Why 13 Years Cycling World Ends On Korea DMZ Border? | Last Vlog

Why 13 Years Cycling World Ends On Korea DMZ Border? | Last Vlog

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You can't go this way, It's a civilian control zone Finally, the last moment of my 13-year bicycle world tour has arrived. Bicycle tour started in the US on 1st Sept 2011 I traveled through 6 continents North America, Latin America Africa Europe Middle East Central Asia Southeast Asia Oceania After that, I came back home and cycled around my own country. I was thinking about how to end my world tour.

In the beginning, I dreamed of returning to South Korea through North Korea. Even after 13 years, it is still impossible. Even though I saw Baekdusan and Hallasan Korean sacred mountains I was still sad so I decided to host DMZ Peace Bicycle World Tour After miraculously seeing Dokdo in one day I returned to mainland right away I had to arrive in Goseong in two days for the group tour But as I returned, my flat tire was waiting for me. I fixed it under the heat and started riding my bike at sunset. Since there wasn't much time, I kept moving even at night. I passed East Sea summer vacation lights and dark road repeatedly until 12am I was so tired that I saw a deck on the side of the road, so I pitched a tent and slept.

I woke up in the quiet dawn and got ready to leave at peaceful morning The last day of my solo bicycle world tour followed the beautiful East Sea road. The most enjoyable time during the bicycle tour That's is having lunch at a local restaurant I finally started seeing my destination on the sign. In the evening, I saw that my bag was badly torn.

I've used the bag for over 12 years, so I think it's holding up well. I repaired it with tape and I hope it lasts just one more week. The first day of DMZ bicycle peace world tour has finally dawned Total of *7 days from Monday to Sunday starting with a small group and more people on the weekend. Hello The first stop of DMZ Bicycle Peace Tour is a visit to Unification Observatory.

There were two people coming by car, and we took one of their car Visiting by bicycle is prohibited there. It was a meaningful start as we can see the history of the division at a glance. More than anything, looking at North Korea in the distance I could feel the reality of the division. There was a special guest on the first day! Nick K! He had uploaded videos on YouTube about cycling in Korea by bicycle and I met him by chance. After saying goodbye to him, we started climbing the mountain to go to the DMZ line Baekdudaegan Jinburyeong was quite difficult, but we slowly made it to the top. After that, we met the others that went by car first, and we ate local food for the dinner The next morning of DMZ Peace Tour, we started lightly with ramen.

I cycled with Jaehee in Jeju Island and Galchi Village She joined on this trip as well. Her friend also joined. Surprisingly, I met him in Central Asia 8 years ago briefly!! Isn't it amazing how we randomly meet again? He joined us in a wonderful camper van and it was so helpful for backup From the second day, we kept seeing military vehicles, and we even started hearing gunshots. This area has a clear theme. Everything named after the 'Peace' just like our trip.

but the military unit is everywhere Peace can be maintained only when military protects? I could feel that I am near the DMZ There are many beautiful scenery, so we stop to look around often. The kids greeted very politely but cheerfully, which gave us a lot of strength Hello~ Hello~! 14% slope I wanted to invite many people to DMZ Peace Bicycle Tour But there were very steep slopes every day, so it was not easy for people to join Taegyu, who was riding with me, reached the top first. Road is almost the closest to DMZ Line. First day was closest to DMZ very close After fighting the heat for a while Someone was clapping and welcoming me at the sunset he said he watched my YouTube a few days ago He told me in detail about this area as it's his hometown.

When we were kids, we grew up listening to all anti-South Korean broadcasts from North Korea Broadcasts that slander South Korea and such. Can you hear that? I heard all about it Don't they do it now? They don't Both promised not to do it anymore So not doing anymore If you look at it at night, there are lights all along the ridge This mountain is the border It's divided by the mountain If we cross mountain, we can see half of our Korean peninsula It's not visible, but it's very close They say we can talk to each other To see the basin, we have to take the side road But since we didn't have time at sunset, we went through tunnel. We made a reservation at a nice campsite run by the village and we met the others that arrived first. Congratulations Was it hard? It was fun Today was really fun Campsite is big We had grilled pork belly and we spent the second night comfortably deep in the mountains. The third day has dawned.

