NoKo/SoKo

This is supposed to make me feel safe...?

Since I've been here, I've heard South Koreans talk about North Korea exactly two times. The first time, I asked one of my Korean friends about North Korea, to which she basically shrugged off my question by asking me why I wanted to know anything about North Korea. It was like North Korea was on a different planet.

The second time, a man randomly decided to tell me a "funny story" about a time when a North Korean saw someone opening a can of soda and ran for cover, thinking it was a grenade. This story didn't make me laugh, it made me sad. What must it be like to live in a world where all you know is seen through war-tinted glasses? To be so fearful and vigilant that a soda can makes you run for your life?

In South Korea, there is rarely mention of our northern neighbors... but there are tiny traces of their existence here and there. This picture is from the subway system in Seoul. There are tall glass cabinets through the subway stations that hold little brown sacks with bright orange safety masks in case of an attack. I'm not sure what is more alarming; the fact that there may be an attack, the fact that you're supposed to literally tie the bright orange mask around your neck, or the fact that there are about twenty sacks per station... and millions of commuters every day.

I'm planning a trip to the DMZ with some of my friends, so I'm sure I'll have some more insights on the NoKo/SoKo thing afterwards. I'll keep you posted. Until then, be thankful that you don't have to dive for cover when someone opens a Coke.

Note: I am perfectly safe here and not in danger. This post is not meant to alarm you, mom.