Happy Birfday

A happy birfday goes out to my beautiful fiance, Dawna. Happy 23rd!

- Gilad

And teaching it is...

So today was my first day on the job at UNICEF and tomorrow will be my last. While on my lunch break today, I found out that I got a teaching job that pays a lot more... with a lot less working time... and VERY close to my house. Oh, and it's also a full-time, permanent position, unlike this six-week contract with UNICEF. It was awkward telling my bosses that I'd have to quit on the same day I started but it went pretty well.

So yea, I'll be teaching students who are ages 18-25 (on average) who come here to learn English. They're from places like Korea, Japan, South America, Europe, etc. My favourite part of this position is that on Fridays I only work from 9-12 which gives me time to tutor students... and unlike Korea, private tutoring is legal over here. I'm also teaching older kids (unlike in Korea), as well as getting complete freedom in two of my four classes. This means that I can center my lesson around my favourite song, a TV show, a political issue, etc. Lots of room for creativity which I'm definitely looking forward to.

The next post will have pictures of the apartment... I swear.

- Gilad

Downtown Life

Part of the allure of living in downtown Toronto is the accessibility of everything. Restaurants, shops, nightlife, daylife... it's all a footstep away. Living in downtown Toronto also opens your eyes to the homeless, crackheads and drunks roaming around. So it was yesterday when Dawna and I were walking our Korean dogs, while wearing our Korean clothes, when we saw an old Korean man get punched in the face by someone who appeared to be intoxicated. This Korean guy I mentioned runs the convenience store right around our apartment with his wife. At around 11pm, we see an angry guy rush out of this convenience store, slamming the door. Not exactly sure why he did that, but the old shop owner guy chased this man out onto the street. A few words were exchanged and the guy punched the old Korean man in the face. Normally, Dawna and I would not get involved (especially in this area), but when it's an old man getting hit in the face, we felt like we needed to. So we sorta yelled, ran across the street to where they were, just in time to see the Korean guy rip the intoxicated man's jacket off... and the guy ran way. So here we are, standing with this old guy making sure he's okay (which he was), as he holds this strange man's jacket all the while looking for his lense that got knocked out of his glasses when he got punched in the face. We decided to call the cops because we felt worried for this old shopkeeper and his wife. We filed our report, the shopkeepers were very thankful, and we felt like we did the right thing. Don't know if they ever found the guy but it was our first encounter with violence down in this area. Can't believe an old man got punched in the face.

Also, on that same walk, we saw a drunk lying down on the road and another drunk passed out on the grass in the park. Who gets drunk on a Monday?

- Gilad

Toronto

Well, I guess we haven't blogged in a while, huh?

So we're back in Toronto now and living in our beautiful apartment right in the middle of downtown Toronto. Man, it's hard finding a job in this part of the country, isn't it? We've been back here since August 19th and its only this Wednesday that I officially start my first day at work although that could all change. Here's the deal... I got a job with UNICEF as a "funds processor" for their trick-or-treat program. The position is only a 6-8 week thing and doesn't pay very well but it's something, right? Will help pay the rent, bills, etc. It's also just a 15-minute subway ride away and about 25 minutes from my door to theirs. Ironically, I also have a chance at a position as an ESL Teacher here in Toronto. The school I'd be teaching at will surely pay better than that UNICEF job and the institute is a 10-minute walk from my apartment. Oh, and it's also a permanent, full-time position. I have to go in tomorrow at 4 and I guess I'll find out then whether or not I got the job. I hope I did.

With regards to Korea... Dawna and I miss it there big time. We're lucky enough to be living in a city like Toronto where we can get any sort of ethnic cuisine and we certainly don't have to travel very far to find any sort of Korean restaurant. The problem is... the Korean food here is not nearly as good as the food in Korea. It's not only the food we miss though. We miss A LOT of our friends, our old hangouts, the makali bar, the mountains, among many other things. We knew we'd miss aspects of Korea but we didn't anticipate missing so much.

Pictures of the apartment will be up soon as well as more frequent updates of our lives here in Toronto. I should also get around to putting up pictures of our trip to Thailand that happened all the way back in July.

- Gilad

What the Blog?

Oh man. So it turns out that we haven't updated this thing in over two weeks. Awful, awful bloggers. Thailand was amazing and I swear that once we're settled in, we'll post those pictures up. Settled in? Why would he say that? Well, it turns out we're leaving Korea tomorrow as our contract is now up. I can't really describe how I'm feeling... but its definitely some kind of mixture including sadness, happiness, excitement, nervousness...

I'm definitely sad to be leaving behind some of the good friends we've made here. We've become VERY close to a lot of the foreign and Korean teachers at our school over the last month. It definitely sucks to be leaving at the peak of the friendship, but as Dawna pointed out, that's usually how it goes. I'm happy to be coming back to Canada and (FINAAAAAAAALLLLLY) seeing my friends and family. I guess we can throw excitement into that as well. Our dogs are coming back with us and I can't wait to show them off.. to have them experience their lives in Canada... and finally.. I'm nervous. I've been gone a year... I have a lot of expectations of what Canada will be like... of what seeing my friends and family will be like. How long will it take to find a job? I'm sure coming home will be amazing and much more (another expectation)... and well, I'm nervous to see how much things have changed since I've left(if at all).

