Looking out to North Korea

A couple of weeks ago, we ate dinner at a local restaurant. When we went to pay, our bank card wouldn't process. Nor the next day, nor the day after. It turns out that our bank had been attacked by North Korean hackers, immobilising 30 million accounts. It's one of those not so infrequent reminders that the world's most secretive and subversive country is a mere 70 miles from our house.

Today we went to the DMZ, the fortified area between North and South Korea. The main attraction is peeking a glimpse across the boarder through binoculars, and going into the tunnels which the North audaciously built in secret to invade Seoul. At 70 metres underground and wide enough for 30,000 soldiers per hour to pour through, they were a random find for the surprised South Koreans, popping up mere miles from the capital. It's believed there are up to 20 more to find - cash reward offered if you discover one.

Given the volatile political situation, the humanitarian crisis in North Korea and the personal emotional trauma of many separated Korean families, we were expecting a thought provoking experience. Not a bit of it. Funfair rides and countless souvenir stalls selling plastic dinosaurs and inflatable hammers. And we felt it was a bit of a stretch to be billing the landmine-riddled DMZ as a natural paradise. A strange experience.