Red Corner: North Korea on my Mind

North Korea fascinates me. It is not so often that one can step into the past and witness a bygone era that is preserved in its entirety. Unfortunately, the reason for such preservation is an authoritarian regime that allows almost no tourists in and even less citizens out.

Recently, however, the Hermit Kingdom briefly opened its doors to celebrate the North Korean Workers’ Party 60th anniversary. Those allowed in were hand-held the entire time and never allowed to deviate from pre-planned itineraries (for example, they could see only two underground subway stops in Pyongyang and no others). It was a blatant exercise in Propaganda 101 that included an obligatory laying of flowers at the base of a 60-foot statue of Kim Il Sung.

Nonetheless, the experience must have been amazing as is evident by the numerous articles which continue to surface in the media about this rare opportunity to visit North Korea. One of the more fascinating, published in the International Herald Tribune, focuses on the tightly controlled aspects of the journey and the anachronisms which abound.

It is certainly not a trip for everybody, but I’m going to be the first in line if they open their doors again for the North Korean Workers’ Party 70th anniversary.