a year in north korea
Published on Nov 19, 2015
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When I was first introduced to the idea of spending an entire year in North Korea, I was purely hesitant. Now that I have experienced the country, where I stayed as an exchange student, I'm extremely eager to share my interesting visit with everyone.
Photo by (stephan)
North Korea, (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), or just simply know as Korea to the residents, is a country located north of the Korean Peninsula ran by its supreme leader, Kim Jong-un. Surely enough, you're probably thinking: who would be crazy enough to even visit North Korea? Never mind stay there for a year. That's exactly what I thought, but it turns out there's more to the country than what is shown on the news.
Photo by Gabriel Prehn Britto
North Korea, which is nearly the same size of Virginia, has a vast population of 24,851,627. Its popular cities include Kaesong, Haeju, and its capital and the place I stayed at, Pyongyang. Many citizens of these cities shared the same ethnicity, so diversity was rare between residents.
Photo by yeowatzup
While in North Korea, I also learned of the nation's beliefs, including the Juche idea. Juche, which literally translates into "self-reliance", is based on the philosophical principle that the leader (Kim Jung-un) is the master, and decides everything.
During my stay in North Korea, I had the chance to take in the warm, welcoming auras of the people there. My exchange family was nothing but kindhearted and selfless. Typically, strangers didn't converse on the streets out of the blue, but if a conversation did start, the accepted greeting would be to bow, depending on the person, and saying hello in Korean ("Annyeong-hasimnikka.")
Photo by Taekwonweirdo
Bowing down to statues of their leaders is also a pretty big deal, especially to the Mansudae Grand Monument, which are statues commemorating Kim Il Sung and his son, located in Pyongyang. Every single time anyone passes these tributes to the leaders, it is considered extremely rude, or even illegal, not to bow down to them.
During the first few weeks while staying with my exchange family, the sudden routine change seemed alien to me. My exchange siblings and I had to wake up extremely early and change into ridiculous school uniforms, then walk to the local school, which is called secondary school for 10 through 16 year olds.
Photo by Gabriel Prehn Britto
Some common foods that I ate with my exchange family were rice, noodles, and kimchi; vegetables with a variety of seasonings. Weirdly enough, these were the only foods we ate. Culinary influence hasn't entered North Korea since the 1950's, so fast food restaurants, such as McDonald's, are unheard of. Even tap water wasn't to be drank because of how dangerous and dirty it is. As a substitute, we drank ginseng, and fruit drinks.
Since I had the wonderful opportunity to spend an entire year in Pyongyang, I also got the chance to visit the break-taking landmarks located all around the city, such as the Arch of Triumph, or the Juche Tower. My most favorite out of all was undoubtedly Kim Jong-il Sung Square (pictured).
Like any other country, North Korea celebrates holidays, along with festivals, annually. The birthday of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jung Il are the most important observed days in North Korea. Kim Il Sung's birthdate, also known as the Day of the Sun, is celebrated with festivals such as the Kimilsungia Show and the April Spring Friendship Art Festival.
Before I started packing for North Korea, I panicked since I had no idea how the climate was. It turned out I had nothing to worry about. Everything was moderate, and temperate; not too hot, not too cold, except for the winter. Since winds come from Siberia, winters result in violent, bitter snow storms.
Transportation in the city was somewhat limited. The majority of the people I got to see walked on foot, or on bikes to get to their destinations, although I spotted numerous cars and buses daily, but not nearly as much as how many you see in the US.
Photo by Clay Gilliland
Currency in North Korea are North Korean wons, which convert 130 KPW (North Korean wons) into 1 US Dollar. Strangely enough, some stores I visited didn't even accept the NK wons, but instead Chinese Yuan and US Dollars. So if someone is planning to visit North Korea anytime soon, make sure not to convert all your money to North Korean wons.
Overall, my year in North Korea was a beautiful time that I'm definitely to cherish forever. If presented the option again, I would return in a heartbeat. There is only so much you can experience in a span of one year in such an astonishing nation.
Photo by Gabriel Prehn Britto
In this presentation, I depicted North Korea as a tourist, that knew nothing of the horrors concealed within the country, would see it. As an innocent exchange student from the United States, you would see nothing more than what the North Koreans would want you to see. In reality, the gruesome, terrifying truth is masked underneath brainwashing, lies, and a cruel dictatorship.
Photo by Jan Christian Teller
The real North Korea, the one Kim Jong-un attempts to hide away from the entire world, is one that is we still know a terribly small amount about, yet the glimpse that we have gotten has petrified humanity.
Photo by (stephan)
To put how brutal, and inhumane North Korea is in perspective, imagine being taught at the mere age of four that this man is your father, your god, your everything. If you do anything to deny it, or disrespect him, prepare to be sent to a concentration camp far worse than what you could ever imagine.
Photo by Hindrik S
In these concentration camps, you, as well as your children, and grandchildren, will be forced to work violently all day, regardless of age or physical condition. Prisoners are forced to eat grass, soil, and tree bark, or else die from starvation. Women and girls are abused and raped by guards, and then either have a forced abortion, or give birth by themselves, then have the baby strangled to death. And that's just the beginning.
Photo by rapidtravelchai
Crimes can vary from not crying and grieving "hard enough" for the loss of a leader (Kim Jung-Il). to mopping a floor with the newspaper from the government. Even outside of concentration camps, citizens have less rights than a dog, and live under the worse conditions. Millions of North Koreans die each year from starvation, and thousands attempt to escape to China, but punishment to defectors is as severe as death so many decide not to attempt it.
Photo by yeowatzup
Sadly, many North Koreans have been so brainwashed to the point that anyone crazy enough to attempt to stop the dictatorship would be annihilated by the fourth largest army in the world. North Koreans are denied access to any internet, for obvious reasons. Many defectors who escape and live to tell their story say that they were raised being oblivious of any other country other than North Korea, South Korea, and the United States. If they could use the internet, it would be obvious that there are better countries, and that they are being treated lesser than slaves.
Photo by Roman Harak
In general, North Korea is (possibly) one of the worst countries to live in, or worst country overall. From starving children, to a brainwashing tyrant, we can only hope and pray that the nightmare that is North Korea will cease to exist in the near future.
Photo by Roman Harak
