Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Pyongyang

North Korea might not be a known destination for most travelers but my perception of this communist country totally changed after viewing the photos from my parents who recently visit there.

The communist symbol is usually associated with tools such as hammer and sickle. This symbols can be found around Pyongyang. The hammer representing industrial workers, hoe (instead of the sickle) representing agricultural workers and traditional writing brush to represent the intelligentsia.

The Juche Tower is a 170m tall monument dedicated to the Juche philosophy of Kim Il Sung. The hammer, hoe and brush are held together which means unity of these 3 groups.

This arch in Pyongyang bears some resemblance with Arc de Triomphe in Paris. This arch here is also called The Arch of Triumph.

The Pyongyang Metro are modern and beautiful. Note the beautiful murals and the chandelier that decorate the stations. I have to admit this is the most impressive subway stations I ever come across. The metro system here is the deepest in the world at over 110m.

This is the border post between South and North Korea

From what I heard from my parents, North Korea is a clean, beautiful and blessed with delicious food. Communism is not a bad ideology after all. North Korea will definitely in my travel list in the future

12 comments:

mhel said...

It's good to hear your parents enjoyed their visit in North Korea. Being a communist state, I've heard that there are a lot of restrictions. And tourists are not free to wander around without a tour guide. I still prefer to visit South Korea which is one of my wish lists.

By the way, I just want to wish you a very Happy Birthday! Hope you have a grand time celebrating! :)

Superman said...

North Korea? Wow. Not many people got the chance to visit that place last time. But now things started to change. It is more open now.

Josephine said...

hahaha...
why u petak-petak ur parents face...

But, from the picture, North Korea is really a clean and nice place

Bengbeng said...

Happy birthday to u

Borneo Falcon said...

Indeed there is still restriction in North Korea and one only allowed to take photos at certain place. To get a visa to enter the country is also not easy.

Thanks for the birthday wish!

Unknown said...

wow north korea!!! the place looks good and i would definitely want to visit that place..

daywalker said...

drop by here, the picture makes me want to visit thata exotic place

bule said...

is North korea is save to be visited considering conflict and its communism policy??

Borneo Falcon said...

North Korea is perfectly safe. Don't let the word "communist" scare you. I think communist is not a bad ideology after all. Just some power houses make it sound so terrible

I AM A BLOGGER said...

if i hv the chance, i wud visit there too! it is nice to travel and to see others places' culture, including North Korea^^

eunice said...

WAH! What an eye opener! Can anyone like us visit North Korea anytime?

With the positive feedbacks from your parents, could it be that tourists are only presented with the best of DPRK? cos I watched those documentaries about DPRK, and it's "mind boggling". However I do hear that the country is beautiful.

John said...

The pictures are great and I'm so glad you shared them on your interesting blog. I expect we will be hearing more about North Korea, now that President Clinton has returned from there with Euna Lee and Laura Ling, who were previously arrested and sentenced to prison there. It does seem like a fascinating place to visit though.