This weekend I visited the DMZ-the DeMilitarized Zone. To say that it is anything more than an utter pathetic demonstration of the lowest form of humanity would be a compliment. I was clearly not impressed with the entire trip. Despite being an exceptionally lucrative business for both the South Korean and American government (and possibly the North Korean government too), the "huge" divide amongst supposed blood brothers is exploited and entrenched beyond measure! The imaginary 38th parallel line demarcating the two areas reminded me of a poem from High School-something Mr Jelley once taught us-that to this day I have never witnessed as blatantly and intentionally as this. Robert Frost's "Mending Wall" is a far more eloquent account of the DMZ than I will ever be able to write!
Here are a few selected lines:
He only says, "Good fences make good neighbours."
Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
If I could put a notion in his head:
"Why do they make good neighbours? Isn't it
Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
What I was walling in or walling out,
And to whom I was like to give offence.
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That wants it down."
These last two lines- are interesting especially when considering the DMZ- as one would expect there to be hatred towards the DMZ- a resentment and an outcry. But with time passing, the whitepickets spanning every 200m along the "wall" serve as a symbol of complacency and no longer a desire for looming unitedness. There was an eerieness about the DMZ, with soldiers staring at their reflections(minus the slight apparel difference) in the Joint Security Area only a mere 10-20metres away ready to open fire if any slight provocation should allow for it. And then, to be observing "the war" as first hand as us tourists did-felt like we were in nothing less than a lion cage in a zoo with an American Soldier barking orders at us as to protect us from the ferocious beasts that look nothing more daunting than my grade 4 boys only a little more grown up and wearing aviators.
Am I cycnical about this? YES. Why I had to ask myself? Because the entire notion of war baffles me: it inflicts innocent people's lives, divides families, creates imaginary boundaries and at the end of the day makes money out of it-the cheek!
As I stared out into the Alpine-post-card-like mountains of North Korea, I couldn't help but think that I my 70 US$ would have been far more beneficial to a family in North Korea suffering in this unbearable cold.
Such is life!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Cambodia and Vietnam!
What springs to mind when you think of Cambodia-Maybe Ankor Wat or Angelina Jolie's kid comes from there? It's the poor cousin of Thailand? It's not really featured in any TOP 10 lists to see in lonely planet and I may now confidently say "superbly underrated!" Cambodia may even sneak in above Vietnam for me! It was truly remarkable! Although, I still love Vietnam, Cambodia has an untouched beauty about it, whereas the likes of Ho CHi Minh feels like touristville (on par with Bangok ) where every jolly taxi driver or cyclo driver is trying to milk you for all the possible Dong they can get! We (Kirst and the two JOs) did so very much indeed in 2 weeks that to transcribe my untidy, scribbled diaries onto the more modern convenience of a desktop would just take hours and hours and would be BORING! So instead-a "photos HIGHs" section will follow the itinerary with all things worthy of mentioning!
9 Jan: Arrive Siem Reap (ancient temple exploring, bicyclin, fish eating feet, massages)
10Jan: Siem Reap ( fish amok, beautiful apsara scultures, Tomb Raider temple, tuk-tuk rides)
11 Jan: Siem Reap and overnight bus to Sinokville (sleezy, old, fat, desparate man hang out)
12 Jan: Nomad Island (mango shakes, fresh grilled fish, crimson sunsets, hammocks reading "First they killed my Father", snorkelling, phosphorescence in the sea at night )
13 Jan: Nomad Island (aka paradise)
14 Jan: Nomad Island (aka more paradise)
15 Jan: Phnom Penh ( Killing fields, Security Prison 21, Palace, best con-artist book seller aged 10 that got us to buy 5 books)
16 Jan: Phomn Penh ( beautiful orchids, a chat with a monk, a fried frog!)
17 Jan: Chau Doc (cyclos, a motorbike ride, a tour of the floating villages and feeding fish)
18 Jan: Can Tho ( a bustling river-front with everythign on sale from Bonsai to new clothes all for Lunar New Year)
19 Jan: Can Tho ( Floating market cut short, a medicine women and a visit to the local public hospital- oh adn Sauteed snake!)
20 Jan: HO Chi Minh ( Getting screwed by a cyclo driver, Reunification palace, Ben Thahn Market)
21 Jan: HO Chi Minh ( the most delicious meal at teh same restaurant twice in one day, war remnanats museum with a great exhibition of war photographers, Ho Chi Minh City Museum)
22 Jan: Ho Chi Minh and fly back to Incheon Korea. ( A Vietnamese cooking course with a famous American chef and one long flight home)
HIGHS in pictures!