In any case, at this time tomorrow, Dawna and I will be at the airport near Seoul waiting to fly to Toronto. I swear... I SWEAR... that once we get back and we're settled in, we'll tell you more about what went on in Korea over the last two weeks... as well as writing an in-depth review of this whole experience. It's been a crazy year of ups and downs but in the end, a VERY positive experience. That's for sure.

As well, the blog won't stop there. We'll just have to rename it "It's Toronto Now" until we start our next big adventure somewhere. It's official.. we'll be blogging about our lives for the rest of our lives. Excited. I know you are.

See you in Canada!

- Gilad

Waiting in Bangkok

Well, I have another two hours to go before I board my 2am flight here in Bangkok back to Korea. We won't get into town until about 12pm and then it's straight to work. Tomorrow will likely be brutal. In any case, Thailand was great and we should add more details and pictures sometime soon.

- Gilad

Saeng il chuk ha ham ni da

A big thank you goes out to Daphne (and her boyfriend), Kate, Deanna, Patricia, and Hani (teachers from my school) for buying me two birthday cakes and surprising me at the restaurant/bar last night. That was amazing and you guys are amazing people... I'll miss you A LOT. Thanks also to Patrick, Jung, Chris and Adam for showing up... and a big thanks to Dawna for orchestrating this surprise. I was quite impressed... how do you plan a surprise party for someone you live and work with? When did you have the time?

In other news, Thailand tomorrow (after I work today... on, you know, the day I didn't get off.)

- Gilad

A Box of Love

No, not that kind of box.

With my 24th birthday looming around the corner and being here in Korea, I wasn't expecting much in the way of gifts. Not that I ever do, but you know, away from family and friends it's just a little more difficult.

Well, to my surprise, I walked into work yesterday and saw a box from a Bryson Parks. I lit up and it made my day. After opening the box, I found out that Drew and Chase were a part of it as well. Awesome.

What was inside the box?

1. An empty pizza box from our favourite/local/cheap pizza place in Waterloo. It's a shame the box was empty but after not seeing it for eleven months, it was still awesome.
2. A tub of protein powder. Awesome! I was running low and needed to pick some up anyways. Great timing.
3. A book of 500 smoothie and juice recipes. You guys know how I love my frozen dairy products.
4. A Spanish phrasebook for my future travels to South America. Really handy.
5. A Men's Health magazine. Not only will I learn how to improve my body more but I'll have tons of stuff to read whilst on the toilet! Seriously, I was running so low on material that I was starting to read the back of conditioner bottles. Too much information?

This was the best gift I could have asked from my best friends. Thanks guys. You rock!

And yes, Seinfeld.

- Gilad

People, indeed, are awesome!

Thanks Chris for sharing this awesome video. I need to do something like this. Hmmm...


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

- Gilad

One Month

Dawna and I are one month removed from returning to Canada. That means we've been here for eleven months, and well, WOW! Only one more month left in Korea. Can't believe it!

- Gilad

Sweet Yukata

Mark, from Japan, recently sent me a sweet yukata, among other cool Japanese items. It's so... Japanese. Check it out!






- Gilad

Lotte Giants and Sashimi

Last week, along with Patrick and Jung, I was able to head to Busan's Sajik Stadium to visit their beloved Lotte Giants host a baseball game against the Doosan Bears. Although our (Lotte Giants) team lost 3-2, it was a pretty crazy game to attend. The stadium was packed the fans were nuts at all times. Every player has their own song/chant that the whole stadium gets into. In fact, everything has a chant. When someone catches a foul ball, the whole stadium chants for the guy/girl to hand it over to a child. When the opposing team tries to pick off a runner on first, the chant has a designated chant for that as well. Lots of similarities to the game back home but lots of subtle differences as well. $7 gets you a ticket anywhere in the stadium... you decide where you sit. Rather than eating hot dogs, everyones snacking on gimbap (rice wrapped in seaweed... kinda like sushi) or fried chicken... and just like back home, there's tons of obnoxious, drunk guys acting like goofballs. Some former MLB players also play for these teams, but like you can imagine, that obviously means they're not MLB-leveled players anymore. One thing I found hilarious is that all the teams are named after big-name Korean companies. You have the Hyundai, Doosan, Kia, Lotte and other teams. All the teams are based out of a city... so Busan has the Lotte Giants. Rather than cheering for the name of their city (i.e. "BUSAN! BUSAN!") everyone cheers the name of the company... so you have tons of "LOTTE!" "LOTTE!" changs going on. Great marketing strategy!

Good times.


Sajik Stadium in Busan.


The scoreboard. That American flag you see represents their lone American player and same goes for the Mexican flag next to it.


Near the 8th inning, they handed out orange garbage bags for everyone to pump air into and put on their heads. I guess it serves three purposes. The first, you can support the home team by wearing their colours. Secondly, you can pick up all the trash around you after the game is over. And third, you can look like a giant douchebag.


