The North/South relations I speak of are not of geography, but rather of stratification. I do speak of borders, but not the intangible lines which are the creation of politicians and wars, mapped by cartographers who tell us nations are divided on 38th parallels, but rather of borders created by nature and consolidated by global trends. What are you rambling about? An eye for an eye. A question for a question. What percentage of Korea is mountainous? Experts estimate roughly 70 percent of Korea is mountainous. Korea is a very small country, a dot on the world map. Yes indeed, a population of 45 million in the ROK makes for very dense living.

  Yet no previous generation has seen such denseness on this, the Korean homeland. Modern day Korea is vastly different from what it was yesterday. I look around and see life in Korea saturated with meaninglessness. Swirled away in the inhuman currents of economy, globalization, bureaucratization, etc. etc. etc. etc. It threatens the very existence of woman's soul. The void of nothingness threatens to sweep the Korean spirit away forever. The 
existential angst is amplified by the crowded concrete conditions. This small land centered in polluted, over-built metropolitan areas severly sever woman's ties with nature and spirit. The once was lushly hued rainbow paradise is being painted in a drab gray.  Oh, the horror dear reader.

   The apartment buildings soar into the sky without a hint of artistic architectural freedom. Highly utilitarian and proletariat. Build them high, build them the same, and build lots of them. Large communities thrive in the corporate apartments made by  household names: Hyundai, Lg, Samsung, Daewoo, etc. Then you have pockets of areas where the lower middle class and poor live, a mishmash of buildings and houses thrown together. One building goes up, another to be soon squashed beside. The architecture accommodating itself to the land and other structures beside it. The electrical and telephone wires criss-cross in a neurological order which esteems all Korean electricians who somehow make it work. Unlike apartment building 
communities, the infrastructure is lacking in these less to do areas. No running water except the great orange-yellow water tanks, stoic observers sitting quietly on roofs. (Great picture, Miss Park!)

  You ask, "My goodness! How is survival possible? Yet, the people do thrive. They live, work, breed, and die in crowded spaces. They are able to do so because of their affinity for mountains, and what may be called the phenemona of North-South Escapees. Redemption lies for Koreans in the culture of mountain. Have you observed how so many people like hiking in 
Korea. Although hiking is a popular sport worldwide, I would propose that it holds a special place in the hearts of Koreans. On a mountain, the pollution, noise, crowds, and all that you do wish to leave behind are easily forgotten.

  In Pusan, a twenty minute walk is all one needs to find sanctuary from the urban chaos. It is an amazing feeling as one ascends upwards. You not only feel a change in the air, but also in the spirit. As you leave behind the city below, you enter the mountain above. It is amazing how quickly one can leave. The transitionary period is a very fine one indeed. Concrete, then 
suddenly, unexpectedly and pleasantly, you are enveloped in trees and quiet. The air is cleaner, and you feel relaxed. The stress falls off like heavy weights with each progress step into the mountain. You have become a votary in the cleansing spirit of mountain. The ecstasy of when you reach a vantage point and look over and down on the anthill called home. The joy to realize it so small and so far away.To have to the ability to turn away back into the mountain and continue ever higher. How nice to get away from it all once in a while.

  Although it requires much labor to climb up, it seems that an 'uber' effort is required to come back down. Take one final look about you before stepping back into the sunshine and heat of the city. The sidewalk greets your feet with a loud clip clop. You're back into familiar surroundings. But you've had your fix. More can be explored next time. The beautiful and 
redemptive mountain in your backyard. The culture of mountains. Look about you. In Korea, there are many celebrants of mountain culture. Escape with others into Northern Korea, where freedom and peace are just one of the many offerings to be had.