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中英翻译由本人所做。原文链接：<https://medium.com/swlh/8-days-in-north-korea-5c651c3883de>源文件见：

#8 Days in North Korea 朝鲜八日游

**实力预警——多图多视频以及YouTube iframe植入！！请勿使用流量查看，同时请自备神奇的爬高工具！**

** Welcome to the world’s most isolated civilization **
** 欢迎来到全球最封闭的文明 **

In September 2015, I traveled to North Korea to see, first-hand, what life was like inside the Hermit Kingdom. Much of the country was what I had expected: strange, ersatz, thick with propaganda, and every so often, seriously unsettling.
And yet, the journey was also filled with some truly wonderful, completely unexpected surprises. One thing’s for sure: North Korea really is unlike any other place on Earth.
Since my return, I’ve had a lot of people, friends and strangers, ask me about my trip. There has been way more curiosity about North Korea than I would have imagined — so much so, that I thought I’d write down some of my experiences, and share them with you here.
Pictures and stories alone can’t do justice to what it’s really like being on the ground in North Korea. As a visitor, you’re watched 24/7, you have no freedom, and you’re constantly tense and on edge. But hopefully, this post will at least give you a glimpse into what life is like in one of the most restricted, enigmatic destinations in the world.
## Departure Day
My journey began with mixed feelings of trepidation, excitement, and unbridled curiosity. With my visa in hand, I boarded North Korea’s national air carrier, Air Koryo — the lowest-ranked airline in the world, and the only carrier to have a one star safety rating with [SkyTrax](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3214053/Fasten-seatbelts-bumpy-ride-s-really-like-fly-North-Korea-s-Air-Koryo-worst-airline-world.html).

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*SvEsGNGKYS7milV782jQvw.jpeg)![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*Q5eBCrMG6QHaTLXgTOJKtw.jpeg)
>My North Korean visa card (left); Air Koryo, Korea’s national air carrier (right)

On board, we filled out a rather ominous customs declaration, where we were reminded not to bring in any killing devices, poison, “historical and cultural wealth,” “publishings of any kind,” or “cell phone and other communication means.” We were seriously about to go off the grid.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*aUOEhwqd_8ict_eE765TyA.jpeg)

>DPRK Customs Declaration Form

We were fed a peculiar hamburger made from mystery meat, and subjected to our very first taste of North Korean propaganda.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*CMcPlh3-VRu5b6krqTv-DQ.jpeg)![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*MMW1JGwJMjohFslT5H_sOg.jpeg)

>Mystery meat hamburger (left); In-flight propaganda (right)

Our in-flight magazine had articles with headlines like:

<blockquote name="ee82" id="ee82" class="graf--pullquote pullquote graf-after--p">Local Elections Display the Invincible Might of DPRK Government</blockquote>

which referred to <NAME> Un with a very official-sounding title that took up nearly a whole paragraph:

><NAME>, First Secretary of the WPK, First Chairman of the DPRK National Defense Commission and Supreme Commander of the Korean People’s Army

Throughout the entire flight, TV monitors overhead played non-stop propaganda videos, featuring an all-female rock group called [Moranbong](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moranbong_Band). These women are the North Korean equivalent of U2. Each band member was hand-picked by <NAME>.

The video was apparently filmed live in a massive auditorium, filled with expressionless men all dressed in identical military uniforms, sitting stiff and upright. They all remained frozen in their seats, motionless, until an enormous image of Kim Jong Un was projected onto a giant screen behind the rock band, at which point, all the men would commence applauding robotically in unison. They wouldn’t stop clapping until the image came down.

We were prohibited from taking photos or videos on the plane, but I did manage to sneak this short video when the stewardesses weren’t looking:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xkbvEkYvbPU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

>Non-stop rock band propaganda video aboard my Air Koryo flight to Pyongyang

- - -

## Arrival

Pyongyang Airport was not at all what I had expected. The airport was relatively modern-looking and clean. I was a bit nervous going through passport control, but that turned out to be pretty uneventful.

Everyone did have to go through special luggage screening in order to enter the country, and that’s where things got a bit more interesting.

I was bringing a fair bit of photography equipment with me: two cameras, a portable hard drive, lens filters, a bunch of spare batteries, and lots of extra memory cards. Upon seeing all this camera gear, security guards pulled me out of line and escorted me to a walled off, secondary security area, where they closely examined all my equipment.