We had breakfast together Jaehee, who had a knee injury, is cycling with us The scenery today was amazing Stream water was so clear and clean. For the past 13 years, I cycled without set schedule but this time, since it was a group ride, I set where to sleep, the elevation, distances for the week Distance was a little shorter today, but we still had to climb two mountains There was a very narrow tunnel, but since it was empty we safely passed it with his truck as a guide. Great job We pitch our tents at the campsite in front of Peace Dam. We were all tired because we had been on mountains all the time, but it was nice to have dinner together every night. Since there were no village lights around we ended the day looking at the night sky together.

The fourth day has started There are 3 days left until the end of my 13-year world tour. Taegyu, who I rode with, had another schedule, so I said goodbye. As soon as we started, a huge uphill slope appeared.

Fortunately, there is no vehicle, so we cycled in a zigzag This was the hardest uphill slope during this DMZ trip. I felt it never ended. It was so hard that we took a long break in the middle. A supermarket appeared, but it was closed We ran out of food, so I had dried pollack dipped in Australian Vegemite (Sorry mate) Bicycle trips often go back and forth between extremes. The extreme slope lasted for over 3 hours, and the heat continued, restaurant was closed and we ran out of snacks, No choice but to keep riding, We came across a rest stop by chance, then it turned out to a great restaurant. What a day! The tunnel that came out after that was really cool, fun, and great.

Longest tunnel, Highest peak at northernmost poin Many special things at DMZ We came down from the mountain after fun downhill. It's been a while since I've enjoyed flat road After another mountain hill, today is done. Until this point, it was so peaceful and enjoyable So I never expected something would trigger my mental breakdown that afternoon This looks a bit like a military facility Did you notice this everywhere? Yes, but they didn't make it this pretty Only here This looks a military facility, but they changed it in cute way We sweated a lot, so we took a short break and the owner told us something shocking. There are all military bases around here Right and left, all! A military village? Since military bases here Civilians are here so military went more to the up road. From there, if you try to pass, you have to show your ID and write down your phone number You can think of civilian control line as Daeseong-ri in Panmunjom, The civilian control line(CCN) is all the same If you pass civilian control line(CCN) after 8km, you will see again normal town.

He said we can't pass civilian control line by bicycle. Why Kakao(Korea Map) showed this as bicycle route?? I didn't make this route just by myself, but I also referenced other people's The DMZ Peace Bicycle Tour is not usual tour This is somehow not touring atmosphere There are a lot of military vehicles passing by. Since I lived near Seoul always, it's my first time to come up here So I didn't know CCL(Civilian Control Line) details Other parts of South Korea are nothing like this. We don't see military bases or vehicles like this every day. It was a strange atmosphere We came deep into the mountains, So it would take time to go back to junction Since Kakao Map showed me that I can pass here, We'll go up a little more.

Take a break here We're late now so we have to go You can pass by 9 o'clock We have to go now Enough time But we're late Then I'll bring one more I saw you guys on the way up Thank you Gangwon-do corn Thank you Thank you, I'll eat well From Grandma farm Thank you, I'll eat well. Can we pass by here? Yes Thank you Sorry? You are pretty Thank you Stay longer if you want Come back later Yes next time I'll eat well. You know now why I like Gangwon-do? I thought she was my grandma I felt relieved when the he said we could pass by before 9 o'clock Someone passing by bicycle, I waved my hand to ask him about this area It turned out he was a soldier.