The orange bags.


A stadium full of orange bag heads.


Cute little girl struggling with her bag.


Patrick, the douchebag.


One of the thousands of Lotte chants.


Another Lotte chant.


After the game was over, we headed over to the beach for some sashimi (raw fish). This experience never gets old. We head to a fish market where we scan over tons of tanks housing different kinds of live fish. We pick what we want, it gets slaughtered and gutted in front of us, and it's all ready to eat. One second it's alive, and the next it's being dipped into various hot sauces and being eaten raw. Delicious!


Assorted fish... and that dish in the top left corner is the live octopus that is still moving around after it's been killed.


Not really sure what this fish was called but it was delicious.


San Nakji... or live octopus.


mmm... sashimi!


- Gilad

They're SO damn good at English!

My kindergarteners just rocked that open class I wrote about earlier. They were all funny, cute, and smart.. they knew everything and knew it well. I just finished it up about 20 minutes ago and I'll be getting feedback later today. I hope my boss agrees that it went well... I'm excited to hear what she has to say. What a relief to be done! Now, in the batter's cage... DAWNA PACHKOWSKY (who doesn't quite have such well-behaved, cute and intelligent students).

- Gilad

The Kindy Open

So tomorrow comes the day where I put on my second open Kindergarten class. The students, their parents and my boss will all be in the class at the same time, watching me.. judging me... and I can't wait to get this over with. I've been practicing the same schtick with my students for a few weeks now. I will not pull any new punches in this class and everything I'll be doing is mainly review in one way or another. This past Friday, I practiced the whole routine with my kids and it went perfectly... it was flawless. I was confident I'd have the best open class ever. Then, yesterday, our practice was a disaster. The kids were hyper, unattentive and forgetful of things we've been doing for months now! That definitely scares me as I don't have anymore classes to practice with them and tomorrow is the day. Oh well... 30 minutes and it's all over. At times, I'm confident, and at other times, I'm frightened.

Also, I just got word yesterday that I'm getting a new kindergarten student in August. Although I only have ten working days left in August, it should be interesting to work with her. The head of the kindergarten department told me that this girl was a year younger than my students (who are already the youngest at our school) which means she was born in 2005. There's also a chance that she's the youngest student to ever attend our academy. So how old is she? I was also told that by western age, she is still technically two years old. When I was two years old, I definitely did not have a full command of the English language... I doubt she has a full command of her own native language too. Should definitely be an interesting way to wrap up my classes with the kindys! I'll have to post a picture of her when I meet her... just to show the world how tiny she is.

- Gilad

South Korean tourist fatally shot in North Korea

This is pretty crazy! As the article mentions, there are two tours that run to two separate areas of North Korea. We went on the OTHER trip... and I do remember when we stepped like an inch out of the boundaries, we were yelled at. Luckily, we weren't shot.

SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- A North Korean soldier on Friday shot and killed a South Korean woman at Mt. Keumgang, a popular mountain resort in the communist nation, a government official in the South said.

The 53-year-old woman was shot around 5:30 a.m., according to Kim Ho-nyun, a South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman.

"South Korea deeply regrets that such an incident has happened," Kim said.

The body has been taken to a hospital in the South.

The woman was believed to have been on a walk and went beyond the resort's boundaries when the North Korean soldiers were ordered to shoot, North Korean authorities said, according to Hyundai Asan, the South Korean tour company that books the trips.

The tours to the North have been suspended for the time being.

The resort is part of a tightly controlled and well-marked area along the east coast of the Korean peninsula and one of only two areas South Korean tourists are allowed to travel to in the North.

The South Korean government will conduct a full investigation into the incident and the North Korean authorities are expected to cooperate fully, according to Kim.

The incident occurred on the day South Korean President Lee Myung-bak proposed reopening stalled reconciliation talks with North Korea.



- Gilad

41 days and 40 nights

Looking back, I'm sometimes shocked to see how much time has passed. We arrived here in South Korea on August 25th, 2007 but at times, it still feels like yesterday when I was saying goodbye to mine and Dawna's families at Pearson Airport in Toronto. I've recently had the chance to flip through this blog and I've skimmed or read most of the posts dating back to last year and I'm astonished at the ups and downs we've gone through. I've got to say that we've experienced some of the most amazing highs over the last year (learning about the culture, making some cool friends, traveling to other countries, the puppies) and lots of lows as well. I'm especially proud of us for perservering through the last year. Dawna and I will readily admit that this has been the most challenging year of our lives. We've been praised and rewarded or discriminated and shot-down but either way, it's all helped us learn and grow. We were both tested in several different ways and whether or not we walked away from the experience with a good or bad thought about it, we both realize and understand that in whichever shape or form a challenge approached us, we overcame it and became better and stronger people as a result. So I'll pat myself on the back for that.

