Arrival in Northkorea

Very expectant, we took a taxi out to the airport, where we had to go on to North Korea at 13. There were not many people going in that direction, so the queue at check-in was short. People were excited about what would await them, so everyone quickly fell into conversation with each other. To enter North Korea you must be part of a group. We booked our trip through a Swedish agent called Korea Konsult. There are tours of different durations. We chose 5 days, 4 nights + 1 night by train on our way out of the country, heading towards Beijing again. It costs 1158 euros per person. The price includes hotel, 3 meals a day, transport around the sights, English-speaking guides, plane and train ticket. It seems that the majority of male tourists visit the country. The other tourist groups that we were to meet later also consisted mostly of male tourists. Men are obviously attracted to these forms of government... :) We have seen many documentaries about North Korea. One of the broadcasts featured an American who was very pro-North Korea. He had seen only good things in the country, that the government treated the people well and the people were happy. He was also due to leave for North Korea again on one of his many visits to the country. We also met the chairman of the Danish/North Korean friendship association at the airport. He had visited the country at least 40 times. He was on his way to help organize the 101st birthday of The Great Leader Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea. There were many government people with the plane. Everyone who supports North Korea and who is loyal to the regime wears a small brooch with Kim Il Sung's smiling face. All North Koreans MUST wear the brooch or they will go to jail. Of course, that's not the answer you get if you ask them. The plane to the capital Pyongyang was not full. There were 2 departures that day from Beijing. The food we got on board was fine. The food tasted good. Newspapers were passed around, with long speeches about the greatness of the regime, how to live, and how Kim Il Sung had done great things for the people - yes, he sacrificed his whole life to help the Korean people. It was quick to get through immigration, after which we were met by our guide, Ms Kim Un Hi, surname mentioned first in this country. She collected all mobile phones, which we will not be handed back until we leave the country. It was hardly that fast to get out of the airport, as ALL luggage has to be scanned and checked first. It was ok to bring a laptop. They also didn't say anything about our Lonely Planet books about China and North/South Korea - we were otherwise very excited about that. Our group consists of 11 Norwegian engineering students, a German, a Swedish couple and an Australian couple. Our guides are called Mr Zoo (31 years old) and Ms Kim (27 years old). The bus had only just started driving when we got the first instructions about what, where and how we are allowed to take pictures. No pictures of military people who are all over the place. No photos of people we pass on the street, as we need their permission first. People are very shy, say the guides, they are probably more like scared. No pictures of old houses or poor areas. We all sat with fixed eyes and looked out the window. Would we get a glimpse of the poor side of the country that they want to hide so badly... On the way to the hotel we stopped at the Arc de Triomphe to take pictures. People were busy planting flowers in many places as Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea, has his birthday on Friday. It was a mixture of real and artificial flowers that they were planting. We will be staying at a 5 star hotel with 47 floors, Yanggakdo International, located on a small island in the Taedong River in the capital - we must not leave the hotel grounds. Our guides explain that it's for our own sake, since no one can understand us anyway... The fact is, they're afraid we'll see something we shouldn't. Some tourists have left the hotel on their own. They didn't get far when they were quickly stopped by the military while taking pictures down in the city. On selected floors of the hotel, there is special access for tourists to the 2 English-speaking channels BBC and NHK World (Japanese TV channel). At the top of the hotel is a revolving restaurant, where we were supposed to have dinner. If we looked down at the city, it looked enormously dead. There were virtually no lights on at all. Our guides said: Of course they have lights.They are not sitting in the dark. They just don't have many lights on. People have to pay for their electricity consumption themselves, so if they are short of money, they can save a little here. It must be extra sad in winter, when virtually no houses are heated - not even in Pyongyang. No light and no heat. Korean food is not strong. We were served many smaller dishes. Rice, fish, soup and a pancake with noodles. After the meal, we chatted with our guides.