Democratic People's Republic of Korea / DPRK / Korea (north) - road trip

[Chicken]

Inside this building are classrooms. Notice how it does not look very soviet? The university was actually build by German Benedictine monks back in the 20s, as a church.

Now, let's walk to the greenhouse.


We could not go into the greenhouse this time, we could only peek into it through windows.

 

[VPS]

Oh yes, thanks for reminding. I was going to do that but I never got to. Notice my last post was 17/4, which was 2 weeks ago, then I suddenly stopped writing this trip report until today? Because I needed to work on Centrelink and SEEK.

Remind me if I don't give you an answer to this question on that scene, by next weekend.

Excuse me - just checking

 

[Chicken]

Excuse me - just checking

I just finished watching it, and it's because you followed up

The depiction and his thoughts were similar to what most people would find. He also went to the places we went to during this trip (report).

I know that there have been criticism about him being rude, I agree with this criticism. Let me raise 2 examples and none of them have anything to do with politics.

1 : He was pointing with his fingers a lot, especially at the beginning of episode 1. That is extremely rude. You point at something with your whole hand, always.

2 : He was in a co-op farm, and the lady cooked him a meal. She asked him how was the kimchi, he said it was very spicy. That's also rude. You should always say it is good, even if it tastes like cough. In Korea, you offer a meal to your guest even if you don't have enough food, to show hospitality, so it is rude to make 'not so nice' comments. His tour guides would have translated a different feedback to that lady. There is nothing wrong if you go back onto the tour bus, then tell the tour guides that you don't like that kimchi from the lady, you like the kimchi better at the restaurant. That's totally cool, and the tour guides would laugh, or may even use these as feedback (they do really want feedback from tourists, they want to be better with tourism). You just don't comment in front of that lady's face.

These 2 examples illustrate why tourists have to be watched like this. People in both of the tours I been on, 2018 and 2019, said and agreed during the tour, that the tour guides are there, not just to make sure we don't do the wrong things (doing things which violate the law), but also to save us when we do the wrong things. The country has been isolated from the world for 70 years, people are deeply suspicious of outsiders. If we have a few foreign tourists, going to that farmer's home, she goes into so much effort to make a meal every time for tourists, but then the tourists would tell her that her kimchi is too spicy / not spicy / too smelly / not smelly, how would this lady feel? Why would she bother with dealing with these ungrateful foreigners? In fact, why are these foreigners so rude? They think they are so good, they look down upon us the Korean people, and come here and criticise my food? Who do these people think they are? These tour guides are really well with being peacekeepers.

Then there is this (im)famous interview at the end, when he asked the tour guide about freedom. She handled it well. Like she said, there is freedom in the UK, there is no such thing here, this is the system here. So what? What do you want me to do then? This is the system here, this is the way it is.

Michael's comment that, people in DPRK shut down when the topic becomes too sensitive, this is a good and accurate observation. They know that, there is no point to continue with that discussion, because, well, there is just no point.

I think his conclusion at the very end described the feelings of many tourists. After a week, you develop a human connection with people, the experience puts human faces into your head. Of course, you know the regime does things which we do not consider acceptable, but the experience reminds you that, there are people, real people, living there, and they are people, just like us.

 

[VPS]

I just finished watching it, and it's because you followed up

The depiction and his thoughts were similar to what most people would find. He also went to the places we went to during this trip (report).

I know that there have been criticism about him being rude, I agree with this criticism. Let me raise 2 examples and none of them have anything to do with politics.

1 : He was pointing with his fingers a lot, especially at the beginning of episode 1. That is extremely rude. You point at something with your whole hand, always.