Where do I stand with 41 days and 40 nights between now and Canada? Well, we have an open kindergarten class coming up at the end of next week. For those who read our blog way back when in September, this is where we put on a kindergarten class with each child's mother (and/or father, sister, brother, grandparents, etc) and our boss sitting in the same room. When it goes well, it's incredible, but there's also many opportunities for the event to be a disaster. We can't really scold or punish the kids (not that we love doing it, but sometimes you have to) in front of their parents as each parent wants their child to look the best in the class. So what do we do if a child becomes disruptive? Well, we sit there, force the fakest smile possible, and in a calm and pleasant manner, ask the child to stop. If he/she doesn't, well then we're screwed. Some kids get nervous in front of their parents and completely forget how to talk... again... a disaster. It can also be nerve-wracking with so many eyes on you. Everyone reviewing, judging and observing the way you teach their child. Then again, I only have four students and they're all very well-behaved and intelligent for their age so I'm not very worried. Dawna, on the other hand, has eight students and from what she says, they're all tyrants... so she might have a little more trouble.

After that, however, we're mostly in the clear! We both look at this open class as our last big project at ECC. We're both trying our best to put on the best class possible and come away from this class with a positive outlook and experience. After that, we're putting on our last testing sessions for our children (which is VERY exciting) as I never have to evaluate another speaking test again. Sitting each child down, one by one, and having to be in charge of evalutating their speaking skills can not only be redundant each month (not my biggest complaint), but challenging as you REALLY have to pay attention to EVERYTHING the child does, and well, it's a lot of responsibility. So I'll be happy when that's said and done with. The day after we issue our last speaking test is our six-day trip to Thailand where Dawna and I plan on staying in a secluded area, away from the noise, and essentially debrief about the last year. Oh, and we also plan on coming back with great tans. This will be a nice and well-earned getaway.

We get back to South Korea on August 4th and that leaves us with 15 days before our flight back to Canada. This Thailand trip couldn't have come at a better time as it puts a 7-week stretch of working 5-days a week to an end and leaves us with barely any time until we come back home. We're very excited to return to Canada and it's not because we're excited to be leaving Korea, but it's that we're just happy to be returning to our country, friends, family and lives. We're very excited to be moving into our apartment in downtown Toronto, find full-time jobs and just get back into the flow of things. With regards to employent, I'm really looking into working for a non-profit/humanitarian organization, either focused around environmentalism, youth, traveling or anything else that sounds appealing. I'd also be willing to work in a media-related job if it interested me. It'd be great if I could find something that combined both areas. I'm setting a goal for myself to apply for a job a day until I come home. Whether or not this goal is realistic is yet to be seen, but it's day two and I just applied for my second job (not to count the 20+ jobs I've applied to over the last two months).

So that's where I stand. A little closer to the time I come back home, I want to put a more in-depth post where I review everything in more detail but that can wait.

So yea, there it is.

- Gilad

Oh, the pretty view.

Check out that awesome view of Toronto. Isn't it beautiful? The best part of the picture? It was taken from the balcony of OUR NEW APARTMENT IN TORONTO! Oh yea, baby! We officially found a place to live for when we get back and it's right in the heart of downtown Toronto. Sherbourne will be the place to be come September.

We. Are. Pumped!

- Gilad

Of Boredeom

So we're always measuring how long we've been here or how much time we have left by comparing with others. For example, "WOW, we've been here longer than Abbi was when we first got to Korea." Or.. "remember that time we went to Jinju? Yea.. Well that was 67 days ago... and we have 68 days left! CRAZY EH?" We usually come up with the most obscene ways of measuring how long we've been here, or again, measuring how much time we have left. "Wow. There's only six weeks left. We're where Alex was when she had six weeks left." For whatever reason, hitting that area where we only have five weeks left (next week) sounds like a milestone because we remember how Alex felt when she had five weeks left. Ironically, when we had seven weeks left, we never really said "WOW! We are where Alex (or Amy, or Abbi, or Mallessa) were when THEY HAD SEVEN WEEKS LEFT!" Why being left with six weeks is more impressive than being left with seven is beyond me... and for some reason, having five weeks left sounds more of a big deal than having four weeks left.

Anyways, it's ridiculous. We're bored sometimes and we're constantly finding ways to measure time in some way. All those ways of adding or subtracting time are completely and utterly stupid. I JUST discovered the ONE real and true way to measure how much time has actually passed by... and that's by doing the following:

LOOKING AT HOW MUCH MY HAIR HAS GROWN!

Ladies and gentlemen, Gilad Cohen, on September 2nd, 2007:



Gilad Cohen on July 3rd, 2008, 305 days later:




I know what you're thinking: "WOW! Amazing! SO MUCH time has passed by and I only truly know this by looking at how long Gilad's hair has grown."

Oh, and you're also probably thinking: "Sweet hair!"

Or even, "Where did that ass in his chin go?!"


- Gilad
(is so bored he doesn't know what to do with himself right now)

Animal Hell

In our 10 months here, Gilad and I have continued to see the value South Korea places upon the lives of animals and this past weekend after a trip to the pet store, my frustrations are no longer able to be contained.

