[foreword]
How long can you live in north korea with 10,000 yuan in your hand? Sounds impossible, but in fact you might be surprised at the answer to this question。
In this isolated country, the price levels, the cost of living and the consumption habits of local people are very different from the world we know well。
You may be surprised that in north korea, 10,000 yuan will support you for months, if not longer, and that daily spending is far lower than we thought. What is the reason for this money to be significantly increased in this mysterious country
Korea price
The price level in north korea is truly surprising. In a country with a low level of economic development, prices should be quite cheap, and 10,000 yuan would enjoy a luxury experience。
Realism is the best thing -- in north korea, foreign tourists have far higher consumption standards than they thought. The average hotel costs hundreds of dollars a night, and the high-end hotel costs thousands。
A bottle of soda, a pack of snacks is at a similar price to that of china and sometimes more expensive. This price level has forced many people who come to korea for 10,000 yuan to make good calculations。
In the centre of pyongyang, a normal korean specialty restaurant costs 100-200 yuan yuan, while the price of a famous barbecue shop is even more impressive, with a simple break of 300 yuan。
The price of daily goods at the mall is also quite striking, with a regular t-shirt selling about $150, and sports shoes up to $500-800。
Even for locally produced cosmetics, prices are not much different from international brands. It's not cheap for a small store on the street, about $20 for a pound of apples and $30 for bananas。
This high price phenomenon is linked to the country's special economic system, with foreign tourists using a specialized foreign exchange price system, often much higher than local residents。
Special korean life
The dprk's social system and way of life are unique. The state has a strict planned economic system, with housing distribution and working arrangements administered by the government。
Single young people can be divided into 30 square metres of housing and can change to 80 square metres after marriage. Private cars are extremely scarce, with only 200,000 of the country's more than 20 million people, requiring floor approval and strictly limited to specific population groups。
Street pedestrians are numerous, cars are scarce and vehicles are even more rare at night. In the democratic people's republic of korea, the rhythm of people's lives is very different from the rest of the world。
At 5:30 a. M., there will be music in the communities, and residents will start a day of life. The workplace usually organises early exercise, and the strong body becomes a habit for the whole population。
The lunch break is not working, and from 12 to 2 p. M., the streets suddenly become colder, as this is a national lunch break. After 8 p. M., the streets began to be quiet, with almost zero night life。
Public places are marked with leadership portraits and slogans, and each community has a special study room where political studies are regularly organized. Clothes are mostly dark in colour, and the colours are rarely seen. This unified way of life creates a unique social landscape for the dprk。
Currency exchange
The country's monetary system is quite special. The rmb 10,000 can be converted to more than rmb 1 million, which appears to be large and is limited in use。
There are three types of payment: korean currency, foreign currency and foreign exchange vouchers. Foreign tourists can only use the latter two, and korean coins are used exclusively for their own residents。
The rmb, the united states dollar and the euro may be used directly at designated sites, but there are problems in finding zero. The foreign exchange coupons, in turn, would solve the problem and would be easily managed by the dprk。
Exchanges of currency must take place in officially designated premises and private exchange is strictly prohibited. Interestingly, north korea has a wide variety of currency denominations, ranging from $1 to $5,000, and each currency is marked with revolutionary scenes or figures。
Foreign tourists often encounter interesting situations when they change currencies, such as the fact that new banknotes are fully acquired without a scratch。
In addition, the dprk has very strict foreign exchange controls, and if there is any remaining korean currency left at the time of departure, foreign currency must be exchanged at the airport's special exchange window, otherwise it will not be possible to take it abroad. This strict monetary system reflects the unique economic policy of the dprk。
Internet life is different
North korea has a unique internet world. Although it has its own network system, it is completely isolated from outside networks. Computer systems are unique, with the opening of the national anthem, desktops are almost blank, software installation is restricted and network activities are closely monitored。
Cell phones are accessible only to national networks, mainly in the form of official news and information. Recreational programmes were limited, and television programmes focused on promotional films and revolutionary topics。
North korea's network system is called the light network, a completely closed local area network. The search engine and the e-mail system used by students in higher education institutions such as pyongyang university of science and technology are autonomously developed by the dprk。
Mobile phones are of limited variety, mainly practical tools such as news, weather, dictionaries, and social media are almost zero。
The dprk has also developed its own operating system, red star, with interfaces similar to windows, but has added a number of features with korean characteristics, such as automatic blocking of certain sensitive terms, built-in revolutionary song players, etc。
While some internet cafes in pyongyang have access to the internet, they are visited by domestic websites, which are not cheap and cost 30 yuan per hour。
Consumption experience
Tourism in the dprk is far more expensive than expected. From the point of view of transportation, access to the dprk can be made only by the choice of koryo airlines or the international train, at a very high price and with a normal level of comfort。
Tourists must be accompanied by guided tours, which can only be visited at designated locations. The well-known sites such as the yuen lok-pai, the sheep island hotel, are also quite expensive, although they are of high quality。
Foreign tourists are treated as vips, but this treatment also implies higher consumption spending. It is worth mentioning that tourism projects in the dprk are also specially designed。
Visiting kim il sung square, for example, requires a proper dress, and photographs are highly specialized, cannot capture the locals of the leaders and must be presented in their entirety。
The five-star hotel in pyongyang, although well served, many of the facilities appear to be somewhat old but pay prices similar to those of international hotels。
Distinctive performances, such as large grouping, are worth hundreds of dollars. Even in small shops on the street, where prices are not familiar, they tend to be overpriced。
Tuition tips are also a significant expense, amounting to at least rmb 50 per day, which, if not well served, may affect the experience of the entire journey。
# [conclusion ] #
The dream of living in north korea with 10,000 won was dashed in the face of real consumption levels。
The unique economic system and way of life of this mysterious country give us a unique social picture。
Perhaps in the future, as north korea develops, we can experience the unique charm of this mysterious country at a more pro-people price。
