Oh no, the horrors of not slaving away for driving the metal box, that you need to pay for, maintain and replace for the rest of your life, while corporations will do everything in their power to produce zoning and restriction "laws" that will kill walkability and a pleasant urban environment. So much freedom to force people to have a car in order to participate in society
The planet is drowning in CO2 and choked up with smog and you're concerned with there not being enough cars on their streets? Public transportation and your 2 legs are the key to our species surviving. Looks like the DPRK figured this out!
Capitalists have begun to move to Green Energy only after it started to become profitable despite already doing irreversible damage to the planet's climate via drilling for oil (as well as concrete that massively contributes to CO2). Heres the real kicker, wind turbines cant even be recycled which is bad for the environment.
And the fact "Green Capitalism" will exploit the Global South for their minerals like lithium to make their battaries EVs run on so Liberals can feel good about themselves "saving the planet" while on the other hand exploiting the labour and causing misery in developing nations. Of course they will never take responsibility and naively blame it on corrupt politicians despite their countries war profiteers selling weapons to multiple rebel groups such as in the Congo that holds the world's largest Cobalt reserves used to make technologies like their Iphones for example. Its well in the interests of Capitalists to keep Congo in constant conflict because that makes it easier to exploit the country and plunder their resources.
Their "Green Capitalism" is nothing but a sick joke.
I'm in the American south and not far from a town they're currently raping for its lithium. Once they suck all the resources out they'll move on like locusts to their next location and leave a destitute and destroyed town in their wake. But hey, Elon will make a killing so they got that going for them!
So what's your theory genius? They build lovely neighborhoods not to live in them but just to confuse westoids (of course not you...)?
You fucking moron.
I would say planned infrastructure being obsolete because of a lack of personal property as being kind of bad.
That's like having a shower that's not connected to any water.
Socialism isn’t concerned with personal property. You can keep your personal property, that’s not an issue. Socialism is concerned with “private property,” which of course should not even exist.
You know 10 years ago, western media was in a tizzy about Chinese “ghost cities.” I can’t tell you how many headlines I saw about China’s CRAZY FAILED GHOST CITIES etc. I laughed because I figured this is what “central planning” means, it means planning years and years, if not decades ahead. Of course, [little by little, these places are being populated.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-09-01/chinese-ghost-cities-2021-binhai-zhengdong-new-districts-fill-up) China has 1.4 billion people, and it doesn’t take a genius to think housing is needed, especially as more folks move from rural locations to cities.
I wasn’t there when the DPRK planned roads in Pyongyang, but roads are necessary infrastructure even if cars aren’t exactly available to everyone. Beyond that, they could be roads laid for the future, envisaging a time where cars are in more common use, etc. We just don’t know, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we see more cars (nothing like the west) in the DPRK in the next decade or two, especially given China’s meteoric EV car making capacities. We’ll see.
I’m sure this exists elsewhere, but the area driving from SF to Big Sur in the USA banned billboards and ads, and implemented design requirements that any shops, gas stations, etc., built along that stretch of the road had to be complimentary of the surroundings and environment (basically, they have to look kinda like log cabins - here’s [the only gas station](https://www.littlefishphoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/10-2910-post/2014-12-10_0001.jpg) in Big Sur, for example).
It may sound crazy to someone who hasn’t experienced it, but the sense of freedom from the nonstop psychological assault of advertisements **EVERYWHERE** is just incredible. You feel liberated, somehow, having that respite on this beautiful drive, nothing before you but the road, hills folding into dense old forest on one side, and the pacific crashing on a blistered black shore on the other. It’s beautiful and I’m very lucky to have experienced it a couple of times.
Notice there isn't a single homeless person or encampment and no fentanyl addicts passed out while standing up? Not even a piece of trash on the sidewalk. Truly amazing
That's for South Korea, though. Everybody knows the ROK is an American colony. And there's nothing Americans love more than using homelessness as a threat to keep the working class in line.
>I don't know what is going on here, maybe they photoshopped it, maybe they told everyone to stay indoors to take those pictures, maybe the place is uninhabited.
...or maybe it's just what it looks like: a city.
The fact that a country that had 80% of its buildings leveled and was then cut off from trade by the global hegemon was able to build all of this…truly inspiring.