All the different types of Transport- ferry, boat, speed boat, bus, over-night bus that screeched like a beginner violinist for all 10 hours, a tuk-tuk, a cyclo ( human pushed wheelbarrow), a mini-bus, a motorbike, a bicycle, taxi-legal and illegal!
The flowers! Oh the orchids! Uncle John would have loved them! Somethign I have missed so much from home! Nothing like warmer climates for sunshine and flowers!
Of course beautiful people are never hard to find in South East Asia-especially little kids! My goodness! I just want one! This little kid-Fong ended up massaging my legs! The girls at the bottom sold us beautiful bamboo made dragonflies and birds! " only 1$ lady"! There Englsih was far better than my kids at school -sad how "struggle for survival" is a wonderful catalyst for learning!
Of course another moment worth mentioning is the horrific tragedies of war both in Vietnam and Cambodia that has left horrific evidence of its destruction. I questioned the ethics of having a memorial containing everyone's skulls at the killing fields and the horrific pre-execution photos of prisoners at S-21 in Phnom Penh. It just doesn't make sense to me! Any of it.
Thank you Cambodia and Vietnam for a wonderful stay! Many happy memories, laughs and photos!
Love
JO-explorer!
xxx
Sunday, January 2, 2011
New Year, New resolutions!
Wow-I am pooped, finished, dood and kaput!!!
The family left on Friday night after a whirl-wind adventure of tantalising Korean flavour!
And the New Year has rolled around quicker than you can say "jeranimo" or is "geranemo"! Who knows-what the hell! A very chilled night was spent decidedly out of the cold and in a bar froteh count down on 2011!
I have been alone in my lovely little apartment most of the afternoon after getting back from Seoul this afternoon. It has been the first time in about 3 weeks I have actually managed to do nothing and soak up all that has been going on!
So I thought a little blog was in order... or rather a testimony of my year 2010 and my hopes and resolutions for this year-the year 2011-which I might add sounds really SCI_FI! haha.. not sure why!
So 2010, I coined the resolution: Love. Laugh. Live! (my love for alliterations will never die)
And boy what a year it has truly been....
In the LOVE department (ALL FORMS THAT IS) I realised that self-love, although a desirable state of being, relies on the insatiable quest for self-knowledge, sometimes harsh self-acceptance, and a good dose of self-boosting (aka confidence). Love for family is summed up in the idiom: blood is thicker than water-always. Love for people- all kinds of people is possible. I love George Moore's quote : "After all, there is but one race: HUMANITY". And then my love for friends-great friends-who are there through thick and thin-great party moments, life defining chats, moments of doubt and fear... I sure dont have a million friends, but those I do have I hold close to my heart. And then sharing your life with someone means having someone to witness your day, someone to challenge you, someone to truly care for you and mean it, someone to share your interests and not divide your differences, someone that brings out the best in you and loves you for your ditsyness, friendliness, love for ballet, horrible accent and your flaws and funny knees. I have been truly blessed this year for being loved so much, and being able to show that love conquers all in life no matter what circumstance.
I have managed to LAUGH-a million times over- mostly at myself! And this I have also learned- laughing at oneself is the greatest lesson one can learn. Life isn't all serious! My everyday events are comical from a taxi driver on New Years Eve not believing white people were from South Africa and being convinced that I should marry him to my students demanding to know if I were rich or not... or better yet a raging adjuma smacking my dad on the bum for not going to her restaurant but instead choosing their rivals who were more busy I might add.laughter is a wonderful medicine and to laugh freely and whole-heartedly is wonderful-truly wonderful!
In terms of living-LIFE- the zeal for breathing= life as we know-all the lemons, tequilla and salt- it is all about CHOICE!From the moment you wake up-we choose... Life is filled with them! make decisions and choices with conviction-who cares if they are wrong afterwards... at least you can say you made it with conviction and learnt a lesson for next time. :) I have been so incredibly fortunate to learn this past year that attitude is a choice too... Attitude to moan, attitude to be grumpy or conversely to suck it up and move on and make the most of it! Never again will I ever have 4 international holidays in one year- sure I have no savings left but my choice to travel and explore , experience and taste life in different parts of the world has certainly been fulfilled 10 fold!
AS for 2011~! and only 7 days til I leave for Cambodia and Vietnam with Kirst and Jo for another extremely great adventure in the sunshine-OH YEAH BABY!!!! And less than 50days left in Korea- I begin to plan for my next journey-that is to France!! OUI-c'est vrai! :) But in the chaos of conversation class planning and registering with Unisa and returning bedding to teachers and cleaning my flat and booking accommodation and trying to work out how to obtain my Schengen visa .. I have managed to come up with another alliteraton for 2011-a year which will of course be very different from 2010... that of H's.
Health
Hardwork
Honesty
Happiness
Bring on this year-YIPPEEE!!
Bisous
Jo teacher!
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