A glimpse of the Hermit Kingdom

On the weekend we visited the Hermit Kingdom- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea ('North Korea').

We had previously looked into entering North Korea via China and visiting Pyongyang, but the $1000/day price tag attached to these tours quashed this idea pretty fast. After arriving in Seoul we discovered another option- entering North Korea via the demilitarised zone (DMZ) on the eastern coast and visiting the Kumgansan (Diamond Mountain) area. This area has been opened up because it is spiritually sacred to all Koreans.

Our tour bus departed Seoul close to midnight on Friday (our fellow passangers including another Novocastian!), arriving at the east coast at about 5am. It was here, at sunrise, that we were to cross the most heavily fortified border area in the world- the DMZ dividing the Korean peninsula into the DPRK to the north and our current home of The People's Republic of Korea (or 'South Korea'), to the south.

As we approached the DMZ, we noticed that the beach on the South Korean side of the border was heavily fenced off and was being inspected by a troop of South Korean soldiers. We were told that this is a procedure conducted each morning to detect foot prints and any other signs of North Korean spies, defectors or refugees. We also passed through a number of tank traps protecting one of the only road passes between the two Koreas.

A fenced-off beach on the South Korean side of the DMZ

Tank traps line the road approaching the DMZ

The border crossing procedures were intense. First, we were officially stamped out of South Korea, an efficient system conducted in a sparkling new immigration office. We then transferred from our tour bus onto another bus which was to transfer us though the DMZ and be our transportation for the time that we were in North Korea. These buses had no number plates- like they were caught in a strange place where their owners weren't able to be identified.

As we were transferred through the DMZ and into North Korean territory, the reality of where we were and where we were going was becoming more apparent. North Korean soldiers in their baggy brown uniforms with oversized hats were highly visible as they stood, mostly alone, along the road and throughout the spectacularly lush and rugged landscape. We were instructed not to point to them, and definitely not to even look like we were reaching for our cameras. Compared to the modern military apparel of their South Korean counterparts, who are decked out in the latest US-style combat gear, the North Korean soldiers looked like they had stepped out of a WWII history book.

As we approached North Korean immigration we were given ID tags which we were to wear for our entire time in North Korea and were instructed to memorise the information exactly as written on them- name, address, occupation, etc. We were told to be prepared for questions and possible fines if we seemed uncertain of these details or if there appeared to be any discrepancy between our passport and ID card.

We shuffled off the bus, as instructed- our passport and ID card in our right hand, camera in our left hand and bag on our backs. We had been told that camera lenses of more than 160mm were banned as was print media, mobile phones, recording devises and any other politically sensitive material. The immigration office was nothing more than a big white canvas tent with makeshift wooden booths- was this a sign of only a temporary act of exposure on behalf of North Korea or just an indication of their economic situation?

We faced the immigration officer one-by-one, told not to smile at or talk to the officer. It was an awkward confrontation, not knowing were to look my eyes darted up and down, from the officer's face to my passport that he was inspecting.

After our tour group was given the all clear we boarded back onto our non-identifiable bus and waited for all the other buses in our convoy to be boarded (other tour groups). While our bus waited at the front of the queue, a North Korean soldier stood rigidly in front of the bus, holding an icy stare at anyone he made eye contact with- is this a tactic they are taught to unnerve you? If so, it works.

Half an hour later we arrived at Onjeonggak- the village where we would be staying for the next two days. After a quick stop to buy some snacks we headed to the site of our first hike- Kuryong Falls. With, what felt like, zero sleep overnight on the bus, the 9am start to the hike felt like 5pm and I was wondering whether I would be able to muster the energy for the 4 hours to the top. Alas, the fresh mountain air and the beautiful scenery made the climb enjoyable and painless.

The crystal clear water of the Kuryong fall area- unfortunately touching the water was a fineable offence!

Rocky peaks and lush green landscape

Inscriptions on rocks along the track were common, many in Chinese characters, which is taught at schools in South Korea as a compulsory subject

Wanting to fit in as many of the "optional extras" that we could on this opportunity of (perhaps) a lifetime, we signed ourselves up for another tour as soon as we finished the Kuryong Falls. We were given 10mins to check into the hotel and get back on the bus for Samilpo Lake. This track was an easy stroll with some nice water views and North Korean singing.

A shrine isolated on Samilpo Lake

Traditional North Korean singing is very high pitched and apparently popular among South Korean tourist who, on this occasion, cheered as this North Korean tour guide belted out a number

Next was the Pyongyang Acrobatic Show. What an amazing spectacular! Practice definitely does make perfect- there were knives being balanced on knives, being balanced on heads, as those heads were on bodies that were doing trapeze tricks. The show reminded us of a doco we had seen on the Mass Games that are held to honour The Chairman, Kim Jong il- the uniforms, the make-up on the faces of the acrobats, the music and the backdrops were something from another world and another time.

A Pyongyang acrobat waves to the applauding audience, his appearance like a puppet

Somehow we managed to escape the other members of our tour group and had dinner alone on the top of the roof of the Kumgangsan Hotel. This was not where we were staying, but we'd heard they served authentic North Korean fare and were not disappointed. We were told by the very helpful chef that it was "country style" North Korean cuisine and it went down very nicely with some local beer and soju.

Egg rolls, barley rice, stuffed cabbage, savoury pancakes, vegies, dumplings and other unidentifiable yummy mouthfuls

Trent sampling a local drop and proudly displaying his ID tag

Cooks at the Kumgangsan Hotel

Some more snaps from around the Onjeonggak village area...

Kim Jong-il signed this plaque in support of the Kumgangsan area being opened to tourists from the South

A two-storey high mosaic of Kim Jong-il (hidden by trees) and his father Kim Il-sung, who is referred to as the Eternal President (he died in 1994)

Our bus stands alone in the parking lot of our hotel, the Hotel Oekumgang

Our hotel, only finished a few month prior to our stay

The view from our hotel window of North Korean soldiers on patrol (we were banned from taking photos of them so this was as close as we could get)

After a comfortable and welcome night sleep, we woke to low-lying cloud shrouding Onjeonggak

By 9am the next morning we were on our next hike, this time to Manmulsang, one of the area's highest peaks. We had been warned that this was the tougher of the two options available, and the thousands of stairs carved into the stone made sure of that. The views were, again, spectacular and our pictures by no means do it justice.

Trent gazing off into the distance over the misty peaks of Kumgangsan

A view of the sea off to the east

The deep green summer foliage is a striking contrast to the white rocky peaks

Trent rounds a bridge suspended around a granite peak

And what came next involved 100's of naked bodies of all ages and shapes, divide into male and female quarters, where bathing in hot spas of jade and chrysanthemum took place. Yes, we participated in a pastime Korean's are almost as passionate about as norae bangs (singing rooms)- the public bathhouse. It was, however, not through conscious consideration that this event took place, but rather our naive assumption that the term "hot springs" was associated with suited bathing. It was not until we had paid our money and were ferried into separate changing areas did we realise that we were to partake in naked bathing with hundreds of others. I must admit that my heart did skip a beat when I realised that I really couldn't put my swimmers on, but Trent actually ran back out of the changing room and waited in the reception to see whether I had actually come back out as well. We both swallowed any insecurities we had and spent half an hour experiencing a Korean bathhouse. In order to keep this blog PG we will not disclose any more details of the visual images we now have implanted in our brains, nor will we be posting any snaps.

And with that, we boarded the bus back to South Korea, nice and squeeky clean. The process through immigration was very easy and uneventful- almost as if they wanted to make it easier for us to leave.

Two axis of evil countries down, one to go.