Traveller documents life inside 'wild' North Korea after visiting twice

17 February 2024 , 17:44

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Gunnar Garfors, 48, explored every country in the world twice (Image: Gunnar Garfors / SWNS)

A traveller who visited recently-reopened North Korea twice while travelling the world says it was one of the "wildest" experiences of his life.

Gunnar Garfors, 48, explored every country in the world twice - and made sure "controversial" countries like North Korea were on his list both times. The so-called Hermit State reopened its doors to tourists for the first time in four years earlier this month - and he was the first to visit the country since 2020. Now, Gunnar, a journalist from Oslo, Norway, has offered his top tips for those hoping to visit the country - and more importantly, the strict rules tourists must follow to avoid punishment.

The seasoned tourists says new visitors need to make sure their itineraries are strict and be aware that phones are often confiscated as soon as they land. He also recommends visitors head to South Korea for a few days - especially if they're looking for a "break" away from Kim Jong Un's face - which is on every newspaper, stamp and painting across the country.

Creasing or folding a newspaper with a picture of the dictator on the front is considered a highly offensive act. Meanwhile, stealing anything bearing his image is a serious crime in the eyes of the government.

Phones are often confiscated from tourists as soon as they land (Gunnar Garfors / SWNS)

Gunnar said: "Visiting North Korea was one of the most surreal experiences of my life - it can wear you out very fast. Before you go, you always have to plan your itinerary to the last detail - you won't see anything you're not supposed to see, and there's little room for impulsivity. Walking through Pyongyang is like walking through a scene from a propaganda film - you realise everything you're being told is warped."

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Gunnar first visited Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, in 2009 - and stayed for five days. He travelled with a group of friends he'd met on Facebook, alongside his ex-girlfriend, and the group were assigned two local guides for their entire stay, Phones were also confiscated when they landed as the internet is banned in the country.

The so-called Hermit State reopened its doors to tourists for the first time in four years earlier this month (Gunnar Garfors / SWNS)

He continued: "Even if you're alone, you still need two guides with you at all times. The government doesn't want people to break from their groups and start telling local people what the rest of the world is like. They're fine, they're mostly there to look after you - but also want to keep you in line. Even guides need to take bathroom breaks, though, and as soon as one breaks away from the group, the other usually begins to ask questions, like what it's like to live in other countries."

He visited the North/South border, and tried to speak to as many locals as he could - although hardly any of them spoke English, and most had been instructed not to speak to tourists in the first place. He added: "You can talk to people here and there. Mostly bar and restaurant staff, or workers in shops - but managers have trained them on how to avoid unauthorised communication.

"This means there's strictly no discussing the outside world - people aren't allowed to ask us about where we come from or what we do. There are lots of things we can't ask, either. We have to be careful when talking to locals about their own history - and we certainly can't question their way of life. But it's striking - visiting the captured American warship was surreal. It was the clearest example of propaganda I'd ever seen - you're told, in a very dramatic voice, about the heroic North Koreans and the awful, nasty Americans!"

Gunnar first visited Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, in 2009 (Gunnar Garfors / SWNS)

The second time Gunnar visited the country was eight years later - and some stark changes had been made in that time. Tourists were allowed to keep their phones, purely for the purpose of taking photos and Pyongyang had been modernised. But the countryside, which Gunnar was able to visit, stayed the same.

He said: "It really hits you in the countryside, you get a feeling the city is for all the 'important' people. It's fairly modern in Pyongyang now, you've got decent food, modern skyscrapers, and decent culture. But in the countryside, people have nothing. There's no agriculture - local farmers have to use their hands for digging. There aren't any tools or tractors - even animals to help pull the load. They can't communicate in English at all - so you have no way of talking to them."

Gunnar has no plans to visit again, despite the borders reopening for the first time since early 2020.

Joseph Gamp