country, but even so, might it be possible? Anyway, we were ordered not to turn into his back and never approach his right side to keep his right arm free. His gun sounded like ready to shoot. I was not used to seeing guns and felt scared by it. The letters on his helmet mean "Military Police, 憲兵".
     In the second picture, the line connecting microphones are the Military Demarcation Line (MDL). It meant that my daughter was in the North and I took her picture from the South through the MDL.
     In the third picture, I stood near the officer who straddled the MDL.

(Vocabulary)
at the risk of one's life   命を懸けて
Military Demarcation Line  軍事境界線  군사분계선
straddle   自転車・馬などにまたがる
　　　　　 〈道・境界など〉 にまたがっている

Panmunjom 2 (Freedom House)

     After entering the freedom house, we were lectured about how to behave on the roof and observatory. The commercial photographer took our group picture on the roof (the first picture) and we were permitted to go up to the observatory for exactly five minutes. We were told never to point anything and wave our hands toward the North on the observatory. It was because the North Korean authorities would use our pictures or movies in which we were doing such movements as we were cheering for them or we were eager to enter into the North Korean side in Panmunjom. They set more than ten video cameras on their building, Panmungak (the last picture), and were always shooting us. You can see the observatory on the back of us in the first picture. Needless to say, the second picture shows my daughter and I on the observatory against the Panmungak building, which was the facility for the tourists coming into here from the North Korean side.
     The tag on our chest was the permission of entrance into the U.N. side of Panmunjom. We were the guests and escorted by the U.N. military police officers. It made us more and more nervous and tensed.
     Several officers were preparing on the ground. The left side of the third and fourth pictures was the freedom house of the South. We were going to visit the center one of three blue houses in the picture. The officers were set for guarding us.

We are at  37°57'18.93"N and 126°40'37.99"E

(Vocabulary)
wave one's hand   手を振る

Panmunjom (板門店)

     Our bus passed straight through the crossing to the Daesung Dong Freedom Village and a few minutes later, arrived at Panmunjom. I noticed that the driver was watching the roadside more than the road in the DMZ. He might have been wary of an assault on us.
     We got out of the bus and were lined up for roll call. After that, we followed the guide in double file into the freedom house.

(Vocabulary)
wary  警戒した, 用心深い
wary of (doing) sth  (…すること）を警戒して
line up ~ for roll call   点呼のために～を整列させる
double file  二列縦隊で

 

Daesung dong Freedom Village （大成洞自由の村）

     Daesung dong Freedom Village (37°56'31.61"N and 126°40'43.26"E) is the only village in the DMZ. Residents are exempt from federal taxes and the 2-year military draft. It was the residents of this village that cultivated the land that I found and wrote about in the last entry. The land which they cultivated wasn't their own. They just rented the land from the government and farmed it. I didn't understand why they lived in such a dangerous place, but anyway the villagers were doing it for their living. The guide explained that the government didn't want to waste the land, but I wondered if that was true? How was the infrastructure, such as power and water supply, sewage system and the education of their children? The guarding of the residents must be a heavy burden for soldiers in Camp Bonifas.
     On the way to Panmunjom, I found the gate of the village at the crossroads to the village. (37°56'46.52"N and 126°41'14.55"E) I felt something unusual about the gate. It looked like kind of propaganda. The guide was surprised to know my first impression, and talked about the Propaganda village, Kijundong, in North Korea.

I'll write a funny story.
     The government of North Korea plotted to make a good impression of the North Korean village and built the so called the Propaganda village 1.8 km away from here. The North Korean authorities were going to show how nice the houses were in North Korea, but the fact that no one lived in the village became an open fact a short time later.
     The South built a tower with their national flag in the village. In response to the tower, the North built a 160 meter high tower in the Propaganda village, but the weight of their flag was about 270kg and it seldom unfurls. How silly their acts were!
     Pride sounds like a most important thing for the North. I'll show you really ridiculous facts. Look at the first picture that was taken on the street in Pyongyang City. The next picture shows the same place from the sky. Gorgeous apartments are only concrete walls. Naturally, tourists are under the watch of the authorities and not allowed to turn into the back side of the wall.

