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I had already read a couple of blogposts relating travels in North Korea, but this is the first one that made it feel like a gleeful adventure. The corn fields,

I had already read a couple of blogposts relating travels in North Korea, but this is the first one that made it feel like a gleeful adventure. The corn fields, the countryside cities, the small picnic and barbecue parties with food and soju... It reminds me of good times that I had in South Korea. Of course, it always has to be considered that it's also NK's propaganda machine/tourism industry in action, but some of those pictures warmed my heart up.

iamjeff 10y ago
There is an element of adventure to these pictures. Some of his pictures are clearly illegal, disallowed, or uncomfortable in the North Korean context. There are examples of these especially in the second instalment [1]. Having spent some time in small-town Russia, I could almost taste the soulless architecture. The sense of adventure is further heightened when watching vlogs from Jaka Parker (noted elsewhere here), including this one video of him travelling almost 200km outside of Pyongyang along North Korea’s major highway [2]. There are remarkably few cars on the road and at several points, it felt like B-roll footage from a movie set a-la The Walking Dead: the desertion in the roads of this nuclear power is simply astonishing. On a related note, several tour companies across Africa offer overland tours including a 73-day journey across 10 countries in Eastern and Southern African countries [3] and a terrifying 27-day trip across the western edges of the Sahara Desert [4, 5, 6]. [1] 100 Photos Inside North Korea – Part 2 (http://www.earthnutshell.com/100-photos-from-north-korea-part2/ http://www.earthnutshell.com/100-photos-from-north-korea-par...) [2] 100kms outside Pyongyang - North Korea (https://youtu.be/zCjpxZDTyqs https://youtu.be/zCjpxZDTyqs) [3] Nairobi to Cape Town Overland Tours (https://www.absoluteafrica.com/The-Absolute-Safari/AS71 https://www.absoluteafrica.com/The-Absolute-Safari/AS71) [4] (http://www.overlandingwestafrica.com/trip-overview-availability/ http://www.overlandingwestafrica.com/trip-overview-availabil...) [5] Mauritania 2013. Exploring West Africa by expedition truck (https://www.flickr.com/photos/128667255@N04/sets/72157649867575375/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/128667255@N04/sets/72157649867...) [6] Overland West Africa - MAURITANIA - 2013-2014 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRHiAXjyHTk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRHiAXjyHTk)
- toomanybeersies 10y ago
  Those overland tours are surprisingly affordable.
  - iamjeff 10y ago
    Wasn't sure whether to take you literally, but the quoted cost does not include the cost of tours/etc bundled up as the Kitty. However, the price for the overland tour over Eastern and Southern Africa (the Safari route) are comparable to a round-trip plane ticket from Nairobi to Johannesburg and a 3-day stay in Jo'burg. The overland is about 73 days long and, from past testimonials, adventure of a life time.

iamjeff 10y ago

There is an element of adventure to these pictures. Some of his pictures are clearly illegal, disallowed, or uncomfortable in the North Korean context. There are examples of these especially in the second instalment [1]. Having spent some time in small-town Russia, I could almost taste the soulless architecture. The sense of adventure is further heightened when watching vlogs from Jaka Parker (noted elsewhere here), including this one video of him travelling almost 200km outside of Pyongyang along North Korea’s major highway [2]. There are remarkably few cars on the road and at several points, it felt like B-roll footage from a movie set a-la The Walking Dead: the desertion in the roads of this nuclear power is simply astonishing. On a related note, several tour companies across Africa offer overland tours including a 73-day journey across 10 countries in Eastern and Southern African countries [3] and a terrifying 27-day trip across the western edges of the Sahara Desert [4, 5, 6]. [1] 100 Photos Inside North Korea – Part 2 (http://www.earthnutshell.com/100-photos-from-north-korea-part2/ http://www.earthnutshell.com/100-photos-from-north-korea-par...) [2] 100kms outside Pyongyang - North Korea (https://youtu.be/zCjpxZDTyqs https://youtu.be/zCjpxZDTyqs) [3] Nairobi to Cape Town Overland Tours (https://www.absoluteafrica.com/The-Absolute-Safari/AS71 https://www.absoluteafrica.com/The-Absolute-Safari/AS71) [4] (http://www.overlandingwestafrica.com/trip-overview-availability/ http://www.overlandingwestafrica.com/trip-overview-availabil...) [5] Mauritania 2013. Exploring West Africa by expedition truck (https://www.flickr.com/photos/128667255@N04/sets/72157649867575375/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/128667255@N04/sets/72157649867...) [6] Overland West Africa - MAURITANIA - 2013-2014 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRHiAXjyHTk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRHiAXjyHTk)

toomanybeersies 10y ago
Those overland tours are surprisingly affordable.
- iamjeff 10y ago
  Wasn't sure whether to take you literally, but the quoted cost does not include the cost of tours/etc bundled up as the Kitty. However, the price for the overland tour over Eastern and Southern Africa (the Safari route) are comparable to a round-trip plane ticket from Nairobi to Johannesburg and a 3-day stay in Jo'burg. The overland is about 73 days long and, from past testimonials, adventure of a life time.