As most know we adopted two dogs from a shelter that was closing. The woman who had this "shelter" (it is really just a greenhouse) kept all the dogs, cared for all the dogs, and paid for all the expenses out of her own pocket (with the help of volunteers too). This is not a government run shelter as in Korea I'm not sure if there is such a thing, besides the 10 day kill shelters. Yes, that is the best deal you can get. A shelter that will keep the animals for a whole 10 days before they euthinize them. One can only wonder why there are hoards of homeless animals on the streets with a deal like that. When we found the puppy in the mountains we had absolutely no alternative but to bring it home. What is the point of saving a dog only to have it be killed a few days later? It is not just the large amount of homeless animals that is disturbing but also just the general treatment and idea behind what an animal life is worth. Pets here are treated like toys. Buy one now, get tired of it, get rid of it. Or, buy a cute little baby and dress it up so it looks like a doll. Whatever happened to a dog being a dog? Why must it resemble some fantasy creature?

Gilad and I were looking for collars for our dogs and so this past weekend we strolled into a few pet stores, and we became sick at the sight. There were tons of animals stuck is small cages and filthy living conditions. Huge dogs living in a space so small they cannot stand or turn around. Or how about the puppies so young that they couldn't even walk yet. They had no mother with them to help them, so rather they were just dragging themselves with their front legs leaving their back legs limply following along. Then there was the tiny kitten who barely knew how to clean itself (a natural instinct) sitting with a tin can of food that could easily cut it while eating.

Sorry if the sound of all this is depressing, but no joke, this is something you see here daily. It is absolutely depressing because the mistreatment comes in such a huge quantity that it leaves you feeling hopeless. There is help out there, mostly coming from foreigners or native volunteers, however it is not nearly enough.

Dawna

South America

Whether you've heard about it or not, Dawna and I plan to travel back to South America in 2010. This is a tentative date... we have no exact dates or anything. It might not even happen in 2010 but that's the goal for now.

Even though we're still in South Korea and have yet to restart our lives in Canada, we're very eager and excited to get the ball rolling on this awesome project.

We love South America... the culture... the people... the language... everything. We're not alone, either. Through several discussions with many of our friends in Canada, we've learned of the importance of an extended trip to this continent. The beauty of this project is that we're certain it won't just be Dawna and I on this trip. As a result, we decided to create another blog that will be dedicated to this South America project. Through this website we hope to:
1. Update everyone on how this trip is beginning to shape up and how contacts/locations are becoming established.
2. Get our friends and others excited and entice them to join us.
3. Update the rest of the world, from South America, when we're actually there in 2+ years.

So visit this blog for now. It's in its baby phase but it will grow... for sure.

- Gilad

How time goes on

So just the other day, one of the ECC teachers left and a new one came. It is amazing because Mallessa to us was still considered the new teacher. How she managed to come here, complete six months, and the leave, without us realizing it, was quite a surprise. Time these days is just flying by and it is hard to keep track.

There is nothing like standing in an apartment that has hosted 3 different teachers at your school. In Parkland there are 2 apartments for the teachers. When we arrived Amy lived in one and Abbi lived in the other. Then they left and Alex moved into Abbi's and Mallessa into Amy's. Now once again, they both have left and it is Michael and Patrick who are there now. Standing in Patrick's apartment and thinking of the others who lived there was actually very humbling in the sense that time just doesn't ever stop. It goes quicker each day and well, you really have to be careful with the way you use it!

Mallessa's going away party was on Friday, and we found this to be the perfect opportunity to spend a night with our coworkers. We have really started to become a lot closer to the Korean teachers, and well as Friday night was happening I realized how much I would miss them. We went to the seafood bbp restaurant AGAIN haha, and spent from 10-2 just having an awesome time (by the end the crowd withered down to half of the Korean teachers, me, Gilad and Patrick - who was extremely jet lagged haha). Then we went to the makali bar after that and just talked and talked and talked. I really do regret not making more of an effort to get together outside of work because when it comes down to it, we all get along so well! We did try, unsuccessfully a few times, but maybe we should have tried harder. No matter now though because we are trying to use our time wisely for the next 7 weeks we are here! Like I said, time is just flying and well, sometimes I forget that I am even here because home feels so close.

_____Dawna________

New Link Added

Hey everyone,

We've added a new blog link to the left for Pegasus Teachers. They're based out of Vancover and they are a group of former teachers who help place teachers at schools in Korea. They created this blog to mainly keep teachers in in touch and informed with what is going on with their company and Korea. Give it a look... there's some good stuff there.

- Gilad

Adopted!

Hey,

So I forgot to mention..but that puppy we found was adopted over a week ago! Thank goodness for our good friend Bear and his girlfriend (the new parents) because 3 dogs were far too many dogs in one apartment.

Dawna

9077!

9077 hits to this website since we opened it back in August. With only 59 days to go, will we reach 10,000? More importantly, will we do it without Drew hitting the "reload" button a million times?

- Gilad

Our Trip to North Korea

Before we get into the details of our trip, we'll try our best to offer a history of Korea (both South and North) in a nutshell. This is pretty important information to read in order to understand the current state of these two sovereign countries. So here we go:

Korea in a very small nutshell:

Before there was a North and South Korea, there was just one country: Korea. Korea has a rich culture and tradition dating back thousands of years, but you can read about all that in your own time. Fast forward to 1910, when Japan annexed Korea. Korea, as a result, continued to be ruled by Japan until Japan's defeat to the Allied Forces in August 1945 during World War II.