2 : He was in a co-op farm, and the lady cooked him a meal. She asked him how was the kimchi, he said it was very spicy. That's also rude. You should always say it is good, even if it tastes like cough. In Korea, you offer a meal to your guest even if you don't have enough food, to show hospitality, so it is rude to make 'not so nice' comments. His tour guides would have translated a different feedback to that lady. There is nothing wrong if you go back onto the tour bus, then tell the tour guides that you don't like that kimchi from the lady, you like the kimchi better at the restaurant. That's totally cool, and the tour guides would laugh, or may even use these as feedback (they do really want feedback from tourists, they want to be better with tourism). You just don't comment in front of that lady's face.

These 2 examples illustrate why tourists have to be watched like this. People in both of the tours I been on, 2018 and 2019, said and agreed during the tour, that the tour guides are there, not just to make sure we don't do the wrong things (doing things which violate the law), but also to save us when we do the wrong things. The country has been isolated from the world for 70 years, people are deeply suspicious of outsiders. If we have a few foreign tourists, going to that farmer's home, she goes into so much effort to make a meal every time for tourists, but then the tourists would tell her that her kimchi is too spicy / not spicy / too smelly / not smelly, how would this lady feel? Why would she bother with dealing with these ungrateful foreigners? In fact, why are these foreigners so rude? They think they are so good, they look down upon us the Korean people, and come here and criticise my food? Who do these people think they are? These tour guides are really well with being peacekeepers.

Then there is this (im)famous interview at the end, when he asked the tour guide about freedom. She handled it well. Like she said, there is freedom in the UK, there is no such thing here, this is the system here. So what? What do you want me to do then? This is the system here, this is the way it is.

Michael's comment that, people in DPRK shut down when the topic becomes too sensitive, this is a good and accurate observation. They know that, there is no point to continue with that discussion, because, well, there is just no point.

I think his conclusion at the very end described the feelings of many tourists. After a week, you develop a human connection with people, the experience puts human faces into your head. Of course, you know the regime does things which we do not consider acceptable, but the experience reminds you that, there are people, real people, living there, and they are people, just like us.

Thanks for your opinion. I must admit I was surprised about a number of things in the program and found it a lot more interesting than I expected. Not enough for me to want to go because I'm a chicken (no pun intended) but also because I have a list a mile long of places I want to go to

 

[cmon0005]

Only just finished reading page 1 of the thread. So far so good!

 

[Chicken]

Next stop is the Songdowon International Children's Camp.

Kids from all countries are welcomed. If you want to send your kids here in summer, it is reportedly only around USD $300 for a week or so (NK News / Time). Kids here come from many countries, including China Russia Thai Vietnam and as far as Tanzania. Your child will be doing cultural exchange (the usual boring doing a traditional dance from your own country ) but also more interesting things like going to the beach and hanging out and playing games with kids from many other countries.





First see a bedroom for girls.

Walked straight into the room, photo from the door.



Walked to the window, U turn, photo.



See we had our shoes off? Yep, very Korean. Never wear your dirty outside shoes inside a house, let alone the bedroom.

Below is the ensuite bathroom, which is next to the door (just behind the desk with make up mirror).



Now to the bedroom for boys. Straight to the ensuite bathroom.

 

[Chicken]

Went out of the bedrooms ......





This is the building we just came out from.

You could kinda make out that this is a square outside the building. The buildings surround the square in U shape.


Here is the building next to the one we just came out from. The kids in this photo are local Korean children.



Here is the wall opposite the building we came out from. Yes, we did stand in front of this wall and away from the tour guides, looking at the mistakes.


This is the other side of the square, facing a water park within this compound.

 

[Chicken]

The follow 2 photos were taken by our UK tour guide.



Going into another building. I don't recall there was much to look at in this building, but here are the photos I found.


This was the basement or ground floor. It was a video viewing room, but it also had these along the wall, explaining wild animals in the DPRK.


Above photo was taken by our UK tour guide. A local staff of the school was explaining this board. I took the photo below after everyone was gone.

So you could see that, President Kim Il Sung was here in 61 / 72 / 76, Leader Kim Jong Il in 93, and Marshal Kim Jong Un in 2013 14 15.

