Day 3 - a) Samjiyon

Monday September 6, 2010

Monday morning saw us explore the attractions within Samjiyon, the nearest city to Mt Baekdu. The Samjiyon Grand Monument, Mt Baekdu Museum, and the local Schoolchildren's Palace were on the agenda.

Before the touring day began the talk at breakfast was abuzz about Tim's shenanigans the night before. For those that know me in the real world feel free to ask me about it.

The Samjiyon Grand Monument consisted of a massive square with impressive statues dedicated to the Great Leader and the anti-Japanese struggle. The group lined up in front of the Kim Il Sung statue and bowed, a custom we would repeat several times during the trip. A very foggy morning made for eerie photographs.

Locals visiting the Grand Monument, in front of the massive Kim Il Sung statue.

Yours truly and the local guide at Samjiyon Grand Monument.

The museum at Samjiyon displayed models of Mt Baekdu and exhibited its revolutionary significance. The sites displayed were mostly places we had visited in person the prior day. The highlight of the museum visit was seeing a group of high school students on excursion in the car park. All the tour members were craving some local contact... I decided to break the ice by asking our guide whether I could have a picture taken in front of the building, right in the middle of where all the students were gathered. Once this permission was granted the other tourists gained enough courage to ask whether we could take a photo with the students. The green light was given and this caused quite a scene with the tourists all wanting a shot, and the students chuckling at the strange westerners wanting a piece of them. Unfortunately after only a couple of minutes the teenagers were instructed to move on by their teachers, leaving a couple of Americans disappointed that the crowd dispersed just as they were about to have their photographs taken.

Success! A photo with local students on excursion.

Photo fail! Students disperse.

The Samjiyon Schoolchildren's Palace was our final place of interest at the Mt Baekdu/Samjiyon area. In North Korea "Schoolchildren's Palace" refers to an after school facility where kids occupy themselves with sport, art, etc. Unfortunately there were no children to see during our visit, but some tour members (including Tim) did take up a chance to play volleyball in the gym:

Volleyball at the Samjiyon Schoolchildren's Palace (Tim on the far left).

After lunch back at the Paegaebong Hotel, we packed for the airport. Next stop: North Hamgyong province in the far north of the country.