Spring Break in KDI School of Public Policy and Management: Seoul City Tour

The heavy rain on Friday, May 6, 2016, did not prevent a group of seventy-four students from participating in the Seoul City Tour organized by KDI School to celebrate the end of the spring semester and the start of the spring break. The tour had been planned to cover Gyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Village and the Dongdaemun Market, however the students were only able to visit Gyeongbokgung Palace and Bukchon Hanok Village due to the unfavorable weather conditions of that day.

The first destination on the tour was Gyeongbokgung Palace, commonly referred to as the Northern Palace because of its northernmost location compared to the neighboring palaces of Changdeokgung (Eastern Palace) and Gyeonghuigung (Western Palace) Palace. Gyeongbokgung Palace is arguably the most beautiful, and remains the largest of all five palaces in Seoul. There, students were able to improve their knowledge about the Joseon Dynasty and had the unique opportunity to observe the daily lives of the royal families that once resided in this palace.

After enriching the students with the history of Gyeongbokgung Palace, the event provided the students with the opportunity to experience Korean food in a traditional Korean restaurant nearby which provided a buffet based on Korean dishes.

After a generous Korean-style meal, the tour continued on to the Bukchon Hanok Village, home to hundreds of traditional Joseon-style hanok houses, with many of these traditional houses operating as cultural centers, guesthouses, restaurants and tea houses. The visit to Bukchon Hanok Village provided students with a unique opportunity to experience, learn and immerse themselves in traditional Korean culture.  

One participant of the event, Elena Gerasimenko, (Fall 2015, MDP) found the event to be a great opportunity for improving students’ knowledge about Korean culture. Another participant, Cornelly Walcott (Spring 2016, MPM) found the event to be very well organized, relaxing and informative. During the tour, Cornelly enjoyed the historical aspects as well as the opportunity to see and experience Korean culture.

Field Trip to DMZ: Nourishing Students with Korean War

In order to celebrate the Korean Memorial Day (June 6), KDI School organized a trip to the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) for seventy-nine students. The DMZ is a buffer zone which was established on July 27, 1953 upon the signing of the Armistice Agreement during the Korean War.

During the trip, KDI School students had the opportunity to visit the Nuri Peace Park (Imjingak), the Third Infiltration Tunnel, Dorasan Observatory and Dorasan Train Station . The Peace Park was established in 1972 immediately after the declaration of the joint South-North armistice, and exhibits various relics and monuments related to the Korean War and subsequent South-North confrontations. At Imjingak, the students enjoyed a variety of sculpted artworks.

The visit to the Third Infiltration Tunnel was the most challenging and exciting moment of the trip due to its features and context on which it was created. A prime example of the South-North confrontation, the tunnel was discovered in 1978 and was dug by the North Korean army to spy on the South Korea. The tunnel is 1.64 kilometers long, two meters high and two meters wide.

After the visit to the Third Infiltration Tunnel, the students went to the Dorasan Observatory were they learned more about the Korean War and had an indirect encounter with the North side  by seeing the North Korean village of Kijong-dong, Dorasan Mountain, and the barbed wire fences of the Southern Limit Line. The Dorasan Observatory visit was followed by going to Dorasan Train Station, one of the northernmost railway stations on the Gyeongui Line, connecting Seoul to Sinuiju, a city in North Korea. The station is located in the zone that strictly restricts general civilian access.

Jordan Montonya (Fall 2015, MDP) considered the event to be very interesting and informative about the history of the war between the two Koreas and for understanding the current tension in the DMZ area. Jordan suggests increasing the number of participants and selecting a day which would not intrude on class hours, while Falestin Noubani (Spring 2016, MPP), says that besides giving a feeling of adventure, the event was well organized and managed. Falestin found many enjoyable things in the trip such as the visit to the Third Tunnel which reminded her of the eighty plus infiltration tunnels existing in her own country, Palestine.

By Kilton PORTUGAL (2014 MDP, Mozambique)