Dates preface 26-08-2005 27-08-2005 28-08-2005 29-08-2005 30-08-2005 31-08-2005 01-09-2005 02-09-2005 03-09-2005 back home 4 Dutchies Pyongyang to Kaesong At 7 in the morning, we're awoken by amplified music from outside. Curious, we walk over to the window. At the other side of the Taedong river a propaganda van is cruising by, with loudspeakers on it's roof from wich Korean music blares. This is to motivate the people to work for their country. Yesterday we saw an interesting form of "music while you work". While, in our country, construction workers bring their radio's to work, here they just put a live band in the street. Buildings and streets are constructed while the workers enjoy real live music. We start the day visiting the war museum, officially called the "Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum". A female soldier, with red lipstick and a green uniform that looks very becoming on her, shows us around the museum. In the hallway we're greeted by a very large painting on which generalissimo Kim Il Sung, impeccably clad in grey and white, is leading his troops. When Korea was divided in two countries after the second world war, in 1950 North Korea decided to liberate the south from the American occupation. At first this worked out quite well, but when they had come to the southern part of South Korea, the United States and United Nations intervened. They fought back the northern troops, until far behind the 38th degree that had been the border between the two Korea's for the past few years. When the western troops came close to the Chinese border, that country figured that enough was enough and aided North Korea in their battle. After three years of war, and tens of thousands deaths and many destroyed cities later, on july 27 1953 an armistice was signed and both Koreas withdrew to their "own" side of the 38th degree. According to North Korea it was the South who started the war, by the way. One might think all effort had been in vain, but the museum brochure states: "The US imperialists feel to their knees before the Korean people and signed the Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953. The just Fatherland Liberation War of the Korean people came to an end in a great victory." After a few rooms with displays we get so see a diorama about a certain episode from the Korean War. Courageous drivers drove their trucks over a dangerous mountain pass to deliver supplies to the troops, whilst being shot a from the air, by the airplanes of the "American imperialists" and the "South Korean puppet army". While a ladies voice on a tape is telling this story, miniature trucks drive through the nicely made mountainous landscape under the cover of darkness. It's the heat of the fight: anti aircraft weaponry fire shots from a hill, a helicopter crashes. Before the end of the story, the lights of the diorama shut off, while the tape is continuing merrily. The museum guide says the story's over now, and we have to go on. The Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum We go upstairs in a small wood panelled elevator, that squeaks and creaks and takes impressively long to get up one story. Upstairs we can see the most beautiful diorama of the museum: a round painting, 15 meters high and 132 meters circumference, that skillfully merges into a real foreground. The floor in the middle revolves, so you can sit down on an bench and relax while the war scenes go by. When we enter there's a class of school children sitting there and all benches are occupied. But that's no problem: our soldier guide tells a few kids to stand up so we, rather embarrassed, can sit on their bench. Than she stands before us and starts telling us in English, right through the Korean tape that's playing, that here we see the liberation of Teajon village. The tape ends, the kids leave and we can take pictures. If we have ever seen a thing like this, our guide asks. I tell her about the Mesdag Panorama in Scheveningen, but because she's obviously very proud of this diorama I put emphasis on the fact that nothing revolves there and it's just a view on the sea and dunes and therefore much less spectacular. The museum also has an impressive collection of captured tanks and shot down American airplanes that we, to our guides satisfaction, study and photograph with interest.   Monument to the Victory in the Fatherland Liberation War We leave the museum and get in the van, including the local guide, to go to our next destination: the "Monument to the Victory in the Fatherland Liberation War". The monument, erected in 1993 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the victory, consists (off course) of a vast square, with several bronze groups of statues in social realistic style. In the middle stands the statue "Victory", a soldier with a Russian Shpagin machine gun (or the modified Korean version of it), waving a Korean flag. At the sides we see battle scenes. One rather lugubrious statue group depicts soldiers who were wounded in battle, but, despite their lack of arms, legs or other vital body parts kept on fighting, using their teeth to operate their machine guns or who threw themselves on their enemies with a hand grenade in their mouths. As of all statues we see the design is very realistic, even the facial expressions. Details of the monument In the background we see the 330 meters high Ryugyong Hotel towers high above everything else. This building, with its 105 stories should have become the largest hotel of Asia, with 3000 rooms and five revolving restaurants in the top. Construction started in the late 80's and was halted in 1992 for an unknown period of time. In the west it's claimed this is due to construction errors, but the Koreans say it's a temporary pause for reasons that are not further explained. Next we drive to the banks of the Teadong river, to visit the USS Pueblo. This American ship was captures in january 1968 in the East Korean Sea. From that point in time view points differ. The