So I could get accurate information, Since I work there Really? Yes Are you a soldier? Yes You can't go this way, It's a civilian control zone It's a civilian control zone Cars can pass by, Really? Cars can pass by, but they must not stop, They must go all the way to civilian control checkpoint without stopping After listening to us, thankfully he gave us a ride to the campsite. As the host, I felt sorry for not knowing the way properly Strangely, whenever I tried to promote peace between South and North Korea something happened and it traumatised me Those memories came back so I fell asleep after crying a lot in my tent. If I hadn’t dreamed of coming back home through North Korea, I could have finished my world tour in 8 years and settled down but I couldn't give up on that dream, so it stretched out to 5 years more Now I felt a pressure to settle down in my mid late-30s, I wondered why I couldn’t give up on all this time, why on earth do I have to get hurt when talking about peace, a weak person like me shouldn’t talk about peace, and these dreams about peace I wonder it is like foolish moths that jump into a fire hurting themselves at the end? I had a difficult night with all these thoughts tangled up. Next morning in my tent when I heard people talking, I decided to stay strong until the end as I couldn't let it fall apart like this Jaehee, who had a knee injury, is resting today, and two new people have joined When I got on my bike, I felt better as if nothing had happened. During my 13 years world tour, there were ups and downs but my travel kept going on On the way, we stopped by historic Labor Party headquarters built in 1946 by communist and was on famous music video It was under construction It was sad to see that it said over 690,000 hours passed since the division Finally I learned the this building that I kept seeing on DMZ tour! If you put a bomb in it, it falls over and blocks road? Yes So we buy time? Before the enemy comes? Tanks can’t pass I kept seeing this In some areas, they’ve decorated it really beautifully Robots in various colors There were mine signs and barbed wire along the bike path.

The sky was really clear today, Above all, the road was nicely flat. Today is last day of using tent I've used for 10 years When I started my world trip in 2011, I bought a tent for $70 I used in North America, Latin America, Africa, and Europe for three years German friend gave me his old tent after he bought a new tent So I used that tent for almost 10 years. The poles broke or were lost, so I made new ones several times. I kept repairing torn tent here and there When it rained hard, the tent would leak water I'm so glad that I ended up finishing world tour with this tent. We were all so tired that we had delivery food. After that, we spent the night chatting.

The next morning, it was finally the last day of cycling. This day has finally come. There are four Surly travel bikes! I traveled the world with one Surly bike for 13 years, so I'm happy to see other Surly. I always recommend people to ride my bike with my luggage if they want But today is the last day of doing that sadly Today is Saturday, so two of people leave and more people are joining as well There is a bike path to today's final destination so we are trying to follow that path but the path is very confusing and there are several unpaved roads. Something always breaks down on the road Then I would fix it temporarily on the road, and fix it properly later. but now I don't need to worry about it.

Today, steep roads kept coming out I experienced something for the first time on the last day I gained wings on the road. It's wing!! Another extremely steep dirt road appeared on the bike path So I changed my bike I got a new bike Road bike Thank you How was road bike experience? It is tough, too Can I help you? I also got the help Thank you It's so fast That's right It's an electric bike We crossed the rice fields in the late afternoon when the shadows were getting longer It will be remembered as one of the most beautiful scenes in DMZ Peace Bike World Tour It was an even brighter moment by being together I will finish my world tour tomorrow at DMZ Forest But I can't cycle there as Civilian Control Line It was sad so we will cycle to the Unification Bridge Suddenly one of members started to cycle so fast so I shout to stop him Calm down, Calm down!!! Don't go!! We don't know him Sorry I realized this person was wearing a similar t shirt to one of us I wondered how absurd it must have been for him so I burst out laughing as embarrassing. Do you know who it is? I thought it was you Again the road was blocked But I'm thankful that we are together and can laugh like this I hope that someday this road will open so that we can all go out into the world together. We got close to accommodation but there was an uphill climb at even the last moment Today was the last day of my 13 year world tour and it was quite long day But I was happy that I could ride a bike together.

