In my childhood I was a passionate stamp collector and still today I will often pick up some stamps as souvenirs when I travel, particularly when I visit what might be termed more obscure countries in the stamp collecting world. Continue reading “Korean Stamp Exhibition Hall – North Korean Stamps – Expect the Unexpected”
The Kwangbok Department Store – Let’s Go Shopping
Unless in the middle of the night, when I arrive at any destination the first thing I do, having dropped off my bags at the hotel, is to go out for a walk in the neighbourhood. The walk will invariably lead to a coffee or another beverage suitable to the time of day or my mood and, if I come across one, a look through a market or shop. Not so in North Korea. Continue reading “The Kwangbok Department Store – Let’s Go Shopping”
Lunch, Revolutionary Dessert and a flight from Orang Airport
Our hearts and minds filled with the revolutionary spirit of Kim Jong-suk, it was time to eat before we started out for the airport to catch our charter flight back to Pyongyang. The Kyongsong Hotel, where we would dine, was only a short drive from the Jipsam Revolutionary Site, which half our group, including me, had just visited. Continue reading “Lunch, Revolutionary Dessert and a flight from Orang Airport”
Jipsam Revolutionary Site
Today we had a choice of two activities for our pre-lunch stop. After lunch we would continue on to Orang airport for our return flight to Pyongyang. Having a choice in North Korea, and in particular one that results in the group being split in two, is rare but was made easier here in the north east of the country as we had additional local guides and we were travelling in two smaller buses. Our normal large bus was not suited to the roads in this more mountainous part of the country but then again neither was one of our smaller buses though that’s a story for another review. Continue reading “Jipsam Revolutionary Site”
Hoeryong’s Children’s Palace
I suspect it will come as a surprise to many that North Korea has a 100% literacy rate. In North Korea everyone receives twelve years (extended from eleven in 2012) of full time, state funded, education – from kindergarten to high school. After this there is the option to go to university and other institutes of higher learning. Education in North Korea focuses on preparing students for the workforce (including the military) and aims at not only advancing the prospects of each student but also those of the country, consistent with its Juche, or self-reliance, ideology. There is a significant focus on foreign languages, science and technology but this is not at the expense of the arts, culture and sports. Continue reading “Hoeryong’s Children’s Palace”
Mother Kim Jong-suk – Starting a Trend in Cross Border Travel to China?
Our final stop in Hoeryong, specifically related to the memory of Kim Jong-suk, was the banks of the Tumen River which, here, serves as the country’s northern border with China. Having completed our tour of the Kim Jong-suk city sites we boarded our bus for the short trip to the border. Continue reading “Mother Kim Jong-suk – Starting a Trend in Cross Border Travel to China?”
Mother Kim Jong-suk – From Kitchen Hand to Commander of Mt Paektu
Our primary reason for visiting the north east city of Hoeryong was to learn about Kim Jong-suk, one of the “three Commanders of Mt Paektu”, hero of the anti-Japanese revolutionary forces and mother to Kim Jong-il – the successor to North Korea’s first post Japanese occupation leader, his father Kim Il-sung. Continue reading “Mother Kim Jong-suk – From Kitchen Hand to Commander of Mt Paektu”
Kim Ki-song Hoeryong First Middle School – Children of the Revolution
On arriving into Hoeryong from Chongjin our first stop was the Kim Ki-song Hoeryong First Middle School, one of the country’s more prestigious secondary schools catering to the offspring of the city’s Nouveau riche. It is named after the revolutionary brother of anti-Japanese war heroine Kim Jong-suk, wife of Kim Il-sung and mother to Kim Jong-il. Continue reading “Kim Ki-song Hoeryong First Middle School – Children of the Revolution”
Hoeryong – Snacking, Wining, Dining and Sleeping
As usual we had an early start to the day, so as to fit in a final sightseeing stop in Chongjin prior to heading inland on our 2 – 3 hours drive to Hoeryong. En route we stopped at a small unmarked shop which sold bottled water (for a few cents) from the adjacent bottling plant which our guides assured us produced the best water in North Korea. A plaque by the shop detailed the makeup of the water for those seeking additional assurance in this regard. Continue reading “Hoeryong – Snacking, Wining, Dining and Sleeping”
Hoeryong – The birthplace of Kim Jong-suk
Hoeryong is a city of around 100,000 people in the northern part of North Hamgyŏng Province, right on the border with China. Like all other towns and cities in North Korea you would imagine that the population was somewhat smaller as people tend to stay at home when not out working. North Korea is not a café / window shopping society though things are slowly changing in this direction, especially in Pyongyang where a multitude of new cafes and restaurants had sprung up between my 2014 and my 2018 visit. Continue reading “Hoeryong – The birthplace of Kim Jong-suk”
The Rambling Wombat 