North Korea before Asia's own July 4th fireworks

Though counterintuitive to the democratic upbringing we enjoy, travel to North Korea is a healthy enterprise that draws 1500 to 2000 western tourists every year, not to mention the hoards of Asians who flood across the border toward Pyongyang. Being spied upon in a communist country currently testing nuclear weapons is a concession these travelers are willing to make to satisfy their wanderlust for the forbidden. Little did we know, though, that our journey across the DMZ and into the North would land us precariously close to involvement in an international incident. Unflinchingly armed with backpacks, hiking boots and a renewed appreciation for the Bill of Rights, we took our chances and set out for the “hermit kingdom.”

Duty-free in the DPRK
Thanks to less than amicable relations between the US and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), American access to the country is nonexistent outside of one small but stunningly beautiful rural locale: Mount Geumgang. Hiking, pastoral scenery and South Korean hopes of reunification with the North have drawn over one million tourists – chiefly South Koreans – to this area since it was first opened to foreigners in 1998.

The calling card of many a communist government is its purposeful presentation of excellence and prosperity to the outside world, and North Korea is no exception to this rule. The standards of facilities for Mount Geumgang tourists – spending over $200 per day in a country where the average yearly wage is around $240 – are much higher than those for the ordinary denizens of the north.

The tourist compound where foreigners are allowed to stay could have been ripped right out of the trendiest neighborhood of South Korea’s capital city, Seoul. Not only do the duty-free shops there sell Gucci, Johnny Walker and Marlboro Reds for a premium price, but the restaurants serve primarily fried chicken, Japanese and South Korean food for upwards of ten US dollars per plate. The hotel rooms even come equipped with televisions – literally called “stupid boxes” in North Korea. Talks with managers at the tourist compound revealed that for a price – $940 million to be exact – the Hyundai Corporation had bought free license to turn the area into a madcap commercialistic tourist mecca. It seems that Kim Jong Il’s struggle against imperialism includes an escape clause for that age-old capitalistic enterprise of moneymaking.

The Security Situation
Despite the name brand mania at Hyundai’s tourist compound, we were nevertheless in North Korea, a fact punctuated by the legion of guards spread about the countryside. Camouflaged against the brilliant green of the endless fields so as to inspire impromptu games of Where’s Waldo, they stood as rigidly as they held the red flags at their sides – red flags that would be used to stop our buses if we were to do anything illegal.

The scope of illegality is understandably broad in the communist state. We were required to wear name badges at all times and warned of the consequences of destroying them. Our cell phones were also confiscated and held in the South as they are prohibited even for the few North Koreans who can afford them. Forbidden from speaking Korean, neither were we allowed to take pictures of the countryside, much less the military’s cannon-fortified coastal installments that were almost expertly hidden from view. Our adherence to these rules was scrutinized by packs of plainclothes police who eyed us skeptically but who were also under orders to keep tabs on their fellow “comrades.”

Sightseeing
Though the fields had been empty for our arrival, subsequent bus trips outside of the compound revealed much more life. The supposed idyllic abundance of the countryside was underscored by rows of farmers steadily at work in the rice and wheat fields. Cyclists were everywhere, though there were only a few autos outside of our tour buses, which seemed to inspire fear. Upon our approach, several wary workers crouched among crops to remain unseen while others tried to hide themselves and their bicycles behind slender trees. Only one curious worker peeked up at us a little too conspicuously and far too often as we drove past her and a wall enthusiastically proclaiming America is our enemy!

While this clearly contrived glimpse of country life was the highlight of the trip, the rugged beauty of Mount Geumgang cannot be overlooked. A few burnt trees stood as remnants of war along the lush path that led hikers up the mountain, over rustic suspension bridges and finally to 320-foot Kuryong Falls. Our South Korean guide kept shooing us along the path and telling us to stop taking so many pictures, but there was too much to gape at, not the least of which was the communist propaganda prominently etched into stones all along the trail. The human propaganda – workers hammering on a new building with such enthusiasm, whistling and toe tapping as to evoke the Seven Dwarves – was enough to elicit the quip that we must be in Disney’s little-known North Korean venue.

Fireworks
Still chuckling over the exaggerated propaganda and inflated commercialism we’d seen during our time in North Korea, we prepared to depart. Expecting our exit to be as rigid as our arrival, yet ultimately uneventful, we proceeded through customs where, incidentally, our passports were never stamped. We thought we were clear when a guard suddenly ordered us, along with our camera, back to the customs desk. Thanks to some clever maneuvering and the aid of a small LCD screen, our forbidden pictures of the coastal military installments and the customs office were never found. These border heroics didn’t sit well with our systems, though. We were well into South Korea before our hearts finally slowed to normal speed.

Still a bit shaken by our incident at customs, we were floored to hear two days later that the North had followed through on its threats to test launch long-range missiles. Even more unsettling is that in the time it would take us to drive from Midwest City to Guymon, we could now drive from our current residence to the North’s nuclear test site.

tags: travel  korea  asian  issues  northkorea