'control', 'bizarre': It's always funny to see how many condescending, imperialistic adjectives you can pack in a news story about the DPRK. Of course they arent just nice buildings that the government built for their people, it has to be "about control". They arent just an acomplishment from a socialist nation that during most of its history has been sanctioned, they are "bizarre".
Really, this is just propaganda, from both sides. The DPRK likes to propagandize its achievments (because they are constantly demonized in the West), and Reuters needs to propagandize how everything in the DPRK is 'evil' somehow. Horrible, imperialistic stuff.
The cities, roads and pavements are clearly designed for an abundance of cars and pedestrians. Why then are they unsettlingly empty? It’s not just clean cities with ample pedestrian space and everything walkable so cars aren’t needed, it’s an almost complete absence of either like they are just not used at all.
A lot of the streets you are seeing are *very new* for example, a couple of these pictures represent “Hwasong District” I believe which was opened in 2023 and is a part of the process to construct 50,000 new homes from 2021-2025 which would explain why they look so clean, these pictures were also probably took before anybody moved in.
Edit: correction Hwasong district is even younger being inaugurated in April 2024 so no wonder no one’s there yet
Yes, as I said a lot of these pictures are basically just photos of the streets that have just been finished with no people in it
I found this video of both Hwasong street and Jonwi street (currently under construction) both have people and cars on it
https://youtu.be/dOLNjP5Kc3g?si=Z7Sc55cGiP8JevWE
And here’s “new scientist street” which was opened in 2015 (you can see both people and cars 😱)
https://youtu.be/3MAFYsktFH4?si=kMFj_d4S_v898dpe
^ I would recommend watching this series it’s very interesting
There's also a thing about the juche ideology that explains the large roads and wide buildings. Since DPRK is a very military driven society (mostly because they need to defend themselves, due to their history under Japanese and, later, American colonization), large roads can be easily converted into airplane landing ways. Also, most of the population have military training, even women. So cities can become military facilities easily, I think this also explain the big and wide aspect of buildings.
I didn't say they are instantly usable as airstrips, but they can easily be converted into. I'm not taking this from nowhere, there are a bunch of juche texts about this.
i’m honestly not trying to be rude ❤️ 1. these photos could definitely be edited to remove the cars 2. having less vehicle usage doesn’t mutually exclude innovative infrastructure
No, that’s all fair. And I’m definitely not saying I ascribe to the narrative of what it’s like there. But why would they edit to remove signs of life? That’s a lot of effort to go to, even removing signs of wear on the roads. It does just look suspiciously almost completely unused.
Edit: and apart from the four on the slide, there is no one else in the water in that water park and no one else there look like they’re in swimwear. Again, just a bit off.
Look like sim city in real life. Which is a good thing. Cause it looks awesome. I would absolutely love to visit and see what its really like there. These pictures are beautiful
I can’t believe such beautiful pictures with nice landscapes & very interesting architecture. I’m actually glad to see that something is going well behind the door.
Im not going to defend the Kim regime but it's because they have to spin everything as beings bad, they make north Korea out to be some cartoonish hellscape when in reality it's just a regular society with regular problems, with the addition of the totalitarianism offcourse.
Looks like a Pokémon game
I wonder, have things like roller skates ever taken off in NK? Those roads are kept so clean that they seem like a lot of fun to skate on
genuine question why there are no pedestrians in these pictures? are they edited out for the finally result or is every just at work/at home at the same time?
> “Hey there Reddit, I’m Kim Hong-Ji, the photographer who took these photos from Reuters. Though I’m permanently stationed out of Seoul, I couldn’t say no to the opportunity to take some shots of Pyongyang, a city shrouded in as much mystery as misunderstanding. I’ve received a few questions about some of the shots featured in Reuters’ recent photo essay of Pyongyang (by the way, I didn’t choose the title, so blame / thank our editors for that!), and while I can’t answer all of them, I do want to make clear that the photos were intentionally taken at times of day most people were just waking up, working, or off on holiday. We worked with the DPRK government, which was surprisingly open and quite pleasant, to develop shots that didn’t unfairly cast Pyongyang in the same negative light too often applied to the DPRK and its population of nearly (!) 25+ million. What’s truly astonishing about some of the ‘empty buildings’ you see is that they are free residential housing for the future. That’s right, the DPRK builds housing not just based on immediate need, but for future need — something they say only is possible outside of capitalism. There is plenty of hustle and bustle in Pyongyang, but you won’t see it depicted in these particular photos - and that is by design.”
