Popped by the DMZ twice over the last week for an upcoming story in SEOUL magazine.
Here are a couple of photos presented as a sort of preview.
This is the Seungil-gyo Bridge, which crosses the Hantangang River (where you’ll find plenty of volcanic rock) in Cheolwon-gun, Gangwon-do (sorry for the differing sky color). You’ll notice that the two halves of the bridge are different. One theory is that the North Koreans started the bridge before the war (when they controlled Cheolwon and all areas north of the 38th parallel) and the South Koreans finished it after the war. Recent documentary evidence, however, suggests that the Japanese started the bridge prior to Liberation and the U.S. Army finished it during the Korean War. Likewise, there are two theories as to the bridge’s name. One holds that it was named after South and North Korea’s first presidents, Lee Seung-man and Kim Il-sung. The other (and now generally accepted) theory is that it was named after Col. Park Seung-il, a ROKA officer who led South Korean forces over the Hantangang River before being killed during the allied offensive into North Korea.
The JSA in Panmunjeom. You can see the KPA guard (and, if you look at the 1,000 px version, the other KPA guy peering through the open window with binoculars) observing in the background. Gotta love the shades on the South Korean MPs — really intimidating.
The weather turned absolutely shitty yesterday afternoon, so taking photos at Imjingak was a bit tough. The altar is where families from North Korea gather on holidays like Chuseok and Seollal to conduct their ancestral rites. The railway bridge, BTW, is especially important as its over this bridge that today’s train to the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea passed on its way to becoming the first train to cross the inner Korean border since the Korean War.
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“The JSA in Panmunjeom. You can see the KPA guard observing in the background. Gotta love the shades on the South Korean MPs — really intimidating.”
I find dark shades on a tall, broad-shouldered man in uniform standing legs akimbo quite sexy.
I find the difference between the commonly held belief of how the bridge was built and the truth about it quite ironic.
Well, in due fairness, the documentary evidence — the journal of a Captain James N. Patterson of the 79th Engineer Construction Battalion — was discovered (at least on the Korean side) only last year by a web designer residing in the town (although judging from the now non-existent link on this page, it seems the unit in question knew they built it). The info board on the bridge — and here’s a photo of it — intentionally avoids saying which theory is correct. I have to think the photos of the bridge construction on the info board were taken from the 79th Engineer Construction Battalion’s records.
Here’s an interesting piece of info from the Korean War Educator:
Robert, thanks for this and your many many other great posts with photos and historical notes. It is a great service which is much appreciated by people like me (who lurk but unfortunately fail to express gratitude frequently enough). Anyway, great stuff and thanks a million.
The irony would be even more enhanced if (during a possible future Clinton administration) it was renamed the “Bill Clinton Memorial Bridge to the Future”.
The Big He himself could come for the dedication — accompanied by the huzzas of thousands of massed ROK citizens, with a consequent enormous increase in “kibun” for all concerned. A thought to be savored! for those who constantly fret about “how the world hates America”.
Of course, this is only one of many possible futures, as Reese explained to Sarah Connor when she quizzed him skeptically. Like him, I’m not a tech guy.