Americans clamed the Pueblo was an oceanographic research vessel, that was in international waters, North Korea said it was a spy ship, violating their territorial waters. Anyway, shots were fired, one American died and the others were captured. After eleven months of arguing the Americans finally signed an official letter of apology to the DPRK and the crew members of the USS Pueblo were released over the border to South Korea at Panmunjom. The USS Pueblo Machinegun at rear deck Koreans buttel holes The Pueblo lies in Pyongyang these days, at the banks of the Taedong on the spot where 120 years earlier an other American ship was sunk: the General Sherman. Officially this ship came to trade, but presumably mainly to spread Christianity in Korea. Although Korea told them not to appreciate trade, the General Sherman continued to sail upstream, which resulted in a four days lasting fight, the destruction of the ship and the deaths of all people on it. By having the Pueblo on this very spot it's being shown that the American imperialists have been targeting Korean territory for a long time. Juicy detail: the sinking of the General Sherman is said to have been led by Kim Il Sung's grandfather. But back to the Pueblo: on board we're shown a stripy black and white video about the incident in which the phrase "American imperialists" is frequently used. Then we're shown around the ship. We see the crew's bedrooms, the kitchen, the bullet holes of the Korean fire (circled in red), the control room, the rooms with spy equipment and some documents marked as 'top secret'. When we leave the Pueblo over the gangway and walk to the van, the guide strikes up a conversation with me. She wants to know my age, if Sasja and I are married and if we have kids. Abroad I often say yes to the marriage question, because 'living together' is not a well known and accepted concept every where. But as Mr O, who due to his position knows everything about us, is walking behind us, I have to say no, otherwise I would make a very strange impression on him. The guide has two sons and asks surprised why we do not have children. I just shrug and make an "I don't know" gesture, because I have the strong suspicion that "I don't want to" wouldn't be an appropriate answer here. Devices on board of the USS Pueblo and the American letter of apology to Korea We drive to our hotel for a lunch in the Revolving Restaurant. On the 47th floor. When we meet Mr O there at the appointed time he tells us it's not gonna happen today, because they have reservations for a large group of Chinese for today. After a lunch in Restaurant No 2 we carry our luggage to the van, because tonight we'll stay in Keasong. We visit the Korean Art Gallery at Kim Il Sung square. At every museum we go to, there's a local guide waiting especially for us. Our guides always has to go to the reception first to declare we're the two Dutch people who are planned to visit today, so we can be crossed of the list of visitors. This guide had brought her son. He's 13 years old and just started learning English in school, which he hope's to practice on us. His mother explanation about the paintings is clearly still way over his head and he keeps to the little sentences he's learned so far. First he frowns hard and then he, just a little bit too loudly, burst out in a "What's your name?!" Off course we return the question and ask for his name too and we see his brains work to process all this information. The museum has paintings from all periods. We start with the old things, murals from old kings tombs, then we go the landscapes and other scenes of nature. We're starting to recognize thing: styles, but also certain paintings. In all souvenirs shops you find painted of embroidered replica's of old famous paintings. Now we suddenly see the originals, many of them look familiar to us. One of the better known paintings is that of a farmer, asleep under a tree. His cow is standing next to him, overlooking the scene. The guide tells us no one has ever been able to wake up this farmer and she asks if maybe we could do it. But we see how happy this man is snoring under his tree, so we don't even try. Then we get to the modern art department. It's a cheerful realistic style with many colors and lots of light in the paintings. One might call it kitsch, but it also has a cool quality. There are always people in the paintings and all faces are soft and fresh as from new born babies. And there is no such thing as natural light: everything is light, there are no shadows. The museum guide seems to be pleased with us. "I see you are very interesting in art!" she exclaims a few times. Her son, in the mean time, asks after thinking for a long time: "Dou you like sports?" His mother tells him not to bother us too much, but think it's quite cute. It's a refreshing change from al the information in museums and at monuments that we have to concentrate on all day long. On the wall of the stairways hang some of the propaganda posters in the style we like so much. Too bad they are the only ones in the whole museum. On one of them we see a sniper with the cross hair of his rifle's scope over a face with well known features. If we know who that is, the guide asks. Certainly! "George Bush" I exclaim enthusiastically. Muffled giggles follow. When the tour is over we say goodbye to the guide and give her son a little bag of sweets and also the advice to keep on practicing English a lot. Our van is waiting for us, ready to transport us to the next sight to see with high speed. We go to the Schoolchildrens Palace. In North Korea kids go to school for six mornings a week. In the afternoon the talented ones can dedicate themselves to a sport or an art they're good at, like singing, dancing, embroidery, calligraphy, playing musical instruments, tea kwon do, etcetera. Two days a week the Schoolchildrens Palace is open for visitors. We can take a look at the lessons to see cure little girls playing guitar, key board, piano