Blogs from North Korea, Asia - page 2

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang October 25th 2011

"Early up and you go early to bed, that's the way for a little farmer boy". Those are some words from a Danish song and that one sure goes for North Koreans as well. Maybe it is a kind of shock treatment, to keep us in a drouse through our stay as the hotel phone alarm goes off at 6:30 like South Korea just invaded Pyongyang. But no, it's the Chinese's time to get up and get in the bus. I ate breakfast alone in an almost empty restaurant no.1, which is the restaurant, where western people eat. This is where I saw a buffet, so this is where I eat. But where was everybody? In this buffet there was pancakes, toast, butter, jam, porridge, twisty donut bread and a guy only to make omelettes. And ... read more

North Korea Day 1

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang October 24th 2011

Vegsurfer

North Korea. I am going to fucking North Korea. It immediately dawns on me that had I not paid the 1000 dollars for this trip, there would have been a lot of regretting to do. The feeling of being in North Korea is just fantastic. Sure I contribute money to some people, who will probably not do any good with those money, but don't we all sometimes, when we buy all our burgers and bananas n'shit? This is my conclusion for now as the train rolls over Yalu river from the Chinese border city of Dandong to its North Korean sister city Sinouji on the other side of the river. There is propaganda, there is brown uniformed soldiers with AK-47's stopping people to check their documents. There is buildings, not in the best shape, but not ... read more

Still looking for the beach

Asia » North Korea » Kumgangsan September 2nd 2011

Erbil at Sunrise

smackthatpuppy

I was happy to be back in Erbil. The chance of being blown up was much less, but that was only part of its attraction. The people are friendly and the city has the feel of a place and economy on the move. The Kurds, spread over Iraq, Syrian, Turkey and Iran, have a tough time retaining their culture. Perhaps as a result, they value it greatly, and there’s an easily detected pride in their historic and more recent achievements. Erbil’s Citadel is a testament to the Kurds’ resilience. We drove from Erbil to Suliamaniyah through beautifully rugged countryside. There were bare mountains, few trees and even fewer shrubs. That became an issue when I had to stop for a leak. It was over 40 degrees. Nothing was stirring, and there was that delightful blur of ... read more

Lots more photos

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang June 25th 2011

GrayRailwayJourneys

I have opened my first Flickr account and here's the link Philip Gray on flickr It covers St Pancras through to leaving Moscow. It seems to loaded them backwards. Sorry about that! Philip... read more

#36 Pyongang and around North Korea

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang May 3rd 2011

adamcorro

I have always been curious about the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or commonly known as DPRK or “North” Korea. All DPRK maps show only “Korea” as if a border and a southern country didn’t exist and it was just one big happy country. A lot of what we hear and read about the DPRK is negative. In general when there are differing opinions, side A says one thing and side B says another thing. Often the truth lies somewhere in between. It is with an open mind I approached my 5 day trip to the DPRK. The first day we flew into an almost empty airport and were obliged to surrender our phones almost immediately. They were wrapped in cellophane and stored at the airport for us to collect on our way out. As far ... read more

DMZ

Asia » North Korea » Panmunjom April 2nd 2011

sp1 024

AlliM

Last weekend I went to North Korea! It was probably the coolest thing I've ever done. First we took a bus up from one of the military bases in Seoul up to the Panmunjom, which is the area between North Korea and South Korea. We had to watch a short video that was both informative and funny, in that it was a sort of propaganda. I already knew North Korea is messed up. I didn't need to be constantly reminded. Then we went to the Joint Security Area, which is the only area where North Korean and South Korean soldiers look directly at each other. While we were taking pictures of North Korea and their buildings, some North Korean soldiers started filing out of their building, which made our security escort nervous, which made ME nervous. ... read more

The Disturbingly Paranoid Republic of Korea

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang March 21st 2011

Panmunjom

His Dudeness

That would be a better name than the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. Of course any country that feels the need to shore up its credentials by affixing such prefixes as 'democratic' and 'peoples' is bound to be dubious. As a rule the more a regime emphasizes its democratic values through the amount of adjectives in its name the more ruthless and undemocratic it is. As such the D.P.R.K is the worst of the lot, as it not only claims to be democratic, but also to be governed by its people. The reality is much more bleak, it is governed by a ruthless tyrant and his cronnies, all belonging in one way or another to the Kim-clan. North Korea is in effect Kim's personal playground, a fiefdom if you will. It is ruled with an iron ... read more

Journal of My Seoul Adventures

Asia » North Korea December 31st 2010

Karen Meets Korea Europe

I am curious as to what might intrigue the interest of my journal readers most. Will it be my internal growth and development as an individual along the way or will it be my bloopers and blunders as I as an American foreigner forge my way in this unfamiliar territory?? Yes I am definitely the foreigner here in this beautiful country. As many have already seen on my FB postings my journey has been both challenging and funny all at the same time. My stories to be told may bring tears of joy to some and tears of sadness to others. The hopes are that you will grow with me along the way. I believe that God takes each of us on a variety of adventures so that we may expand beyond our capacity of understanding. ... read more

Week 52d - An Obligatory Bow

Asia » North Korea » Pyongyang October 3rd 2010

Pyongyang - Mansudae Grand Monument

ShadyAdy

A trip to North Korea isn’t really complete without enjoying a dog barbecue at least once. I’ve eaten dog once before in China, and have to say the taste of dog certainly beats the image of eating it. With so few restaurants accommodating foreign tourists, it seemed as though the whole tourist population of Pyongyang had converged on this single restaurant, serving a variety of barbecued dog dishes. Sadly all of these foreigners were able to use chopsticks far better than me, a dismal fact considering I’ve been in China for almost a year. Up until now, I’d decided against asking Ms. Lee our guide any probing questions against North Korea. But after building up two days worth of trust and respect, there wasn’t going to be a better chance. I was under the impression that ... read more

Week 52C - Imperialist Enemy

Asia » North Korea » Panmunjom October 2nd 2010

Panmunjom

ShadyAdy

This would be my last full day in North Korea. Unfortunately, due to the extortionate prices charged to visit this secluded republic, my meagre teaching wages couldn’t afford a longer stay. Again leaving the hotel at the crack of dawn, with other buses and their armed escorts waiting for Workers Party members in the hotel car park, we were on our way to what many call the most guarded place on Earth: Panmunjom. Panmunjom was once a village on the border between South and North Korea. This was the place where the 1953 Armistice Treaty was signed, which halted the Korean War. With the creation of the 250km long and 4km wide de-militarized zone (DMZ), inhabitants left Panmunjom. Falling in to ruin, the village eventually disappeared from view. Now it’s one of the safest places you ... read more

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