While under Japanese rule, the Japanese removed the Joseon hierarchy (unique to Korea), its nobles and its taxation system. From what we understand, many Koreans who were against this ruling (and rightfully so, in our opinion, as their language, heritage and culture were trying to be erased) were brutally tortured and murdered by the Japanese rulers.

Tons of rallies, strikes and attempted uprisings took place during this period. As a result, the Japanese military strengthened its power in Korea. After the outbreaks of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937 and World War II, Japan attempted to wipe out Korea as a nation. Worship at Japanese shrines in Korea was made mandatory. The school curriculum in Korea was radically changed to reflect the changed policies. The celebration of Korean culture was suppressed. Newspapers were prohibited from publishing in Korean and the study of Korean history was banned at university.

This all continued on until 1945, when Japan had two nuclear bombs dropped on it and had to surrender in World War II. As a result, Japan's 35-year rule over Korea had come to an end. Japan surrendered Korea over to the Allied Forces and this led to the division of Korea into two"temporary zones", with the United States administering the southern half of the peninsula and the Soviet Union taking over the area north of the 38th parallel (which is the line that divides the country in equal halves).

Now, we said 'temporary' because the country was eventually supposed to be restored as one and given back over to Korea to rule for themselves. What happened, however, was that the politics of the Cold War resulted in the 1948 establishment of two separate governments, North Korea and South Korea. The US installed a democratic government in the South, while the Soviets appointed Kim Il-Sung to become the leader of North Korea. South Korea became democratic, while North Korea became communist.

Sometime in 1950, North Korea invaded the South, using Russian tanks and weaponry. The North almost took over the South... but then the South retaliated and attacked back... and almost took over the North, until they retaliated. This went on and on for years, and during the Korean War (1950-1953), millions of North and South Korean civilians died and the three years of fighting throughout the nation effectively destroyed most cities (except some cities like Busan and our Masan, haha!). The war ended in a ceasefire agreement and thats where the two countries now find themselves: technically at war but with an ongoing 55 year ceasefire.

What Happened After The Divison?

Well, without getting into too much detail, it's pretty simple in my opinion. South Korea's form of government allowed it to prosper. South Korea, after sometime, became rich very quickly. They started doing a lot of international business and the economy boomed. This led to it becoming a modern, industrialized nation. There's everything here that you can find in any other industrialized nation... a nightlife, sky-rises, and tons of things to choose from. People here do business, party, and basically have the freedom to do what they want, when they want.

However, the North is quite different. Kim Il Sung's communist regime did things another way. People in the North idolize him (even to this day, after his passing) as the Great Leader, even though their country, from what I know, is poor and the people are starving. There's no name-brand anything there... there are no public businesses. The people have no access to the Internet, cannot use cell phones and are basically blocked off from the rest of the world. They only hear and learn what their government allows them to hear and learn. It didn't take long for Dawna and I to both see the anti-American attitude of the country. The few bookstores we were able to stop into were littered with anti-American propaganda. The people there more or less blame the Americans for the division of the country. Anyway, Kim Jung-Il (Kim Il-Sung's son) is now the ruler, and things haven't changed.

Onto our part of the trip.

Our Trip to Kaesong, North Korea:

We consider ourselves pretty lucky to have gone on this trip. This tour to Kaesong only opened up in December of 2007, so it has not been long at all that North Korea has allowed visitors into its country. So here is how we began our journey:

After a VERY tiresome week, we were ecstatic when that last ECC bell rang which welcomed the weekend. Gilad and I hopped on an overnight bus ride (on which neither of us slept due to crazy driving and loud music) and arrived in Seoul at 3 am. We wandered the streets until our tour started at 5:50 am. Right away we knew we had an incredible tour guide and so we went into this trip feeling very lucky (after a mediocre tour guide experience with the DMZ tour). We got onto our tour bus feeling very excited but really unsure of what to expect. We listened to the rules: Basically we were only allowed to go where we were told and take pictures of only what we were told, otherwise we would have to pay a hefty fine or even lose our camera. Specifically, with the pictures, we weren't allowed to take any photos of North Korean people, buildings or landscape. Basically, they don't want us bringing back any pictures that depict North Korean life in any way. So when you see our pictures, you'll understand why they are all focused around the sites we visited and nothing else. While it was frustrating not being able to really document the trip through pictures, this allowed us to spend time asking questions to our Korean guide, attempt at some conversation (through translation) with our accompanying North Korean guide, and to just take it all in.

