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I was lucky enough to experience what must be the most surreal train journey in the world - from Beijing to Pyongyang (Obviously pre-COVID). Despite the obvious, it was really fascinating experience.
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Just read it. If anything, worse than I imagined. The description of the obvious shows put on for foreigners was not a surprise. Similar things are done in many other dictatorships. There may be other obvious international boundaries, but I looked for this one. In the map of "The World at Night" The boundary between North Korea and South Korea is the most distinct on the planet. South Korea is a glow of lights. North Korea is almost entirely dark with a dim glow at Pyongyang and lesser glows at a few other places. The border between China is less distinct, mainly because for its population China is somewhat dim. The only border of equivalent clarity is that between Egypt and Sudan. At night Egypt is essentially a lighted swath along the Nile. After all, most of the country is Sahara desert. At the border it goes dark precisely at the line of the border which is not even at 90 degrees to the path of the Nile Valley at that point. Another paragraph later about my one long train ride in China.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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Just to add, at the time of the partition (1953?) it was thought the Soviets got the better deal as the north was more industrialized and generally better in infrastructure. Since ethnically there is or was very little difference between the people in the northern part and the southern part, Korea is the posterchild of how much difference government form and policies can make.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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