My Trip to North Korea

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:03 am

Today I enjoyed a very special Christmas. I had a fantastic trip to North Korea today. Here are photos that I took in Kaesung (개성), the southernmost city in North Korea. Kaesung was a South Korean territory before the Korean War but was occupied by the Chinese troops in January 1951. So it took 57 years for the South Koreans to take a step in this former South Korean city, just 1 hour's distance from Seoul. In this sense, today is a very touching day for me.

Bus waiting in downtown Seoul at 5 o'clock in the morning for a historic trip for Kaesung

Bus ticket for Kaesung

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:15 am

South Korean railroad facility in the border area

South Korean soldiers at a check point in DMZ

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:16 am

We've arrived at last!

We are tourists~

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:23 am

Tourists walking toward the Bakyon cascade (박연폭포), the most famous cascade in North Korea.

A poem eulogizing the Bakyon cascade

Historic meeting with the Bakyon cascade

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:27 am

The cascade is frozen!

Tourists walking on the frozen surface

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:30 am

Let's get closer to the cascade!

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:35 am

A Chinese poem eulogizing the beauty of the Bakyon cascade.

Chinese character names of Koreans carved on rocks of the cascade

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 6:45 am

A Chinese poem eulogizing the Platonic love between famous Confucian scholar Seo Kyong-Duck (서경덕) and famous gisaeng (기생) Hwang Jin-Yi (황진이) who are from Kaesung.

According to North Korean tour guides, this poem was encoded by Kim Il-Sung when he visited the Bakyon cascade in 1992. It means that nobody knows the meaning of this poem before Kim Il-Sung did in 1992. Believe it or not.

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 7:10 am

Water stream of the Bakyon cascade

Snow-covered cascade

My trip diary will continue tomorrow...

Musashi · Post by **Musashi** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 7:14 am

Amazing photos, Mr. Kim :)
And welcome to the forum

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 8:24 am

The name of the above arbor is Bomsajong (범사정, 泛傞亭) which was built in 1700. The name Bomsajong means a bird flying in the sea of mist.

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 7:41 pm

Kaesung was the capital city of Korea from 919 to 1394.

The road to the Daehung castle (대흥산성) which was built in the Koryo dynasty (고려시대).

The main gate of the Daehung castle

A guide post

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Wed Jan 02, 2008 1:25 am

Poems glorifying Kim Il-Sung

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Wed Jan 02, 2008 1:25 am

Visiters' names carved on rocks

Kim Sung · Post by **Kim Sung** » Wed Jan 02, 2008 1:26 am

Lunch at a restaurant named Tongilguan (통일관, The House for Unification)

Traditional Korean style lunch