I also had a smartphone and tablet with me, and had to hand these over for inspection. North Korea now records the serial numbers for all smartphones brought into the country. I watched as a security guard entered my devices’ digits into a log book, before he handed them back to me.

The government is particularly paranoid about foreigners bringing in any kind of literature that could be used to influence their people (e.g., the Bible). Finding nothing offensive in my bags, or stored on my memory cards, I was finally permitted to enter the country.

As it turned out, a lot of what I had previously read about North Korea was true. You are assigned government-trained “minders” who are with you 24/7. They monitor your activities, manage your itinerary, and tell you what you can and cannot do. You are in their custody for the entirety of the trip. There are always at least 2 minders assigned to a group, because the minders also have to mind each other, making sure their comrades don’t succumb to the devious devilry of us American imperialists. No joke.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*YLplnfhJO5n3Q1Uxs-c5dQ.jpeg)

- - -

## The Rules

**各种规则**

Before our shuttle had even left the airport parking lot, our minders were already beginning to walk us through all the rules we had to obey, including:

我们的车还没驶离机场的停车场之前，我们的监视人员就已经开始告诉我们各种必须遵守的规则，包括：

1. We must always travel in a group. For the entire trip, we almost never got to walk around outside. Instead, we were bused from place to place, even if we were only traveling 4 blocks. You’re definitely not allowed to do things like leave the hotel at night or explore the city on your own 我们必须始终结伴而行。在整个旅程中，我们几乎从未在室外走动过。与此相反，我们总是被塞在大巴里，从一个地方走到另一个地方，哪怕只需要走四个街区。有些事情你是绝对不准做的，比如在晚上离开酒店或者自己探索这座城市

2. No photos of military sites or soldiers. This often proved to be difficult, given that nearly 40% of North Korea’s population serves in the military 照片中不允许出现军事设施或者军人。实际操作中这经常很困难，因为朝鲜人口的大约40%都在军队服役

3. No photos of construction sites or any people at work. The government wants the world to see their country represented only by pristine pictures of perfection. Photographs of half-finished buildings and sweaty laborers apparently don’t make the cut 图片不准出现建筑工地或者正在劳动的工人。朝鲜政府想让世界看见表示它的图片都是新崭崭的，完美的那种。建到一半的建筑或者挥汗如雨的工人的照片明显不和谐

4. If you take pictures of any of their Dear Leaders, you have to capture their whole figure. You can’t crop out any part of their bodies 如果你要给他们那些尊敬的领导人拍照，你得拍到他们的全身像，不准把他们身体的任何部位排除在外

5. If you have any printed materials depicting the Dear Leaders (e.g., newspapers, magazine), you can’t crease their images. You also can’t throw these materials in the garbage, or use them as wrapping paper 如果你有任何描述敬爱领导人的打印材料的话（比如报纸、杂志），你不能把他们的画像弄皱了。你还不能把这些材料扔进垃圾桶，也不能用它们来包东西

6. Whenever you visit a statue of a Dear Leader, your group will need to line up single-file in front of it, and bow. Your hands must be at your side; not in your pockets or behind your back 无论何时拜见敬爱领导人的雕塑时，全旅行团必须在塑像之前排成一列纵队并向其鞠躬。你的两手必须贴在身侧，不准插口袋或者背在背后。

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*CMIUwaC7nMPdORt4zHjmWA.jpeg)

>Young soldiers lining up to bow in front of massive statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il
>年轻的士兵排成一路纵队，在金日成和金正日的巨型塑像前鞠躬

- - -

## The Facade

** 粉饰太平 **

The North Korean government begrudgingly welcomes only a handful of tourists into its country each year, and it does so with a tremendous amount of fear and distrust.

朝鲜政府每年只是十分吝啬地欢迎一小部分的游客到他们的国家，并且同时还抱有极大的恐惧和不信任。

<blockquote name="179b" id="179b" class="graf--pullquote pullquote graf-after--p">To cope with these foreign visitors, North Korea has constructed an elaborate facade, designed to make the country look prosperous and flourishing
为了对付这些外国游客，朝鲜费尽心思打造了虚伪的门面，使得国家看起来是繁荣昌盛的</blockquote>

Many of the sites we visited and interactions we had were blatantly staged. At times, the country’s attempts at portraying perfection were so contrived, it was comical. At other times, the fakery was just downright unsettling.

