「你想去北朝鮮嗎?」
一天放學,我爸爸和我說。然後,我就在去金剛山的路上了。
金剛山位於朝鮮的東南海岸,是朝鮮半島上風景最優美的地方。在朝鮮,金剛山是旅游特區,是少數可以讓外界接觸到的朝鮮地區。許多來自南韓和西方的游客都為了這裡的美景而來。在非軍事區裡,兩邊是朝鮮的農村,只有一條狹窄的道路帶著你往景區走去。這個風景區的旅游項目一直由朝鮮亞太和平委員會和韓國現代集團共同經營,一直到2008年,一位南韓女游客誤入景區附近的軍事禁區被朝鮮哨兵開槍打死。這個項目因此中斷了四年,到2012年才重新開放。
考慮到旅游區是朝鮮的地盤,安全永遠都是最重要的。當我們跨過國界線時,導游拿走了我們的手機和數碼相機,警告我們只能使用膠片機,而且不能拍農村的照片。入境處長得也像一個坦克集裝箱。我們等待了很長時間才能通過安檢。全副武裝的保安人員都神情緊張。
經過一個小時在非軍事區的行駛,我們的旅行團到了一家叫做Okrukwan的朝鮮餐廳吃飯。朝鮮的著名小吃是朝鮮冷面。雖然南韓也有不少冷面館,朝鮮的冷面多少有點不一樣,沒有那麼辣。所有的服務員都穿著傳統韓服,她們說話都帶著濃重的朝鮮口音。
第二天的行程是爬山,許多朝鮮導游都在棧道邊。我和其中一個導游聊了很久的天,她說她的鼻子也是做過的,還說朝鮮人並不像外國報紙上說的那麼窮。一路上,我看到石頭上刻著不少紅色的朝鮮式標語。大部分標語都在紀念金日成。沿路上也有不少寺廟,就和韓國一樣。
除了爬山之外,我們的旅行團還要在金剛山地區做別的活動,包括泡溫泉,去海灘,還要看一場精彩絕倫的雜技表演。這場表演由朝鮮著名的雜技團獻上,結尾的時候,大家唱著「阿裡郎」。這首民歌在南北韓家喻戶曉,傳達著統一的渴望。
雖然這趟旅行十分短暫,但是給我留下了深刻的印像。金剛山那麼美麗,就像它的名字一樣,像鑽石一般善良。雖然朝鮮就和想想中的一樣保守和封閉,但是人總是一樣的人,也是一樣的語言,只不過是不同的口音。幸運的是,現在金剛山的旅游再次開放,如果你也想了解朝鮮,也可以從這裡開始,雖然不夠多,也不夠深入,但是會留下一個挺美好的回憶。
TRANSLATION: SUGARCOAT
‘Would you like to go on a tour to North Korea?’
This is what my father said one day, when I returned back home from school. Shortly after, I was on my way to Kumgangsan, also known as Diamond Mountains, in North Korea.
Mt. Kumgang is one of the most scenic areas of the Korean peninsula. Located along the southeast coast of North Korea, it was designated as a special administrative tourist region, being one of the few places accessible to tourists from the outside world. Mostly South Koreans and Westerns would come to this area for its scenic beauty led by a narrow single road along the rural areas of the demilitarized zone. Due to a joint tourism program run by the North Korean government and the South Korean conglomerate Hyundai Asan, Mt. Kumgang was an attractive tourist place, until a South Korean tourist was shot dead on the beaches of the tourist zone by a North Korean soldier. Since then, the tour was suspended. Luckily, I had a chance to visit that area while the tour was still on.
Considering the tourist area as a part of North Korea, security was strict the whole time. While crossing the borders from South Korea to North Korea, the tour guides took away our cell phones and digital cameras, warning us that we could only use analog cameras and that we’re not allowed to take photos of rural North Koreans. The immigration office somewhat resembled an immense tank container. We had to wait a long time to pass the security, and the guards there were so strict, all armed with forces.
After an hour ride of the demilitarized zone, our group was led to Okrukwan, one of the North Korean restaurants in the tourist area. North Korea is famous for its cold noodles, ‘nangmyeon.’ South Korea has a lot of cold noodle restaurants too, but North Korea’s cold noodles were somewhat different in taste- less spices. All the clerks were dressed in traditional Korean costume, “hanbok.” They were indeed real North Korean women who spoke Korean in a North Korean accent.
Next day was the actual hike. During the hike, I could see several selected North Korean guides located along the trail. Interestingly, I made a long conversation with one of the guides, and she told me that she got her plastic surgery done on her nose and that North Koreans are not that poor as they are shown on the media, believe it or not. Along the trail, I saw numerous North Korean propagandas carved in big stones in red cursive letters. Most of them were monuments dedicated to Kim Il Sung. There were many historical temples along the way just like any other mountains in South Korea.
Apart from the hike, our group got to do other activities to the different areas of Kumgang, including a session at the Kumgang hot springs where the waters hover around 100 degrees celcius for a warm relaxing bath, an afternoon at the nearby beach, and an amazing acrobatic show performed daily by the famous North Korean Moranbang Acrobatic group where the show ends by all the performers singing a Korean folk song ‘Arirang,’ known to both South and North Koreans, in hopes for reunification.
Although the trip was short, the impact was large. Kumgang Mountains were indeed beautiful, as their name suggests, “Diamond.” North Korea was strict and conservative as expected, but people were the same, just Koreans speaking in another accent. For those who want to have a quick peek at how North Korea’s like, this tour might be the best for you- not too much, but good enough.
TEXT: JISU
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23 July 2014, 4:10 AM
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