After we had gotten the Visa business sorted out on the South side, we were on our way. The most surreal feeling was being on that bus as we passed through the street where South Korea officially became North Korea. Our bus was escorted by a jeep full of South Korean soldiers, and before you know it, they pull over and U-turn, while another jeep full of North Korean soldiers take over the escorting duties. Wow! We're in North Korea right now. Unbelievable! Right when we got into the North, we had to sort out some more Visa business. It was here we realized that all the North Korean people we saw were wearing identical pins on their shirts showing the face of their Great Leader, Kim-Il Sung. Everybody in the country must wear this pin at all times to show their dedication and alliance with their leader. Everyone has three pins to avoid any excuses. After the Visa process, we then proceeded to get back onto the bus, where three North Korean government officials joined us. There were two North Koreans at the front of the bus and one other at the back of the bus making sure that we didn't do anything bad, i.e. take pictures of the North from inside the bus. Immediately, our thoughts were, "Oh God, there are North Koreans on the bus! We need to get as close to them as possible." And we did... we got seats RIGHT NEXT TO THEM for the whole time which allowed us to converse with them about several things. This was definitely a highlight of the trip and an unbelievable moment for the two of us.

We visited a few historical sites, all of which were so-so on the interesting scale. You'll see those in the pictures below. However, the most interesting parts were in-between these sites where we traveled throughout the city, and through the window (and sometimes standing outside), were able to get a glimpse of the lives of the people in North Korea. How would we describe the landscape? To me, it appeared like what South Korea could have looked like 40-50 years ago.

Imagine living in a country with no cell phones or internet, owning a television or radio (only if you are very privileged of course) which only boasted about the greatness of the leader. Imagine having no electricity, big roads but no cars to drive, and having a curfew to follow each day. Try to think of what life would be like if you had someone over you controlling your every move. Then step a little further outside of the box and see how you would feel if you were making only 2 dollars a day no matter if you are a farmer or a doctor, were poor and starving, and you had a leader that lived in luxury. You would probably think that many of these people would feel angry or bitter no? This of course is not something we could ever know due to the restrictions the government places on foreign communication. However this is a nation that is socialized to believe in the supremacy and godliness of it's leader. They are blocked from the outside world and thus are unaware of most things that are not North Korean. They know nothing else and so how can we ever know how they truly feel. With the help of our tour guide who has actually befriended a few North Koreans throughout her numerous trips (a spectacular feat), we were able to hear about how true they stand to the government. How starvation is not an issue, and how they will find roots from the ground to eat if necessary in order to stay loyal.

There are no words to describe the feeling of seeing buildings that are old and falling apart, glass windows that look like flimsy plastic due to low constructive technology, huge roads with nothing to fill them, and people who look like they have stepped back in time. The people in North Korea are of course just like people all over the world, but the mystery that surrounds them will plague us forever. We want to be able to talk to them but we can't. We want to be able to live among them, but that is a dream that most likely will never materialize. Some people smiled and waved, most others however just looked straight ahead and went on with life.

As I got up this morning, had a popsicle and sat down to watch TV. I, of course, could not stop reflecting about our trip. The biggest issue that struck Gilad and I was the complete control the government has over its people. We were lucky to get to see the people we did, because for the most part, anywhere the bus went people were told to stay in their houses for that specific time. Life for them stopped, because we were continuing on with our trip. Soldiers were placed randomly throughout, to not only watch our buses, but to make sure no one violated the government's demands. It was definitely strange seeing soldiers standing in random fields or on the side of the road, staring, as we passed, with nothing to do. This is just something that is so hard to digest as a human being, with an active mind and body is not allowed to make any decisions for themselves, right down to the clothes they wear, the house they live in and the job they work.

We were told that students study for ten years in North Korea. Four years elementary, three middle school and three high school. After that, two in ten students are chosen to go to University. The others either begin the rest of their working life or they go to the military. We were also informed that the clothes people wear, and the food they eat are all provided by the government. There are a few government run department stores, grocery stores and barber shops but from the outside you could never tell the difference from those and the apartments that people live in. Why is it that there are these massive roads when people are only lucky enough to perhaps afford a bicycle? Why does the capital city turn on its electricity only when a foreigner arrives? Or how about having a subway system that no one can use? Gilad made an excellent point when he stated that if things are they way they are here (in Kaesong) what was life like where the tour buses weren't allowed to go. The government is trying to paint a face value picture for its few visitors but even through that we can only imagine the truth.

As was mentioned, Gilad and I were fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to talk with one of the less shy North Korean guides. Pearl (our South Korean tour guide) mentioned how this man refused to learn a word of Japanese for their Japanese visitors so as to stay true to his heritage. However, after a little time, he began to show interest in us and began asking many questions about Canada (which even though he is a Professor of Business, we believe he did not know where Canada was). This in turn allowed us to ask many questions about his daily life, his children and his favourite food. We left the trip by writing a note to him (which was translated by Pearl) thanking him for being there and consider ourselves very lucky to have been able to have some time with one on one contact. How many people have the opportunity to write a letter and witness a North Korean not only read it, but be happy with it and decide to keep it? We feel very fortunate that we were placed in that situation.

Anyways we know this is a really long post, and I know we were only there for a short time, but North Korea is a place you can never really imagine until you see it. Getting a small taste of it has left us hungry for more and we will continue to be intrigued and concerned with the happenings there. Not everything there is so desolate like it may seem. This is a country full of beauty. The landscape is incredible, with lush grass, rolling hills and beautiful mountains (one of which looks like a pregnant woman!) The people there may be hungry but that may give them all the more reason to form strong relationships and we can only imagine the kindness that may take place between one another.