我们访问的很多景点还有我们进行的各种互动都受到公然的监视。有时候，朝鲜将自身描写得完美无缺的那种企图实在是机关算尽，都让人觉得好笑。而其它时候，这种粉饰则十分令人不安。

However, every so often, you come across a crack in the facade, and in that fleeting moment, you catch a glimpse into the real North Korea (or at least a slightly less fabricated version). For me, those were some of the most memorable moments of my trip.

但是，你每每会看见他们精心打扮下的破绽之处，而在那短暂的一瞬，你会瞥见真正的朝鲜（或者至少是不那么

Below, I’ll share some of those moments, and in doing so, do my best to present a balanced view of what I saw on my visit: the good and the bad, the outlandish and the beautiful, the pageantry and simple, ordinary life.

- - -

## Propaganda
The first thing you notice as soon as you pull out of the airport is the propaganda. It’s literally everywhere. Every street intersection, every building, every subway station, and even every subway car proudly displays portraits of the nation’s Dear Leaders. Banners and giant murals extol the virtues of North Korea and Kim Il Sung’s [Juche ideology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juche) around self-reliance.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*AkqN7omrrCNnhrFPmCzSUQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ty2fo2SfJUq99tCwsb5t9A.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*QOoZLtSWVajyd1Edisv7Xw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*1Xq9--7SzLv7BqmZ9iXGVw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Y8GpHt78SAyKok9zoaya2w.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*0qL-1gpT78DQVfBF26lFwQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ce-Rgyde9SOgTITv8fphBQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*x_Z1-eI4YSJtkHcLofXw3Q.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*oiKPv9hVsGYXe9BQqEt4lA.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*eZmgVZtXvbk-nzCC0fELZg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*TFIfqRlkmyKeuET0Mw6sKQ.jpeg)

>Propaganda is everywhere in North Korea

The country has propaganda vans trolling the streets with giant megaphones perched on their rooftops.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*vNAX68GAV5R9gvYPHpHVfA.jpeg)

Every morning, at 6:30am, you awake to the delightful wake-up call of propaganda music blaring into your windows from the streets.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K1eUw9EsAR8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

>Early morning propaganda wake-up call

Even the people themselves are part of the propaganda machine. Nearly every North Korean wears a red pin patriotically emblazoned with the faces of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. I tried really hard to lay my hands on one of these pins, but tourists aren’t allowed to have them. They have to be earned through loyal servitude.

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*BsjKBX5t6dZ7SgN-LbWMJA.jpeg)

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*fZxIs7J9oNbzFbBEuP3QGg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*z7xHDWmDY0kfxcv6Ael0tA.jpeg)

>Everyone in Pyongyang wears a red pin with their Dear Leaders’ portraits

Even at work, there’s no escaping the propaganda. Factories, like this textile plant we visited, had propaganda posters plastered all over the inside and outside of the factory walls.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*2C43NayQ-tR6Uv6PVvPXbQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Wbqiom6ic_alKXxmcM7gkw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*EIXxTHMs37dRRoinRAYxXg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*cb7zZbA-g-wwZu74ZdNWkA.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*JmBwx-zC2WuUCgCQF5092Q.jpeg)

>Propaganda inside and outside at North Korea’s largest textile factory

What was perhaps scariest though, was the propaganda we found inside the nation’s schools. During our trip, we visited two schools: 1) a primary school in Pyongsong, a small, provincial city north of Pyongyang, and 2) the Children’s Palace, a school in the capital city for gifted children. What we saw on the walls of these institutions was disturbing — gruesome images of war, killing, and death, side-by-side with Disney-like portraits of the Dear Leaders adoring (and being adored by) children.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ws9MdkOI_BZ_xBzGrPP8SQ.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*ddfRdu7zVXWOTNZAo1bEHA.jpeg)

>Portraits of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Un with children in North Korean schools

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ux91QJXdRFO3dNLEgIpYSw.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*qi1CSADWmvRyl81J80ziAw.jpeg)

>War propaganda on the walls of a primary school in Pyongsong, North Korea

On one of the war murals, the school administration had even covered up specific photos in advance of our arrival. Given how graphic the visible parts of the mural already were, I can only imagine what was hidden underneath. I asked our minder about these pieces of paper, and she sidestepped the question, saying that they were probably just touching up parts of the mural.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*yC6NJTMnenGTliko_ojlOg.jpeg)

>War mural in a North Korean primary school. If this is what we were allowed to see, I can only imagine what was hidden underneath those pieces of paper.