Moment my feet touch the ground, no more pedaling! Like landing on the moon Get off? It's over The end Great job! Good job! Today was really hard CEO Im Mi-ryeo of the DMZ Forest, which will be the last place of my world tour tomorrow, joined us for dinner. I'm so grateful that I could finish the last night of my world tour with laughing Congratulations You did great job What is it? 13 years Oh really? YES Share your thoughts! I'm glad I survived and met you all like this. Thank you Well done Blow out I'm so touched Thank you Congratulations My thoughts were too simple I didn't think I'd have a surprise Thank you Today is the last day of my world tour.

More people participated on the last day. We're going to go to DMZ Forest and I will finish my world tour there DMZ Forest operates agricultural and cultural spaces within Civilian Control Zone(CCZ) CEO Im Mi-ryeo invited me specially to support my trip. You cannot enter the CCL on a bicycle. Pre-registered vehicles are allowed so we all move by car. After the Unification Bridge (North Korea capital) Pyongyang 208km (129mi), Gaeseong 21km (12mi) While traveling six continents, I went to Africa, Latin America, remote areas like deserts on two wheels The only place I couldn't go was the half of the Korean Peninsula where I was born.

This must be the biggest regret of my world tour When we entered the DMZ Forest, I saw a wonderful space. I cried when I was blocked by CCL(Civilian Control Line) on this DMZ peace tour But CEO Im Mi-ryeo went to inside of CCL and lead the agricultural and cultural space I felt more than respect. The reason I am ending my world tour at the DMZ is If we are unified someday and the road opens, I want to finish my world tour by cycle half of the Korean Peninsula that I couldn't go to.

If we are still divided and blocked during my lifetime, I will never be able to finish my world tour. I want to talk briefly about a person I met on the road and end my last vlog of my 13 year bicycle world tour. I met a Pakistani who was studying medicine in France. He said that he would return to his home country to work as a doctor. At that time, there were many terrorist attack news in Pakistan, so I asked him, "Will things change if you return to home country?" He answered, "Of course not."

"But think about a baby." "Can a baby to run right after being born?" "They will crawl, then walk, then run." My thoughts have changed since then. The world doesn't change all at once, but it changes step by step. Someone has to take the first step, and someone will take the second step based on that, and someone will run based on that. So rather than feeling sad that I only took the first step I should have hope that someone will run based on me.

Although my 13 year journey didn't bring any change on the Korean Peninsula, I believe if someone can fulfill my dream and bring peace to the Korean Peninsula and the world, my world travel can come to an end. I earnestly hope that one day I can truly end this journey, Now I'm going to move on to the second chapter of my life. I don't know what it will be, I'm going to go steadily as I've always done although I'm scared with the curiosity and passion like I had on my world tour I sincerely thank everyone who has been with me. I'm truly grateful and thankful that I can finish my journey alive safely How was your experience on DMZ peace bike tour? Seeing military units Reality of division, peace, Military I had to keep thinking about these things on this tour First time to come up here How is it? When I first arrived, I felt intimidated because there were so many military bases.

We were on a bicycle tour But I realized we're touring around a war zone. I felt that this was very disconnected. It was so empty in this area despite beautiful nature If South Korea and North Korea become one I think more people will come and see this beautiful Gangwon-do When I climbed the hill for 10km (6.2mi) for 3 hours it was so hard

I was tearful often Many times I wanted to give up but I learned a lot from watching you silently continue Why I'm so emotional Hope this isn't the end, it's continuing.. I want to hug you You and DMZ Forest CEO Im Mi-ryeo I'm really envious of you guys living your life by pioneering a path that others don't take Going into the DMZ as the final finishing touch was a novel idea Was it? It was also unique to have event at the end of the trip Usually, as observers like us, we only hear If it finishes, we think "oh, it's finished" But you invited us When we go into DMZ Forest, it was the same like other places I usually didn't think much about unification, But when I saw you get emotional during the talk today, I felt that we really are a divided country You never know! Just try! Yes! Never know! Let's try! Next again? It was First event! I will join second and third! Please come to second DMZ Peace Bicycle Tour See you next time at the second DMZ Peace Bicycle tour When? 1st Sept like today! Keep 1st Sept free every year!

2025-01-31 15:32

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