We hope this won't be our last experience with North Korea, however the future is very unpredictable. Now, the question is, how do we set up a Global trip there?


The Pictures:


Kaesong City in North Korea. We found this picture on the Internet. We aren't allowed to take any pictures like this because it depicts the city. But this gives you a rough idea. Old, unkept. Most places aren't even this developed.


Didn't take this picture. Shows some of the housing.


Again, didn't take this picture. Shows a structure. Could be anything from an apartment, school, barbershop, goverment-run grocery stores... who knows. It all looks the same.


Didn't take this picture either... but gives you a good sense of the big roads and no cars driving on them. Ever. Very eery.


Didn't take this picture either... shows Kim Il-Sung, the Great Leader. A God-like figure to the North Koreans.


Last picture that we didn't take... but here's a North Korean soldier. They all dress like this. Looks kinda creepy with their outfit looking like they're 50 years old.


Twenty-four hours of no sleep makes you look like this.


What a declaration card looks like for when you return from North Korea.


Kaesong, North Korea THATAWAY... and Seoul, South Korea... THATAWAY.


In the North now, Dawna in the park.


Gilad standing in front of a huge plaque at the park... likely promoting one of the Kim's.


Always had to wear our visas and passports around our neck. Not doing so would result in a HUGE fine.


Sitting in front of a structure.


A beautiful waterfall at the park.


Korean inscription written in the rock.


Again, can't read it, but be some propaganda... or not.


Propaganda?


Dawna with the awesome tour gude.


Dawna with the awesome fiancee.


Housing at the park.


One of the many mountains to be seen anywhere in Korea, North or South.


A monk's house at the park.


Our tour guide explaining this mural at the park. The story goes that there was once this guy who was creating this mural and before he was finished, he found out that his mother was really sick... so he decided that he wanted to go visit her and stopped painting. However, whoever it was that he worked for told him that he couldn't leave until he finished it. So he spent some more time here finishing the painting. He eventually got word that his mother had died. He came to the conclusion that this art was the reason he couldn't visit his mother and so he felt cursed, so-to-speak. As a result, he decided to decapitate his own hand so he could never make art again. He modified his mural himself, to depict him without the hand.


A closer look at the mural.


A closer look at the man without the hand.


A temple at the top of the mountain of the park we had visited. This is no longer an official temple as religion is banned in this country. It's kept here, rather, as a monument to show the history and tradition of the country.


Inside one of the caves at the park.


Yea, that's right. I took a picture of a couple of North Koreans hanging out... you know... in North Korea. Yea, I was there.


A hotel in a traditional part of the city. They let us take this picture, because the hotel looks nice. Please don't confuse this with what the rest of the structures in the city look like. It's likely that nobody ever stays here.


Dawna in the village. Next up was lunch.


Dawna excited to eat lunch.


That's a lot of food! We felt pretty bad eating it at times, knowing the rest of the country likely never ate this way. You could tell the government put on this elaborate meal to make it seem like they aren't nearly as poor as they are.


The food itself was as traditional as all Korean meals. Rice and tons of side dishes. It was delicious. The kimchi was nowhere near as spicy as it is back in the South.


We were excited to try the beer, but they didn't have any left so rather, we got some Makgullee... the fermented rice milk. I've definitely had better... this must have been fermenting for a while.


A close-up shot of the windows of the housing. Although the house looks nice from the outside, you can see the poor-quality of these windows. They are glass but look like plastic. I took this right before we headed into our first bookstore... where we saw tons of Anti-American literature and several books written by the Kims. I wish I could have brought one back for souvenir purposes, but the South Korean rules state that you can bring anything anti-American or pro-North Korean back into the South. Oh well.


A picture showing off our huge tour group. I really wish it was MUCH smaller.


An interesting tree, for sure.


You can tell who the South Koreans are by the mandatory passport/visas they have to wear around their necks... and you can tell who the North Korean is by the mandatory pin she must wear on all of her clothes.


A closer view of the pin.


I was a little worried taking this picture because I thought I some of the background city would turn up in the photo, but it didn't. Otherwise, I'd be screwed. At the same time, I really wish the background did show up.


They don't stamp your passports. Rather, they stamp the separate Visa they give you... and then they take it back when you leave. Your passport really shows no proof that you were there. Anyway, here's the stamp. After this, we went back to the Visa station where the North Koreans checked everything we had, made sure we weren't smuggling anything out of their country, and checked EVERYONE'S digital cameras to make sure we weren't taking any pictures of things we weren't allowed to take pictures of.


Thirty-nine hours of no sleep makes you look like this.



There you go. We wish we could show you more, but North Korea is definitely not a place you want to risk getting in trouble in. We can honestly say that the twelve hours we spent in North Korea were the most enlightening twelve hours of our lives. A beautiful and very strange place. There's DEFINITELY more than meets the eye... we just wish we could figure out how to see it.

- Gilad and Dawna.