I think one of the most challenging things about learning a language is getting used to different idioms and cultural nuances. Being bilingual comes with costs as well. I’d be trying to explain something in one language but I can only think of the specific phrase in the other language. After being around Korean speakers for a while, I definitely had gotten used to Korean sayings and phrases that only exist in the Korean language and would be hard to translate to English. For example, there is this one term “찌릿찌릿” and it loosely translates to “shooting pain”. This term is usually used to describe pains when you have a bodyache.
This Friday, we went to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and was able to go into the third infiltration tunnel, a tunnel built during the Korean War for the purpose of sending North Korean troops all the way to Seoul, the capital of South Korea. This tunnel was discovered in 1978 and the North Koreans were accused of violating the 1953 Armistice Agreement. This is the third of four known tunnels, but there could be up to 20 more. It was really eerie being inside this tunnel. The North Koreans disguised it as an abandoned coal mine by smearing the walls with coal dust. There were also many holes in the walls, which turned out to be dynamite holes, and they all faced the South. Additionally, as we went into the tunnel, the decline was pretty noticeable. This was so that any water in the tunnels would automatically drain out to North Korea. We also went to Dorasan Station which is the train station that used to connect North Korea and South Korea. The best part of this experience was going to the Dora Observatory, situated on Mount Dora, which is where one can see into the reclusive North Korea.
Peace bell near the Dora Observatory
Behind me is a sign that says “To Pyeongyang” which is the capital of North Korea
“End of separation, beginning of unification”
views from the observation deck (north korea)
“Dora Observatory”
