PALIN’S NORTH KOREA ADVICE
THE EXPERIENCED TRAVELLER SHARES HIS THOUGHTS ON THE SECRETIVE STATE OPENING UP TO TOURISTS
T’S human nature to wonder what lies beyond locked doors, so it’s no surprise one of the world’s most secretive states holds so much allure. Whether you agree with their ideologies or not, North Korea is a fascinating place, and slowly, the communist country is opening up to the outside world.
Of course, all visitors must be accompanied by a national guide, but that doesn’t detract from the sheer wonder of exploring a society so different to our own.
For his latest TV documentary, Michael Palin was given unprecedented access for a Western journalist, and the country clearly made a big impression on him. Here, he shares some thoughts...
Lupine operates escorted tours, with themes ranging from the Pyongyang Marathon Tour to the Kim Jong-il Birthday Tour. The two-night Chollima Express Tour, which packs the highlights into a full day, usinglocal standard hotels. From £399 (two sharing). Flights extra.
COLOURS ARE SURPRISINGLY BRIGHT
“PEOPLE think of it as a grey, cold, rather bleak place, but it isn’t. The buildings themselves are quite bright. They have decorations in all the restaurants – lots of flowers and bunnies, which is a bit juvenile in some way. But they do love decoration. They love colour and they love to express themselves musically or in sport.”
IT REMINDS ME OF CHINA 30 YEARS AGO
“I DIDN’T see a tractor or a combine harvester or anything like that. All the work in the fields seemed to be done by hand. People had bicycles, so they were cycling, but there were quite wide
“IT has a very quiet, almost serene atmosphere. There’s no advertising at all – apart from the propaganda posters, which are not absolutely everywhere. The hoardings have pictures of people either celebrating learning or celebrating missiles. But there’s no consumer advertising, and that’s quite restful after a bit, because it’s always in your face here. You’re in a city and yet it feels like a city that’s a film set, where you’re given your lines in the morning.”
I’D RECOMMEND IT TO ANYONE
“IF someone said to me, ‘Should I go to North Korea?’ I would say, ‘Yes! Go’. But I think you’ve got to go there in the spirit we went there, which was not to judge and not to condemn, but to understand and learn.
■ Do check latest Foreign Office advice before booking. Michael Palin In North Korea continues on Channel 5 on Thursday, at 9pm.