Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Part 2: Second Half of North Korean Tour.....

OK, Saturday afternoon was nice and relaxing, taking in the views from our room at the Hotel Oekumgak on the 9th floor and from the sky lounge on the 12th Floor. Hanging out until the Acrobatic show. So.....ENJOY the photo's.....



Mountain View from the Hotel parking lot....shades of mountains!



The Acrobatic Show performed by the Pyongyang Moranbong Acrobatic Troupe. No photo's during the show, but what a performance. Lots of ooh's and ahhh's. Really amazing! Talented individuals flying through the air, balancing, climbing ropes, juggling, etc...



The communist brass band...interesting tunes....



near sundown....



Sunday morning after a nice breakfast buffet of Eggs, rice, Kimchi, and other interesting dishes. Not your typical breakfast. We headed out for another tour of the area. We have arrived at HaeKumgang Seashore. Quite a beautiful place.



Map of the tour....Seashore....



Enjoying the morning...



Gazing at some rock formations....





North Korea boat....not sure what they are doing, fishing, spying on us (tourists), hmmm....



The tour groups...



Water image....



Not really supposed to point the camera in this direction...you'll know why in a bit



Rocky shore and water reflection....



Ahh...Military in the background....feel free to click on the image to get a larger view (image)



Nice reflection with bot in the distance....







wondering what this climbing bolt is here....it's not a sport climb...it's nice to wonder sometimes....



the sun shimmering on the water...





small rocky island....water pulsating on it's side....


Maybe an old bunker...

Well, we left the Seashore and headed to Samilpo Lake. Interesting drive through some well guarded gates and by some tiny villages. It was interesting to see people waiting in the bushes (hiding) until we drove by...and stopped by military guards while we were in the vicinity. You have to wonder what they are thinking of us being there.




The frozen lake with one fisherman.



ready for launching...view from under the Danpoong-kwan.



just like a piece of glass....



Map of the Samilpo Lake Tour...





The Danpoong-kwan (Restaurant/Building)



Some writing on the rock...praising the leader!



Interesting view....


Old Structure perched on a large boulder....



Shaky suspension bridge....



Well...partially frozen....it's warming up!



Snack time....Soju and Mackerel anyone?


Nice granite above.....

Well, the tour is nearing the end. We have the afternoon to get some lunch and relax before heading back the real world of South Korea. We ate some traditional South Korean food. Then, decided to check out the Hot Spring Spa...A nice way to finish two days of hiking around.



The Kumgangsan Hot Spa....oh...so...good! many different healing pools and sauna's!



Just before leaving....nice mountain view....





The Korean (Hangul) lettering means....Mt. Kumgangsan



Mountainous terrain next to the sea....sure wish we could explore more. Maybe someday...the kayaking would be incredible!!!



Daejin Bus Terminal...South Korea...waiting for our bus back to Seoul....one of the smallest bus terminals I've been to. Looks like somewhere in the midwest....



We stayed here on Friday night. With in walking distance from the bus terminal, but we didn't get to see it in the day light. The Winter Sea Pension in Daejin, South Korea....beach front!



Feels kinda nice to be back on South Korean soil. A sense of not being watched!



That's all!

Hope you enjoyed the images from my North Korea Tour. I wish I could have captured more of the true country, but very limited, also didn't want to put any risk on my life.....

Until NEXT TIME!!

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