- - -

## Our Gilded Prison

Because we weren’t allowed to leave our hotels at night, we got to know our hotels very well. We called them our gilded prisons. Thankfully, all of these hotels had some type of bar, and, as it turns out, North Korean beer is really quite good. So, most evenings, we just relaxed at the hotel bar, and bonded with other adventurous travelers and a very select group of locals who’ve been pre-approved by the government to mingle with foreigners.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*NA6-gmAYjQYEVrRcSBan-A.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*073-kBL2dUnOMaQdgYDQRg.jpeg)

>Shooting pool with locals at the Koryo Hotel (left); North Korean beer was quite tasty (right)

In Pyongyang, we stayed at the Koryo Hotel. It’s one of the top hotels in North Korea, and equivalent to a 3-star hotel in the US. There was a huge fire in this hotel just a couple months ago, and a few tourists were arrested for taking photos of that fire. I don’t know what became of them, but one thing was for sure though, I was going to have to be extra careful with my photography.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*T-buU3kzabpLD_o3gxRpNQ.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*fHRfklObzxo0IhOAhPXbwA.jpeg)
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中英翻译由本人所做。原文链接：<https://medium.com/swlh/8-days-in-north-korea-5c651c3883de> 源文件见：

#8 Days in North Korea 朝鲜八日游

**实力预警——多图多视频以及YouTube iframe植入！！请勿使用流量查看，同时请自备神奇的爬高工具！**

** Welcome to the world’s most isolated civilization **
** 欢迎来到全球最封闭的文明 **

In September 2015, I traveled to North Korea to see, first-hand, what life was like inside the Hermit Kingdom. Much of the country was what I had expected: strange, ersatz, thick with propaganda, and every so often, seriously unsettling.
And yet, the journey was also filled with some truly wonderful, completely unexpected surprises. One thing’s for sure: North Korea really is unlike any other place on Earth.
Since my return, I’ve had a lot of people, friends and strangers, ask me about my trip. There has been way more curiosity about North Korea than I would have imagined — so much so, that I thought I’d write down some of my experiences, and share them with you here.
Pictures and stories alone can’t do justice to what it’s really like being on the ground in North Korea. As a visitor, you’re watched 24/7, you have no freedom, and you’re constantly tense and on edge. But hopefully, this post will at least give you a glimpse into what life is like in one of the most restricted, enigmatic destinations in the world.
## Departure Day
My journey began with mixed feelings of trepidation, excitement, and unbridled curiosity. With my visa in hand, I boarded North Korea’s national air carrier, Air Koryo — the lowest-ranked airline in the world, and the only carrier to have a one star safety rating with [SkyTrax](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3214053/Fasten-seatbelts-bumpy-ride-s-really-like-fly-North-Korea-s-Air-Koryo-worst-airline-world.html).

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*SvEsGNGKYS7milV782jQvw.jpeg)![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*Q5eBCrMG6QHaTLXgTOJKtw.jpeg)
>My North Korean visa card (left); Air Koryo, Korea’s national air carrier (right)

On board, we filled out a rather ominous customs declaration, where we were reminded not to bring in any killing devices, poison, “historical and cultural wealth,” “publishings of any kind,” or “cell phone and other communication means.” We were seriously about to go off the grid.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*aUOEhwqd_8ict_eE765TyA.jpeg)

>DPRK Customs Declaration Form

We were fed a peculiar hamburger made from mystery meat, and subjected to our very first taste of North Korean propaganda.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*CMcPlh3-VRu5b6krqTv-DQ.jpeg)![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*MMW1JGwJMjohFslT5H_sOg.jpeg)

>Mystery meat hamburger (left); In-flight propaganda (right)

Our in-flight magazine had articles with headlines like:

<blockquote name="ee82" id="ee82" class="graf--pullquote pullquote graf-after--p">Local Elections Display the Invincible Might of DPRK Government</blockquote>

which referred to <NAME> with a very official-sounding title that took up nearly a whole paragraph:

><NAME>, First Secretary of the WPK, First Chairman of the DPRK National Defense Commission and Supreme Commander of the Korean People’s Army

Throughout the entire flight, TV monitors overhead played non-stop propaganda videos, featuring an all-female rock group called [Moranbong](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moranbong_Band). These women are the North Korean equivalent of U2. Each band member was hand-picked by <NAME>.

The video was apparently filmed live in a massive auditorium, filled with expressionless men all dressed in identical military uniforms, sitting stiff and upright. They all remained frozen in their seats, motionless, until an enormous image of Kim Jong Un was projected onto a giant screen behind the rock band, at which point, all the men would commence applauding robotically in unison. They wouldn’t stop clapping until the image came down.

We were prohibited from taking photos or videos on the plane, but I did manage to sneak this short video when the stewardesses weren’t looking:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xkbvEkYvbPU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

>Non-stop rock band propaganda video aboard my Air Koryo flight to Pyongyang

- - -

## Arrival

Pyongyang Airport was not at all what I had expected. The airport was relatively modern-looking and clean. I was a bit nervous going through passport control, but that turned out to be pretty uneventful.

Everyone did have to go through special luggage screening in order to enter the country, and that’s where things got a bit more interesting.

I was bringing a fair bit of photography equipment with me: two cameras, a portable hard drive, lens filters, a bunch of spare batteries, and lots of extra memory cards. Upon seeing all this camera gear, security guards pulled me out of line and escorted me to a walled off, secondary security area, where they closely examined all my equipment.

I also had a smartphone and tablet with me, and had to hand these over for inspection. North Korea now records the serial numbers for all smartphones brought into the country. I watched as a security guard entered my devices’ digits into a log book, before he handed them back to me.

The government is particularly paranoid about foreigners bringing in any kind of literature that could be used to influence their people (e.g., the Bible). Finding nothing offensive in my bags, or stored on my memory cards, I was finally permitted to enter the country.

As it turned out, a lot of what I had previously read about North Korea was true. You are assigned government-trained “minders” who are with you 24/7. They monitor your activities, manage your itinerary, and tell you what you can and cannot do. You are in their custody for the entirety of the trip. There are always at least 2 minders assigned to a group, because the minders also have to mind each other, making sure their comrades don’t succumb to the devious devilry of us American imperialists. No joke.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*YLplnfhJO5n3Q1Uxs-c5dQ.jpeg)

- - -

## The Rules

**各种规则**

Before our shuttle had even left the airport parking lot, our minders were already beginning to walk us through all the rules we had to obey, including:

我们的车还没驶离机场的停车场之前，我们的监视人员就已经开始告诉我们各种必须遵守的规则，包括：

1. We must always travel in a group. For the entire trip, we almost never got to walk around outside. Instead, we were bused from place to place, even if we were only traveling 4 blocks. You’re definitely not allowed to do things like leave the hotel at night or explore the city on your own 我们必须始终结伴而行。在整个旅程中，我们几乎从未在室外走动过。与此相反，我们总是被塞在大巴里，从一个地方走到另一个地方，哪怕只需要走四个街区。有些事情你是绝对不准做的，比如在晚上离开酒店或者自己探索这座城市

2. No photos of military sites or soldiers. This often proved to be difficult, given that nearly 40% of North Korea’s population serves in the military 照片中不允许出现军事设施或者军人。实际操作中这经常很困难，因为朝鲜人口的大约40%都在军队服役

3. No photos of construction sites or any people at work. The government wants the world to see their country represented only by pristine pictures of perfection. Photographs of half-finished buildings and sweaty laborers apparently don’t make the cut 图片不准出现建筑工地或者正在劳动的工人。朝鲜政府想让世界看见表示它的图片都是新崭崭的，完美的那种。建到一半的建筑或者挥汗如雨的工人的照片明显不和谐

4. If you take pictures of any of their Dear Leaders, you have to capture their whole figure. You can’t crop out any part of their bodies 如果你要给他们那些尊敬的领导人拍照，你得拍到他们的全身像，不准把他们身体的任何部位排除在外

5. If you have any printed materials depicting the Dear Leaders (e.g., newspapers, magazine), you can’t crease their images. You also can’t throw these materials in the garbage, or use them as wrapping paper 如果你有任何描述敬爱领导人的打印材料的话（比如报纸、杂志），你不能把他们的画像弄皱了。你还不能把这些材料扔进垃圾桶，也不能用它们来包东西

6. Whenever you visit a statue of a Dear Leader, your group will need to line up single-file in front of it, and bow. Your hands must be at your side; not in your pockets or behind your back 无论何时拜见敬爱领导人的雕塑时，全旅行团必须在塑像之前排成一列纵队并向其鞠躬。你的两手必须贴在身侧，不准插口袋或者背在背后。

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*CMIUwaC7nMPdORt4zHjmWA.jpeg)

>Young soldiers lining up to bow in front of massive statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il
>年轻的士兵排成一路纵队，在金日成和金正日的巨型塑像前鞠躬

- - -

## The Facade

** 粉饰太平 **

The North Korean government begrudgingly welcomes only a handful of tourists into its country each year, and it does so with a tremendous amount of fear and distrust.

朝鲜政府每年只是十分吝啬地欢迎一小部分的游客到他们的国家，并且同时还抱有极大的恐惧和不信任。

<blockquote name="179b" id="179b" class="graf--pullquote pullquote graf-after--p">To cope with these foreign visitors, North Korea has constructed an elaborate facade, designed to make the country look prosperous and flourishing
为了对付这些外国游客，朝鲜费尽心思打造了虚伪的门面，使得国家看起来是繁荣昌盛的</blockquote>

Many of the sites we visited and interactions we had were blatantly staged. At times, the country’s attempts at portraying perfection were so contrived, it was comical. At other times, the fakery was just downright unsettling.

我们访问的很多景点还有我们进行的各种互动都受到公然的监视。有时候，朝鲜将自身描写得完美无缺的那种企图实在是机关算尽，都让人觉得好笑。而其它时候，这种粉饰则十分令人不安。

However, every so often, you come across a crack in the facade, and in that fleeting moment, you catch a glimpse into the real North Korea (or at least a slightly less fabricated version). For me, those were some of the most memorable moments of my trip.

但是，你每每会看见他们精心打扮下的破绽之处，而在那短暂的一瞬，你会瞥见真正的朝鲜（或者至少是稍稍真实了那么一点点的样子）。而那些瞬间，则成为我旅途中最为难忘的记忆。

Below, I’ll share some of those moments, and in doing so, do my best to present a balanced view of what I saw on my visit: the good and the bad, the outlandish and the beautiful, the pageantry and simple, ordinary life.

接下来，我会和大家一起分享这样的时刻。我会尽我所能地平衡我旅途之所见——好的方面和不尽如人意的方面；古怪的事情和美丽的事情；隆重的仪式和简单朴素的日常生活。

- - -

## Propaganda

** 政治宣传 **

The first thing you notice as soon as you pull out of the airport is the propaganda. It’s literally everywhere. Every street intersection, every building, every subway station, and even every subway car proudly displays portraits of the nation’s Dear Leaders. Banners and giant murals extol the virtues of North Korea and Kim Il Sung’s [Juche ideology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juche) around self-reliance.

离开机场，你看到的第一件物事便是宣传海报了。这玩意基本上到处都是。各个十字路口、各个建筑、地铁站，甚至是地铁里的每个车厢，都甚为自豪地向你展示朝鲜伟大领袖的半身像。各种横幅和大型壁画满是赞美歌颂朝鲜功德以及金日成“自力更生”[主体思想](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juche)的内容。

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*AkqN7omrrCNnhrFPmCzSUQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ty2fo2SfJUq99tCwsb5t9A.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*QOoZLtSWVajyd1Edisv7Xw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*1Xq9--7SzLv7BqmZ9iXGVw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Y8GpHt78SAyKok9zoaya2w.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*0qL-1gpT78DQVfBF26lFwQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ce-Rgyde9SOgTITv8fphBQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*x_Z1-eI4YSJtkHcLofXw3Q.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*oiKPv9hVsGYXe9BQqEt4lA.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*eZmgVZtXvbk-nzCC0fELZg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*TFIfqRlkmyKeuET0Mw6sKQ.jpeg)

>Propaganda is everywhere in North Korea
>朝鲜的政治宣传随处可见

The country has propaganda vans trolling the streets with giant megaphones perched on their rooftops.

在朝鲜，会有那种顶上装着巨大喇叭的宣传车驶过街道。

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*vNAX68GAV5R9gvYPHpHVfA.jpeg)

Every morning, at 6:30am, you awake to the delightful wake-up call of propaganda music blaring into your windows from the streets.

每天早上六点半，你会被从大街上飞入屋子窗户里怡人的政治宣传音乐声唤醒。

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K1eUw9EsAR8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

>Early morning propaganda wake-up call
>大清早上叫你起床的宣传音乐

Even the people themselves are part of the propaganda machine. Nearly every North Korean wears a red pin patriotically emblazoned with the faces of <NAME> and <NAME> Il. I tried really hard to lay my hands on one of these pins, but tourists aren’t allowed to have them. They have to be earned through loyal servitude.

甚至这个国家的人民也是宣传机器的一部分。几乎所有朝鲜人都会戴一枚红色的胸针，上面刻有金日成和金正日的头像，十分具有爱国热情。我费了很大劲想弄到这样一枚胸针，但是游客是不能得到它的——得要经过忠诚服役之后才行。

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*BsjKBX5t6dZ7SgN-LbWMJA.jpeg)

![](https://d262ilb51hltx0.cloudfront.net/max/1000/1*fZxIs7J9oNbzFbBEuP3QGg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*z7xHDWmDY0kfxcv6Ael0tA.jpeg)

>Everyone in Pyongyang wears a red pin with their Dear Leaders’ portraits
>平壤的每个人都戴着一枚红色胸针，上有他们伟大领袖的半身像

Even at work, there’s no escaping the propaganda. Factories, like this textile plant we visited, had propaganda posters plastered all over the inside and outside of the factory walls.

哪怕在工作场合，你也逃不开政治宣传。各种工厂，比如我们参观的这个纺织厂里，墙上里里外外到处贴的都是宣传海报。

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*2C43NayQ-tR6Uv6PVvPXbQ.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Wbqiom6ic_alKXxmcM7gkw.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*EIXxTHMs37dRRoinRAYxXg.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*cb7zZbA-g-wwZu74ZdNWkA.jpeg)

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*JmBwx-zC2WuUCgCQF5092Q.jpeg)

>Propaganda inside and outside at North Korea’s largest textile factory
>朝鲜最大的纺织厂。厂子的里里外外贴满宣传画

What was perhaps scariest though, was the propaganda we found inside the nation’s schools. During our trip, we visited two schools: 1) a primary school in Pyongsong, a small, provincial city north of Pyongyang, and 2) the Children’s Palace, a school in the capital city for gifted children. What we saw on the walls of these institutions was disturbing — gruesome images of war, killing, and death, side-by-side with Disney-like portraits of the Dear Leaders adoring (and being adored by) children.

然而，最为可怕的事情估计是我们还在朝鲜的学校里发现了这种宣传画。我们全程访问了两所学校，一所是平城市的一所小学

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ws9MdkOI_BZ_xBzGrPP8SQ.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*ddfRdu7zVXWOTNZAo1bEHA.jpeg)

>Portraits of <NAME> and <NAME> with children in North Korean schools

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*Ux91QJXdRFO3dNLEgIpYSw.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*qi1CSADWmvRyl81J80ziAw.jpeg)

>War propaganda on the walls of a primary school in Pyongsong, North Korea

On one of the war murals, the school administration had even covered up specific photos in advance of our arrival. Given how graphic the visible parts of the mural already were, I can only imagine what was hidden underneath. I asked our minder about these pieces of paper, and she sidestepped the question, saying that they were probably just touching up parts of the mural.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/1200/1*yC6NJTMnenGTliko_ojlOg.jpeg)

>War mural in a North Korean primary school. If this is what we were allowed to see, I can only imagine what was hidden underneath those pieces of paper.

- - -

## Our Gilded Prison

Because we weren’t allowed to leave our hotels at night, we got to know our hotels very well. We called them our gilded prisons. Thankfully, all of these hotels had some type of bar, and, as it turns out, North Korean beer is really quite good. So, most evenings, we just relaxed at the hotel bar, and bonded with other adventurous travelers and a very select group of locals who’ve been pre-approved by the government to mingle with foreigners.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*NA6-gmAYjQYEVrRcSBan-A.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*073-kBL2dUnOMaQdgYDQRg.jpeg)

>Shooting pool with locals at the Koryo Hotel (left); North Korean beer was quite tasty (right)

In Pyongyang, we stayed at the Koryo Hotel. It’s one of the top hotels in North Korea, and equivalent to a 3-star hotel in the US. There was a huge fire in this hotel just a couple months ago, and a few tourists were arrested for taking photos of that fire. I don’t know what became of them, but one thing was for sure though, I was going to have to be extra careful with my photography.

![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/600/1*T-buU3kzabpLD_o3gxRpNQ.jpeg)![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*fHRfklObzxo0IhOAhPXbwA.jpeg)

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