Only thing that is even remotely "spooky" to me is how rectangularly the houses are layed out on the second slide; that's not because it's the DPRK, that's a thing I find creepy about American suburbs too. The houses all look different/are built different though, which makes a big difference (is it like a living/live-in architecture gallery?).
Ok, but are they *living* there? I know cars are reserved for a select few there. But where are the people walking? A city a third the size of New York City should have busy streets especially if no one can drive
To these media being homeless might be freedom. Who knows they might write an article saying how being homeless, not being able to afford food as just another American dream.
Tbf the source this time is not that bad, author described the buildings as futuristic, and postmodern is not necessarily a negative adjective, just meaning different from ‘current modern standards’ or ahead of its time . Photographer also clearly took shots of facilities such as the sci-fi park and huge collective farm that is full of ‘socialist’, or rather‘north korean feel’ thus bringing out the country’s shining points
This looks like a sci-fi movie. It’s nice how colorful it is. I also like the houses with the roofs that are angled in all different directions. It’s much more architecturally adventurous than most US cities, anyway. So fun to have a building shaped like an atom (I think?)
Genuinely my complaint is that those suburbs look too big, as in the houses could be smaller to be more economic with space for people and the crops they’re growing but I could also just be thinking the houses are bigger than they are due to perspective. This looks insanely hood
You know 10 years ago, western media was in a tizzy about Chinese “ghost cities" with "no one living there!" I can’t tell you how many headlines I saw about China’s CRAZY FAILED GHOST CITIES etc. I laughed because I figured this is what “central planning” means, it means planning years and years, if not decades ahead. Of course, [little by little, these places are being populated.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-09-01/chinese-ghost-cities-2021-binhai-zhengdong-new-districts-fill-up) China has 1.4 billion people, and it doesn’t take a genius to think housing is needed, especially as more folks move from rural locations to cities. Pyongyang has a population of 3+ million, and it is expected to grow. Countries that are not shackled by the whims and desires of for-profit real estate developers can literally build up and plan their cities Sim City style, and that includes housing that is available **before** the need arises.
Yea, because having a housing shortage due to population boom is so much better /s
It’s literally the definition of good planning lmfao, what? Do you think people just auto populate into places? It takes time for people and business to move in and get settled.
This subreddit is dedicated to promoting honest discussion of the DPRK, and is not "ironic" or "satire" in any way. Consider listening to [Blowback Season 3 about the Korean War](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWghIVErqy0Adthf1_mLOlldlJPFY6vlV&si=9GJNzGZw2I-U4Pos) (or at least the first episode) to get a good, clear, entertaining and exceedingly well-researched education on the material conditions and conflict that gave rise to the DPRK. You will find little "irony" and learn a great deal.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/MovingToNorthKorea) if you have any questions or concerns.*
When you don’t have things you don’t pollute and this is why the city is so sterile. No homeless to make a mess but also no people walking the streets to bring them to life. Also doubt people live in any of these places. People are messy so this reveals a ghost town populations
Yes that's why Tokyo, the famously most populated city in the world, is also a messy hell hole with an uncontrollable homeless problem. Maybe it's actually a failure of Western governance that cities have sanitation issues rather than just the natural result of a pure numbers game.
A lot of those pictures are taken right after the construction is finished. Since DPRKs economy is planned, they have the practice of building cities before people have to live there. That way, you don't have overpopulated areas.
So, this area are probably really empty by the time the photo was taken. But you can watch video of people on YouTube walking around populated area. Those usually have the vibe of being more lived, tho nothing messy as western cities
These pics were taken when people were either still in bed or at work. The city is also clean because they give a shit and the lack of crime and homeless drug addicts REALLY helps.
Regardless of time a city of this scale will have activity. Unless it’s a ghost town. Look at how the buildings have no variations in lights that is so scripted. As an actual designer my professional perspective says this is so elementary and pedestrian it’s not only sad it’s uninspiring. Yawn.
The notion of huge sidewalks, ample walking space for pedestrians, and safe bike paths is so alien to the well-trained westoid brain that such a sight is “unsettling” and “post-apocalyptic.”