or the traditional Korean kajagum, an interesting looking rectangular wooden string instrument. They all wear a black or blue skirt, a white blouse, with a red scarf, and neat white socks. Kajagum Embroidery Caligraphy Some kids applaud when we enter and when we give them applause after they've played a song, they applaud again. We listen to one song in every room and then we go on to the next room. There's a lot of music playing going on, but there's also embroidery and calligraphy. In calligraphy class we see a mixed boys and girls group for the first time, before we only saw girls. We're off course not the only tourists, but we seems to be the smallest group. The Dutch tourists we saw on Beijing Airport are running through the hallways, chattering loudly. And we constantly run into a large group of Chinese, who have two guys with video camera's with them. On request one can have the trip filmed, we understand, and then the video can be bought as a souvenir. We try to avoid the Chinese as much s we can, because they swarm through the rooms and stand in the way incredibly when we want to take pictures. At five o' clock we go to the theatre of a Schoolchildrens Palace. The kids give a great performance here, showing the things they've learned. They sing, dance and play music cheerfully. Two mini girls in white dresses play quatre mains on a grand piano, little boys do acrobatic stunts and this afternoons favorite is a young girl who plays two xylophones at a time, gesturing widely and continuously smiling at the audience. And not "just smiling". No really, from ear to ear. De theatre show in the Schoolchildrens Palace Keasong, here we come! We get out of town in a southern direction, making a sanitary stop at a restaurant that's been built over the road as if it were a bridge. It won't have many customers, considering the Korean traffic density. Along the way again we see many people who ride their bikes, who walk or who just sit at the side of the road for reasons that are unknown to us. Every once in a while we pass truck with a load of people sitting on top of the cargo. We pass villages, farmland and rice fields. Sometimes we see huge slogans standing in the fields, consisting of white blocks with red characters on them. From a distance it's hard to estimate their size, until Sasja sees a man standing next to such a block and concludes the letters must be about 10 meters high. No matter if we drive through Pyongyang or over the highways, there are checkpoints everywhere. Traveling Koreans obviously need permission to move from A to B. On several spots along the road we encounter policemen (in the city) or soldiers (on the highway) who give us a stop sign. The driver slows down and when he almost comes to a stop the authority figure sees Sasja and me, sitting on the middle bench of the car and immediately wave us through. In Pyongyang alone, this happens at least a few times a day. It's about a 150 kilometers drive to Keasong, and as we get closer to the city we encounter more and more checkpoints. At the last checkpoint, it's become dark in the mean time, we have to stop. Mr Kim steps into an office to do the paperwork while we stay in the van, with the light on on the inside, so the authorities can see us. We hear the many checkpoints are necessary because we are approaching the border with South Korea. At the moment it's still a bit complicated and everything, but after the reunification this won't be necessary any more. Kaesong is a cute looking town where may houses are still built in traditional style. Our hotel is in traditional style too. It consists of a number of traditional houses along a little brook. The five of us get some rooms that look out upon our "own" courtyard with a little garden on it. Above the roofs we can just see the illuminated statue of Kim Il Sung, looking over his people from a hill top. We left Sasja's travel bag with the laptop, souvenirs and other stuff we don't need here in the hotel in Beijing and our shared luggage is now packed in my backpack. When the driver sees me carrying the big backpack, in spite of my protests he immediately relieves me from it and carries it from the van to our room himself. Our room has two futons as mattresses and two hard bean pillows to rest our heads on. The floor is covered with straw tatamis so we have to take our shoes of before entering. We also have a TV, that broadcasts the same station on every channel. Korea Central is the only station one can receive here. On weekends there's more choice: then there's an extra station for a few hours a day. For the average Korean there's no Japanese TV and BBC World like in our room in the Yanggakdo Hotel. In the bathroom two pairs of plastic slippers are waiting for us. They are a necessity, because the bathroom basin leaks so the floor is partly under water. We get served a meal in traditional style, that we eat sitting on the floor. We each have a small table in fort of us filled with many small bowls with Korean delicacies. Sasja and I share a dining room that measures about five by five meters and is also in use as a corridor. Al the time ladies are walking in and out, putting theirs shoes on or off, depending on whether they come inside or go outside. Our guides and drivers eat some where else again. When we're done we walk around a bit on the hotel terrain. The gate to our rooms is locked and we have no clue where our guides eat, because the restaurant building is a maze of many different rooms. After peeking into some of those rooms we spot Mr Yu, who seems to have dinner with the other drivers and who jumps up right away to go and get the key for us. De futons are comfortable, although I do wake up a few times when the blood stream to my arm is cut off. That's the down side of a hard mattress. We leave the doors of the room open and fall asleep enjoying the warm night air and idyllic cricket chirping. The Keasong Folk Custom Hotel Our room Traditional diner with loooots of dishes!