Side note: Note how year 1961 = 50 , 1972 = 61, and the last date in the photo 2015-04-28 is year 104? DPRK uses both our calendar and the Juche calendar at the same time. Juche calendar starts from the year when President Kim Il Sung was born.



Here is a mirror house.



Anyone who thinks that you are constantly being watched, well, here is the evidence that this is not true. At least 2 people (I think 3 actually) did not make their way out. As we waited, and all the female school staffs gossiping, our tour guides playing on their phones, we were here for a long time. They would ask "Have we got everyone? No? ..." then they would be back to their phones and chit chatting.

I just stood outside for what felt like an eternity.

After a few years, some of them decided to start counting and looking for those people lost inside the house.

For what it was worth, we could have fallen into the water park / lake and drown and nobody would have noticed.

I should have taken a photo of that.

 

[Chicken]

Warning: gossiping below.

You would see a girl standing against the building column in above photo, in a blue collar top and black skirt. She was one of the Korean tour guides who accompanied us the full length of the journey (the other girl she was talking to, in all white, was not our DPRK trip tour guide). She was also the girl who did the Toyota what a feeling jump earlier in Wonsan.

All the boys in the tour (yes, all, there was a consensus) agreed that she was the one who was the most fun to be with. She was the most outgoing, she always made her feelings known, and always pulling faces with the most facial expressions, mischievous, and play along with the boys in the tour. If you know what I mean

Last stop of the camp is the aquarium.




The minute I walked close to this, and the fish immediately swam out, expecting to get a feed. No, I didn't have anything on me.



I remember these, um, eels? (yes, feel free to correct me) were not swimming around. they were just staying in their spots, and with their heads moving up and down. Notice how narrow is this tube. A fellow tourist told me that's the sign of distress. Animals stay in their spots and move their heads up and down when they are in distress. Not surprised when you look at the overcrowding and the lack of space of this tube.

 

[craven morehead]

Next stop is the Songdowon International Children's Camp.

Kids from all countries are welcomed. If you want to send your kids here in summer, it is reportedly only around USD $300 for a week or so (NK News / Time). Kids here come from many countries, including China Russia Thai Vietnam and as far as Tanzania. Your child will be doing cultural exchange (the usual boring doing a traditional dance from your own country ) but also more interesting things like going to the beach and hanging out and playing games with kids from many other countries.

View attachment 218078View attachment 218079

View attachment 218067

First see a bedroom for girls.

Walked straight into the room, photo from the door.

View attachment 218068

Walked to the window, U turn, photo.

View attachment 218069

See we had our shoes off? Yep, very Korean. Never wear your dirty outside shoes inside a house, let alone the bedroom.

Below is the ensuite bathroom, which is next to the door (just behind the desk with make up mirror).

View attachment 218070

Now to the bedroom for boys. Straight to the ensuite bathroom.

View attachment 218071View attachment 218073View attachment 218074

Rooms are well set out.

 

[Chicken]

Rooms are well set out.

Not only that, but the Koreans are really clean. For example, we had to take our shoes off when we went into a building of a primary school every time (didn't need to for high schools).

We were also given flip flops at hotels and beach side resorts, and they were only to be worn in our rooms, don't wear those plastic clogs down to the beach or the local Koreans would be really really angry.

Big cultural difference.

 

[Chicken]

On our way to hotel for lunch, but needed to feed the bus first (how exciting!). Stopped at this place "은정 연유판매소" (Google Map)

Not sure if I have mentioned, but our bus driver never went into a store with money to pay for fuel, but with a small piece of paper. We suspect it is a ration coupon.



Lunch at Masikyrong Ski Resort.




Seems like she advertises for this ski resort, on top of Toyota ......



There are 2 buildings of hotel rooms. Someone in my tour group told me that he stayed here last year, and the building for foreigners had LAN sockets in each room, providing free internet access to outside of the DPRK. The other building for Koreans don't have such LAN ports.