(Vocabulary)
draft　徴兵(米) = conscription
  be/get drafted into the army  徴兵される = conscript (vt.)
make [create] a good impression  良い印象を与える

DMZ Fence

     Our bus passed the DMZ Fence (37°56'5.29"N and 126°43'16.13"E). I was tensed to see it with my naked eyes. The Fence line runs approximately 2 km south of the MDL (Military Demarcation Line). This Fence is a symbol of the only divided country in the world. The DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) and CCA (Civilian Controlled Area) are where armed forces defend along the Fence. Our bus was in the DMZ.
     Our bus was heading for Panmunjom in the DMZ. The guide told us that the area you could see now was a mine field. The mines were disigned for humans, but never kill people. They injure human legs. Her guidance was an awful story.
     On the other hand, DMZ has been away from civilized society for more than fifty years and so it has been preserved as an untouched area of nature. Many precious creatures are thought to remain here. It applies to ancient ruins as well. Lots of important remains are also considered to be under the ground. Korean ancient ruins in the northern area are invaded by China now. I hope the Korean people could find, at the very least, complete valuable ruins here. Kaesong City (開城市) is near here and used to be a capital city of the Goryeo dynasty (高麗王朝). The theory that several magnificent ruins might be sleeping under the ground is acceptable, I think.
     By the way, I found an incredible thing through the window. What do you think it is? It was a wide rice field on a bleak plain. Who on earth would cultivate here, in such a dangerous place? I asked the guide and she replied cheerfully and promptly. She looked like she had been waiting for that question. It might become long so I'm going to write in the next entry.

(Vocabulary)
at the very least  せめて
vast expanse of bleak plain   涼とした原野

Briefing

     As I wrote in the last entry, I had a briefing about this Camp Bonifas. The picture was taken in front of the briefing room just after the briefing. There are two officers at both ends. My daughter and I are on the left side. (My daughter is crouching down.) This is taken by the professional photographer and I bought it from him.
     In this Camp, the U.N. and Korean military are working together under the control of the U.N. commander in order to guard the Panmunjom joint security area (JSA). We were their guests and a certificate to say that was given to us. We were told to attach it to be seen by the guards.
     I saw several facilities for their daily life, but I was not allowed to shoot them such as an eating house, a dormitory, a playground and several parking areas where ordinary cars were parked.Anyway, we started for Panmunjom.

(Vocabulary)
crouch down   しゃがむ

37°55'56.81"N and 126°43'25.94"E

Camp Bonifas

     We couldn't take pictures here. I had to accept the rule from the point of security. So, I looked for pictures around here and got some. I'll show you two of them. One is the gate of Camp Bonifas which we entered through and the other is a golf course called the world's most dangerous golf course. That's because mines had been embedded until recent years in the course. After lessons about the history of Panmunjom were done, we changed our bus to that of the U.N. We left for Panmunjom driven by a U.N. officer escorted by heavily armed jeeps before and behind the bus. Our tension got extremely high. The location of the briefing room for visitors is 37°55'57.00"N and 126°43'26.55"E. I hope you'll check it on Google Earth.

An Episode of the Unification Bridge

     I'd like to show a tearful episode about this bridge. You know the automobile manufacturer, Hyundai Motor Company (현대자동차 現代自動車). As you know, it is an enormous company. Our guide told us that the founder and also the top of the company was born in North Korea. He left for South Korea in his teens with a cow.
     The cow was given as seed money from his father. After a half century, he became the richest person in the South. He hoped for a good relationship between both Koreas and did many things for that purpose. He is said to have illegally plunked down big money when Gim Dae-jung (김대중　金大中) visited Pyongyang. He started the Kumgang-san (금강산 金剛山) tourism for South Korean people. Kumgang-san is one of two famous and holy mountains in North Korea. Let's get back on track, the present he had given to the North Korean people when this bridge was built, was A THOUSAND cows. The view of a thousand cows passing over the bridge seemed to be magnificent. At that time, people who saw the scene were crying with a helpless deep sadness. Do you know why? People were saying, "Cows can freely move through the border, but human beings..."

(Vocabulary)
seed money  元手〔新しいビジネスを始めるための資金〕