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NORTH KOREA
Location - North East Asia; Capital - Pyongyang; Population - 24 million; Currency - North Korean Won MORE NORTH KOREA
Some of our group departed North Korea at this point. The rest of us had a couple more days to explore the east coast - September 2009.
The Tower of the Juche Idea appears on the 50 Won note
Major road traffic on the way from Pyongyang to Wonsan
Working in the rice fields - Pyongyang to Wonsan
We break up the journey at Sinphyong Tea House - Pyongyang to Wonsan
Picturesque scenery surrounds Sinphyong Tea House - Pyongyang to Wonsan
Sinphyong Tea House - Pyongyang to Wonsan
At the Songdowon Tourist Hotel in Wonsan we cooked duck and beef on red hot stones. Okay they're grey but you know what I mean.
More 'on-the-spot guidance' from the Great Leader. Hotel reception, Wonsan
The view from the Songdowon Hotel, Wonsan
Local men fishing on the waterfront, Wonsan
A rural scene on the drive from Wonsan to Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Our guide explains the marvel that is Chonsam Cooperative Farm
A passing ox and cart - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
This guy walked up and down several times, as if just for photo opportunities.
I've not seen The Truman Show but it sounds a bit like North Korea at times.. Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Chonsam Cooperative Farm
A film poster at the cooperative's cinema - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Everyone's happy in a paddy field - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
The farm is known for its production of the Japanese Persimmon fruit, also called Kaki.
If chemically ripened it's commonly known as Sharon Fruit - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Our guide recounted the story of when Kim Il Sung visited and correctly identified that there were 8000 pieces of fruit on a particular tree. Amazing. Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Posing for photos at Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Another reference to the 150-day agricultural quotas - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Singing and dancing at the cooperative school, Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Playground aeroplanes bear the national flag - Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Watching and listening at Chonsam Cooperative Farm
Back at Wonsan we visited the place where Kim Il Sung stayed in 1945 after returning to North Korea at the end of World War II
The train coach that took him west - Wonsan
And this is meant to be the actual seat he used on the train - Wonsan
Students at the Songdowon International Children's Union Camp, Wonsan
The kids at this school really liked posing for photos and checking themselves out on the digital camera screens - Wonsan
The Songdowon International Children's Union Camp is both a school and a Summer camp - Wonsan
One of the Summer camp's student rooms, complete with TV. The main building had escalators and a computer room. It all looked too good to be true - Wonsan
Picture frames of the Great and Dear Leader are thicker at the top, helping to reduce reflection - Wonsan
Songdowon International Children's Union Camp, Wonsan
Apartheid's alive and well - Wonsan
A lovely sunset on a nice sandy beach at Wonsan
Songdowon Beach, Wonsan
Dishing out some very important on-the-spot guidance again - Wonsan. The structure in the distance is (or rather, was) a diving platform.
Songdowon Hotel, Wonsan
Night views from our hotel, Wonsan
My final Kim Il Sung statue, Wonsan
..Except for this one - Wonsan
One of many blue-roofed stalls serving food and drinks - Wonsan
Reunified Korea - Wonsan
Enjoying a drink at the hotel bar in Wonsan
All things American - Coca Cola, Mickey and Minnie Mouse at the hotel bar in Wonsan
From the entrance gates to the Songdowon Hotel, Wonsan
A close up of the same propaganda poster, Wonsan
Flowers lie at the base of the Kim Il Sung statue, Wonsan
Street scene in Chosong Kjung, a town on the coastal route from Wonsan to Kumgan
There's a few beaches, and fishing boats, on the road from Wonsan to Kumgang
Website and content Copyright © 2008-2012 Mark Wilkinson. All rights reserved.
LINKS
www.koreakonsult.com - Korea Konsult is a Swedish based company that I booked my tour with. For me it offered the best itinerary and was flexible enough to cater for travelling by train to Pyongyang. The group size, at 23, was rather large however (but a great bunch of people!)
www.koryogroup.com - Koryo Tours is the market leader
www.nkeconwatch.com - plenty of independent news stories and analysis of North Korea
www.kcckp.net - news portal on behalf of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (ie. North Korea)
www.kcna.co.jp - news from the 'Korean Central News Agency'
www.nk-news.net/extras/insult_generator.php - definitely not an official DPRK site - the Random Insult Generator
Other tour agencies -
www.explorenorthkorea.com - USA/Dandong, China
www.geoex.com - USA
http://koningaap.nl - Netherlands
www.nordkoreareisen.de - Germany
www.northkorea1on1.com - USA
www.north-korea-travel.com - Hong Kong
www.regent-holidays.co.uk - UK
www.universaltravel.com.sg - Singapore
www.vnc.nl - Netherlands
www.youngpioneertours.com - China
I am not responsible for the content of external websites.
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