Remants of Pain...

At first glance, the Labor Party Building doesn't look very special. This building was used by North Korea to re-educate civilians about the communist ideals. People who resisted the Labor Party were subjected to torture, mutilation, and/or death. It is one of remains in this area from the Korean War, as the South reclaimed some of the land that was lost to the North. Many parts of the building give an idea of the intense battles that took place here. You can even see bullet holes and empty ammo stuck into the building walls.

The Station That No Longer Is...

The man standing with his umbrella was one of our tour guides. Woljeongri Station was used to make frequent stops through North and South Korea. Our tour guide gives a fitting, but sad image - waiting for a train that will never arrive.  Maybe someday Korea will reunite and the civilians in the North will be free from their suffering.

The remains of the train that was destroyed because of the Korean War.

 

The only train cargo car that was left intact from the war. 

 The front of the train also remained intact from war destruction.

 

Roof canopy covering the remnants of the train.  This station actually marks the partition line between the North and South.

Infiltration Tunnel #2

This is the entrance to one of the infiltration tunnels that North Korea made in an attempt to invade South Korea. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any pictures once we entered the tunnel. I was surprised that almost the entire tunnel did not have any reinforcing walls or structure. The tunnel walls were entirely dirt with water dripping and moss growth. Some parts of the tunnel were as high as 7.5 feet, while other parts were only 4 ft high. Sections leading to North Korea were barricaded with security cameras and warning signs of no trespassing.

North Korean Mad Scientist

Thought I'd spice up my posts with a little bit of humor.

Up and Running Again

Hello everyone,

Some of you were probably by the blank spots littering my blog. I'm not sure what was the cause of this, and I apologize for any inconveniences. All of my past posts are now re-uploaded. This includes all of the pictures and videos that I posted for Dalseong Park & Zoo last week.

Daegu Arboretum

Being in this area definitely reminded me of back home. I can't recall if I saw the long "vine and spaghetti strand" cactus anywhere in AZ.

I couldn't resist getting an action shot of the walk through a bamboo "forest".

Many kids were hanging out at this small pond. I had to sneak around them try to get an artsy shot.

Last stop I made in this park was the shrub and bonzai trail. When I walked halfway though many of the plants were not fully bloomed yet. I'll have to come back in a couple weeks.

Chased by a Peacock...

Took one more trip to Dalseong Park and I captured this nice picture of a peacock running towards me.

Luncheon is Served

My school usually serves pretty good lunches. This was one of the best and it was one I needed to post here.

Zooing in the Park

Here are a few videos and videos I took while I was at Dalseong Park. When I first visited this park I was not expecting to see a zoo in the park.

This is the main entrance leading into the park.

A nice memorial area that was meant to remind us to always care for our children and their futures.

The elephants looking happy to see all of the people. It's been a long time since I've even seen an elephant in person.

Two out of only about 2000 bengal tigers remaining in the world. They are an endangered species, so it was cool to actually see them. I missed the moment when they were roaring at each other however.

A friendly looking bear catching food from visitors..... Of course I can only say "friendly" because I was far away from him.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Daegu's baseball team the Samsung Lions - that's right, they don't even bother to hide the name of their corporate sponsor!