I shook my head It’s my fault too Yes it was his idea to go canoeing in the river inlet But I did jump in the canoe with him because I was bored Dad was busy doing research in a museum archive as part of his job as a history professor Mom had gone out for a while shopping for groceries We were tired of sitting around We wanted to explore Korea more There were four canoes just sitting in the park Why not we thought
What Tomas and I didn’t expect was the force of the river current We paddled as hard as we could but we drifted farther from the South Korea shore Before we knew it we’d crossed the border and were in North Korean territory When Aunt Bernadette realized how far we’d drifted she panicked She grabbed a canoe and paddled out to bring us back to South Korea But like us the current pulled her across the border too swiftly Before Aunt Bernadette could even see if Tomas and I were okay a North Korean military officer had his machine gun pointed in Aunt Bernadette’s back We were quickly handcuffed and led away from the river Although we’d been traveling around Korea for three weeks we hadn’t really learned about the demilitarized zone Until today Did you know they’d arrest us I whispered to Aunt Bernadette I looked around the room for hidden video cameras She stopped pacing and knelt down beside me Or shoot you two That’s why I came after you she said She explained the tense history between North and South Korea At the end of World War II to keep Japan out of Korea Russia and the United States split Korea down the 38th Parallel Russia would control the north the United States would control the south
She took a shaky breath and continued Russia made North Korea a communist government The US made South Korea a democracy Korea hasn’t been united since Both sides stockpile weapons and never take their eyes off each other No trust No friendship Aunt Bernadette rubbed her eyes She looked tired hopeless After the 150-mile-long demilitarized zone between north and south was created to keep the tension and the fighting down she said the Korean War in 1953 A no-man’s land Tomas whispered You got it But you can see all the soldiers on either side always ready to fight Aunt Bernadette shook her head I don’t get it It is time for peace I managed a half smile Aunt Bernadette was our hippie peace-loving aunt Her favorite song was John Lennon’s Give Peace a Chance What will they do with us I asked I don’t know We can only stay calm and wait she said
Chapter Two Volcano Until we got arrested in North Korea our first three weeks in South Korea were phenomenal We spent our first couple of days relaxing on Jeju Island just off the coast Mom said Jeju Island is a favorite honeymoon spot for newlyweds I could see why it is beautiful There’s a volcano forests and waterfalls Koreans say that Jeju Island is the garden of the gods cultivated on Earth Mom’s a bird biologist so she was totally thrilled about Jeju Island She decided that our first stop on the island should be Hallasan National Park to hike up the volcano Dad’s not really the athletic type although he tries The volcano would be hard for him to climb but he wasn’t going to be left behind Aunt Bernadette is all healthy with her organic foods and morning yoga so nature is her thing Tomas and I agreed it would be awesome to see a real volcano up close too Back home in