 

[Chicken]

Remember how Pyongyang is divided into 2 by the Taedong River? I took these photos while cross the Chungsong Bridge 충성의 다리 over Taedong River. (Google Map)





Points of interest is the taxi in the first photo.

Point 1

Just from the colour scheme, I could tell that it was under the taxi network of Air Koryo.

They seem to have multiple taxi networks, just like how Sydney alone has Taxis Combined / Silver Service / Premier / St George / RSL / Manly Warringah . You could tell from the color scheme of each taxi.

I have no idea how did Air Koryo started driving taxis. Air Koryo also does catering as well. We would occasionally get their packaged lunches when we were out and about (say picnic), if we were not getting lunch boxes from the hotel we were staying at.

Point 2

The photo is not very clear, but the taxi is actually a BYD electric car.

BYD is a Chinese company, which has been making batteries for a long time, and is a major battery manufacturer in the world. They have also branched out to making electric cars in China. You would see plenty of them on the road if you were in China right now.

I did not see any BYD cars when I was here DPRK back in 2018, but I have see quite a few of them this time in 2019, both as private cars and taxis.

So while Australia has an idiot who told reporters that electric cars "end the weekend", Marshal Kim Jong Un is already importing cheap small size electric cars into DPRK.

 

[Chicken]

I saw this poster last time, and I saw this again. This is about paying for your meal in a restaurant, using your bank debit card. I have only see this poster in Pyongyang, not outside of the capital.

Anyone care to translate the whole poster?

 

[Chicken]

This morning, we are going to Pyongyang airport domestic terminal, and flying to Mount Paektu 백두산!


On top of eggs and sausages and those things, the hotel also made these ......

Today is 2019-9-16 Monday. It's around 07:20 in the morning, peak hour traffic. We are driving out of the CBD to the airport, so against traffic.










This green Chinese FAW truck (does it look like a Bedford?) was actually broken down. The man in blue shirt plus another man in front of him (down on the ground) were trying to fix it or hook it to the timber branch to hook them up and to have it towed, or something.




See the girls here? They were all waiving the flags, chanting slogans. In the DPRK, you sometimes do this in the morning, before you start work or start school. Just to get your blood flowing and get your brain going.

 

[Chicken]

We have arrived into Pyongyang domestic terminal.

Just us.






So the furthest away on the right was selling souvenirs and convenient store, from gifts to cigarettes. The kiosk with pictures of ice cream was selling prepackaged canned drinks. The desk on the left was selling books and newspapers. I bought some newspapers.


This is the service desk of Air Koryo. It was empty.


Us waiting at check in desks. We arrived too early.







Flight JS3541 from Pyongyang FNJ to Samjiyon YJS

 

[moa999]

BYD is a Chinese company, which has been making batteries for a long time, and is a major battery manufacturer in the world. They have also branched out to making electric cars in China

Yep. BYD electrics the vehicle of choice for China taxis and Didi (Chinese Uber these days).

Also buses.
The Electric Blu buses at Sydney Airport are BYD, and also 4 trial buses in Sydney's network (mostly in the inner west)

 

[Chicken]

Since this is Australian Frequent Flyer, I am not going to filter any photo of planes, I'm just gonna upload all of them.

Below were taken by myself.

From here on were taken while waiting at the gate.



We were put on a bus, and were driven the distance of about 200 m to our plane. The followings were taken while we were on the bus. We all laughed on the bus that we were put on a bus for the distance of 200 m. Would have been easier for all parties to just walk to the plane.



This is our plane P-532.


Looking back at the terminal.

 

[Chicken]

Still looking back at the terminal while I was boarding.

Below photos were taken by our British tour guide.

 

[Chicken]

4 trial buses in Sydney's network (mostly in the inner west)

Didn't know about this. They are all being using on Glebe Point Rd / Lilyfield services, delivered by Gemilang. The electric buses I tried in Beijing were very quiet, don't know if these one built by Gemilang would be as good.