Lights out

A few more computer problems at home meant that I got to work later than usual. I walked through reception to relative darkness. There were no lights on so I thought there was something going on. Maybe a birthday being celebrated or whatever. The receptionists told me something was wrong.

I walked into the teachers room and was told that there was no power. Everything was off so no computers, no landlines, no heater, nothing. But why? The landlord had turned off our electricity. Last week we heard that he wanted us out and today he proved it. Someone high up at our academy phoned the police and it was being dealt with when I arrived, with some people being interviews. I missed the drama by a few minutes.

Everyone in the office was excited. We al harboured hopes of being sent home for the day but it was not to be as a few minutes later the lights came on and we had to go teach. I don't think we've heard the end of this story. Hopefully there'll be a happy ending - for someone. I don't know what's going to happen next week or even tomorrow. As always, we are kept in the dark.

April fool?

Recent events in the news have led me to think again about the tension/s in Korea. You may or may not know North Korea is set to launch some kind of rocket/satellite into orbit some time soon (April 4th-8th). America has now stated that it will not attempt to stop any rocket launch but I find that hard to believe especially as they have a vested interest in the area and have over 25,000 troops already here. This comes after the Japanese have openly said they will intercept any rocket that may fall upon its territory. Pyongyang has said any attempt to shoot down the rocket will be result in war.

How seriously should I/we take this latest development? Are their intentions sinister and is it wrong to be cynical? It is impossible to take anything the North Koreans say as fact as most things that come out of theDPRK are merely self satisfying propaganda as evidenced by the recent elections with only one candidate. And of course we have continued health speculation of their leader, KimJong Il and who may or may not succeed him. It is hard to believe that they do not have future nuclear intentions but perhaps it is an exaggeration to call it a delicate time. It is possible that this is another bargaining chip for future aid and another attempt to be taken seriously as some kind of power.


I have started to follow the situation more closely than in previous years because after a while it is impossible to ignore 'the elephant in the room'. The latest course of events are more than a curiosity. It must be remembered that Korea is still actually at war. No declaration of peace has ever been signed, only the armistice of 1953. Certainly tensions have been heightened since the current President in Seoul, LeeMyung-bak took office last year. The relative peace of the previous administration appears to have dissolved under new hard-line policies.

As a neutral observer in this peninsula. I have never heard a Korean co-worker or friend actively broaching the subject, nor a student for that matter. Is this talked about seriously by locals? Perhaps I have become blasé over the matter but not now! For the record I am not worried about next month and feel extremely safe. Ironically much safer than back home in England. However, I shall be watching developments with great interest. Is this just another example of attention seeking and posturing from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea?