Day 1 - a) Beijing to Pyongyang

Saturday September 4, 2010

After checking in at Beijing Airport Tim and I decided to have our final meal in the outside world at the waiting lounge. Because requiring medical assistance in North Korea was a situation we wanted to avoid we were very careful about what we ate in Beijing... until then.

The curry we requested was cancelled as we were told there was insufficient time to prepare it before our flight. So with great reluctance hot dogs were ordered. Tim's frankfurter was cold in the middle as we began thinking about how we would die in a North Korean hospital. Good times.

Our first glimpse of North Korea was the Air Koryo 'plane seen in the waiting lounge. My heart was thumping in anticipation:

The 'plane ride was just over an hour (similar to a Sydney-to-Melbourne flight). I had a window seat and coincidentally sat next to Justin, the only other tour member with a Korean background (born in Canada), and Hannah, one of our western tour guides. One could feel the excitement among the tourists - we could scarcely believe we were finally physically entering the reclusive country. During the flight our other western guide Amanda collected our mobile telephones. This was the last we were to see of our precious devices until we exit the country ten days later.

The flight attendants were our first contact with actual North Koreans and the in-flight meal was our first taste of the fairly pedestrian food that we would have to tolerate for the next eleven days. Magazines (in Korean) were handed out, showing off glossy photos of Kim Jong Il's visit to China earlier in the year.

I asked for some water from the attendants as an attempt at my first interaction with a North Korean (and because I was thirsty). However despite asking three times no extra water was provided and I wondered whether this was hostility towards a southern accent... However it was apparent later this level of service seemed to be just socialist apathy, as my conversation with Tim during our first moments on North Korean soil reveals:

Upon alighting the 'plane everyone had their cameras out taking shots of Pyongyang Airport, featuring a massive portrait of Kim Il Sung overlooking the tarmac - the first of many we'd see in the coming days.

At the immigration desk the officer checked my paperwork and asked me whether I was Korean - I made it clear that I was an Australian national (phew). The luggage screening took a long time as our bags were thoroughly x-rayed and searched. The customs officer carefully checked my camera and Palm PDA to ensure they did not double as mobile communication devices. Huzzah, I had officially been allowed in to the country!