Day 2 - c) Mt Baekdu and the Secret Camp

Sunday September 5, 2010

With the weather spoiling our intended picnic spot we drove a bit down from the peak of Mt Baekdu and found a nice dry patch of road to have lunch. Yes, we sat on the road to dine.

Our western guides Hannah and Amanda sitting on the pavement for lunch.

Our next stop was a quick visit to a lookout that showed off the beautiful canyon of the Yalu River (Amnok River in Korean). This river forms the boundary between Korea and China so we were able to see Chinese territory directory from this vantage point.

China on the left, North Korea on the right.

The major destination for the afternoon was the Mt Baekdu Secret Camp, which is obviously not so secret these days. This is where (according to the North Koreans) the Great Leader Kim Il Sung fought out anti-Japanese battles before Korean independence*, and where his son Dear Leader Kim Jong Il was supposedly born*. As well as the usual monuments there were a couple of log cabins which represented the battle command centre and the birthplace of Kim Jong Il. A local guide explained the significance of the sites, with Miss Jong translating. This tandem arrangement was followed for almost all of the rest of the tour when visiting sites that had a local guide.

The final stop for the day was at Rimyongsu Waterfalls. This scenic waterfall does not freeze over during the bitter winter months. The information sign there indicated that when Kim Il Sung observed this he referred the matter to his top scientists, who discovered that the reason for the phenomenon was the water was coming from underground.

After a long day in the wind and rain we checked into Paegaebong Hotel at Samjiyon. Here we encountered our first experience of life outside Pyongyang: Hot water would only be available for one thirty minute time slot in the evening and one thirty minute slot in the morning.

We had some spare time in the evening, a rare occurrence in the busy itinerary. The tour members therefore had a nice long dinner and beyond, chatting and drinking. If you're the type of person who is willing to visit North Korea you're the adventurous type, well-travelled, or likely both. I was mesmerised by the travel stories of my tour mates - North Pole, South Pole, Somalia, Liberia, all the former Soviet states... I don't think there were any countries that were not covered by someone or other. An amazing group of people.

Tim enjoying the local beer at dinner. (Photo courtesy of Tim)

Taking advantage of the spare evening some of the crew tucked into the cheap Soju, beer and vodka with glee. Tim's reputation that we all know and love in Australia was well publicised to the rest of the world that night.

Blueberry wine - with 40% alcohol content you can use it to clean toilets.

* - Click here to visit Wikipedia for the actual stories of Kim Il Sung's anti-Japanese guerilla activities and Kim Jong Il's birth.