Panmunjom (the highlight of the tour)

Panmunjeom¡¯s attraction lies not in what you see or do, but more how it all makes you feel. It¡¯s a unique place; with 130, 000 visitors a year, it offers the briefest of glimpses into the world¡¯s most capricious and reclusive state, and the last chance to see the Cold War at full, frightening freeze.

The Joint Security Area - Panmunjeom¡¯s official name ¨C is less than 1 square kilometer in size. The South¡¯s Freedom House and the North¡¯s Panmungak administrative buildings face each other on opposite sides of the Military Demarcation line, which forms the border between the U.N. and North Korean controlled zones. Straddling the M.D.L. are three rectangular huts, the venues for military armistice talks that have been ongoing since 1953. The highlight of the tour is the chance to enter the central hut, where the Military Armistice Commission discussions still take place. Once inside, the guide begins his talk with the news that ¡°those of you on my left are now in the communist North Korea, while those on my right are relatively safe in the democratic South.¡± No matter where you start, everybody¡¯s free to walk across the first 3m of carpeted North Korean soil.

The other most memorable moment of the tour is the drive past of the Bridge of No Return and the short walk to Checkpoint Number Three, where you can look across fields and propaganda boards to the North Korean showcase village Gijong-dong (Peace Village in Korean, Propaganda Village in American English) and the world¡¯s tallest flagpole.

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Photo from travelDPRK from DanDong LiaoNing China

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