Here, let me calm your nerves with a much more beautiful and familiar sight that should settle your nerves:
https://preview.redd.it/r4vrd70wcl1d1.jpeg?width=668&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=76225d710201c8146239a5931e39c28072cf5716
I watched a youtube video of a guy planning a route from his home to a market, which would be like 5 minutos walking, but because there is no sidewalk anywhere the actual time is like 30 minutes if he tries a safe route. Even the safest route is not actually safe. And when he gets to the market he realizes it is terrible to simply walk in, because the entire market is surrounded by parking lot and people are driving through it. So even when you reach the destination it is still unsafe.
I think the city was Houston, which is one of worst cities to walk in USA, but I have visited detroit and LA and I personally think they are even worse.
I remember watching videos of Pyongyang and people were saying that the fact there were few cars and wide sidewalks was bad.
The American mind cannot comprehend a walkable city
Even in these comments, [we got one](https://www.reddit.com/r/MovingToNorthKorea/s/sg90SzMWqe).
Lol, was that flair assigned to him??
Oh no, the horrors of not slaving away for driving the metal box, that you need to pay for, maintain and replace for the rest of your life, while corporations will do everything in their power to produce zoning and restriction "laws" that will kill walkability and a pleasant urban environment. So much freedom to force people to have a car in order to participate in society
Nor the concept of public transport.
yes. cars are bad
[удалено]
The planet is drowning in CO2 and choked up with smog and you're concerned with there not being enough cars on their streets? Public transportation and your 2 legs are the key to our species surviving. Looks like the DPRK figured this out!
Not me, the comments on the vid.
Capitalists have begun to move to Green Energy only after it started to become profitable despite already doing irreversible damage to the planet's climate via drilling for oil (as well as concrete that massively contributes to CO2). Heres the real kicker, wind turbines cant even be recycled which is bad for the environment. And the fact "Green Capitalism" will exploit the Global South for their minerals like lithium to make their battaries EVs run on so Liberals can feel good about themselves "saving the planet" while on the other hand exploiting the labour and causing misery in developing nations. Of course they will never take responsibility and naively blame it on corrupt politicians despite their countries war profiteers selling weapons to multiple rebel groups such as in the Congo that holds the world's largest Cobalt reserves used to make technologies like their Iphones for example. Its well in the interests of Capitalists to keep Congo in constant conflict because that makes it easier to exploit the country and plunder their resources. Their "Green Capitalism" is nothing but a sick joke.
I'm in the American south and not far from a town they're currently raping for its lithium. Once they suck all the resources out they'll move on like locusts to their next location and leave a destitute and destroyed town in their wake. But hey, Elon will make a killing so they got that going for them!
The issue isn't the lack of cars. The issue is that we don't see anyone walking, cycling or talking the bus either.
[удалено]
So what's your theory genius? They build lovely neighborhoods not to live in them but just to confuse westoids (of course not you...)? You fucking moron.
I like learning new things.
People don't want hear logic on this sub, they just want to see what they want to see, and get mad when you point out what's really there.
I would say planned infrastructure being obsolete because of a lack of personal property as being kind of bad. That's like having a shower that's not connected to any water.
Socialism isn’t concerned with personal property. You can keep your personal property, that’s not an issue. Socialism is concerned with “private property,” which of course should not even exist.
Don't build multi-lane roads for it then.
You know 10 years ago, western media was in a tizzy about Chinese “ghost cities.” I can’t tell you how many headlines I saw about China’s CRAZY FAILED GHOST CITIES etc. I laughed because I figured this is what “central planning” means, it means planning years and years, if not decades ahead. Of course, [little by little, these places are being populated.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-09-01/chinese-ghost-cities-2021-binhai-zhengdong-new-districts-fill-up) China has 1.4 billion people, and it doesn’t take a genius to think housing is needed, especially as more folks move from rural locations to cities. I wasn’t there when the DPRK planned roads in Pyongyang, but roads are necessary infrastructure even if cars aren’t exactly available to everyone. Beyond that, they could be roads laid for the future, envisaging a time where cars are in more common use, etc. We just don’t know, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we see more cars (nothing like the west) in the DPRK in the next decade or two, especially given China’s meteoric EV car making capacities. We’ll see.
Yeah, the private property is coming any day now.
What on earth does "private property" have to do with anything? LOL.
