Today, we started off around 9:30 with an hour-long bus ride to the DMZ. Since December, this had been a part of the trip that I was very excited for. At first, I anticipated being able to see the JSA (Joint Security Area), but Chris told me that it had been closed ever since that U.S. soldier ran across the border. Because of this, I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I was still excited. When we arrived, we had to take the official DMZ shuttle. As we drove to the gate, there were a ton of soldiers, fencing, and barbed wire. A Korean soldier came onto the bus to check everyone’s passport, which was a bit intimidating. Once we passed that, we drove to the location of “Tunnel 3.” These tunnels were dug by the North Koreans after the Korean War to stage a potential attack on Seoul. This was the 3rd of 4 tunnels they found, but they speculate that there are many more. We weren’t able to take pictures of the tunnel or much at all at the DMZ, which was a bit disappointing, but when we finally went down the ramp into the tunnel, we arrived at this long tunnel with very low ceilings, and it was wet. At the end of the tunnel, we could see through a barrier to the rest of the tunnel that is closed off due to possibly active dynamite. Afterwards, we went to the Dora Observatory that overlooks North Korea. We were not allowed to take pictures and couldn’t even see anything due to the thick fog.

After the DMZ, we took an hour bus ride to a KBO baseball game between the Samsung Lions and the Kiwoom Heroes. Kiwoom was the home team, so we cheered for them. At the game, we ate delicious Korean fried chicken and got to experience what a KBO game is like. Although the game itself is played the same, the experience is much different in that when your team is batting, there are cheerleaders, someone on a microphone, music playing, and constant chanting and singing. Samsung’s side was much louder and a joy to watch. Seeing how involved people are throughout the entire game was fascinating. The game ended up going to extra innings, but unfortunately, Samsung won. Regardless, it was a very fun experience and a great day overall.