Bizarre North Korea
I have been pretty fascinated by North Korea lately, probably caused by their appearance in this year's Football World Cup.
The way this country is isolated from the globalization, the lack of all the basics that people in most other countries are used to, and the fact that one of their football players was crying in front of them camera when North Korea's national anthem was played creates some very bizarre atmosphere.
With interest I read the remarks of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding travel to North Korea. Some highlights:
- As a foreigner you are not allowed to talk to local citizen
- Electricity and water shortages even in the capital Pjöngjang are common
- You have to leave your mobile phone when entering the country
- Computers are checked for Internet and calling capabilities (and probably confiscated?)
- The currency for foreigners is Euro
- And: Usually you need to be invited by the government to be granted a Visa
Really weird, huh?
On Flickr, I found a photo set of a guy named stephan, who despite the strict photo rules managed to take a few hundred shots of different parts of the country. If you have some spare time left, check those pictures out. They tell more than words.