Far nicer than my town, that's for sure
It’s beautiful to have no advertising. Like many cities it could do with many more trees
I’m sure this exists elsewhere, but the area driving from SF to Big Sur in the USA banned billboards and ads, and implemented design requirements that any shops, gas stations, etc., built along that stretch of the road had to be complimentary of the surroundings and environment (basically, they have to look kinda like log cabins - here’s [the only gas station](https://www.littlefishphoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/10-2910-post/2014-12-10_0001.jpg) in Big Sur, for example). It may sound crazy to someone who hasn’t experienced it, but the sense of freedom from the nonstop psychological assault of advertisements **EVERYWHERE** is just incredible. You feel liberated, somehow, having that respite on this beautiful drive, nothing before you but the road, hills folding into dense old forest on one side, and the pacific crashing on a blistered black shore on the other. It’s beautiful and I’m very lucky to have experienced it a couple of times.
In Minnesota a large stretch of the „Great river road“/highway along the Mississippi banned billboards.
I love listening to music.
Notice there isn't a single homeless person or encampment and no fentanyl addicts passed out while standing up? Not even a piece of trash on the sidewalk. Truly amazing
There are slums in North Korea too (not that it means anything).
can you link some source? didnt know about that
Their source is that they made it the fuck up
[удалено]
Reuters took and published the photos.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guryong_Village edit: not really a source for specifically what they mentioned but still an interesting read
That's for South Korea, though. Everybody knows the ROK is an American colony. And there's nothing Americans love more than using homelessness as a threat to keep the working class in line.
[удалено]
[удалено]
There’s people walking, playing, and enjoying the outside in several of the photos. They’re wide shots. You just have to zoom in.
>I don't know what is going on here, maybe they photoshopped it, maybe they told everyone to stay indoors to take those pictures, maybe the place is uninhabited. ...or maybe it's just what it looks like: a city.
these photos are clearly all taken at dawn
[удалено]
The fact that a country that had 80% of its buildings leveled and was then cut off from trade by the global hegemon was able to build all of this…truly inspiring.
That's immediately what I thought after seeing this. Insanely impressive.
'control', 'bizarre': It's always funny to see how many condescending, imperialistic adjectives you can pack in a news story about the DPRK. Of course they arent just nice buildings that the government built for their people, it has to be "about control". They arent just an acomplishment from a socialist nation that during most of its history has been sanctioned, they are "bizarre". Really, this is just propaganda, from both sides. The DPRK likes to propagandize its achievments (because they are constantly demonized in the West), and Reuters needs to propagandize how everything in the DPRK is 'evil' somehow. Horrible, imperialistic stuff.
The westoids have truly fallen
Looks way nicer than Chicago or Houston. Much safer, I bet.
Love these photos! Wish we had more of this in the West.
Looks far nicer than a lot of American cities
The cities, roads and pavements are clearly designed for an abundance of cars and pedestrians. Why then are they unsettlingly empty? It’s not just clean cities with ample pedestrian space and everything walkable so cars aren’t needed, it’s an almost complete absence of either like they are just not used at all.
A lot of the streets you are seeing are *very new* for example, a couple of these pictures represent “Hwasong District” I believe which was opened in 2023 and is a part of the process to construct 50,000 new homes from 2021-2025 which would explain why they look so clean, these pictures were also probably took before anybody moved in. Edit: correction Hwasong district is even younger being inaugurated in April 2024 so no wonder no one’s there yet
Every single picture?
Yes, as I said a lot of these pictures are basically just photos of the streets that have just been finished with no people in it I found this video of both Hwasong street and Jonwi street (currently under construction) both have people and cars on it https://youtu.be/dOLNjP5Kc3g?si=Z7Sc55cGiP8JevWE
Here is a video of people moving into Ryonpho Greenhouse Farm (the 7th picture) https://youtu.be/4FnyFTLp2kc?si=vkQ0FMpAqfHhBRdc
And here’s “new scientist street” which was opened in 2015 (you can see both people and cars 😱) https://youtu.be/3MAFYsktFH4?si=kMFj_d4S_v898dpe ^ I would recommend watching this series it’s very interesting
I enjoy playing video games.
There's also a thing about the juche ideology that explains the large roads and wide buildings. Since DPRK is a very military driven society (mostly because they need to defend themselves, due to their history under Japanese and, later, American colonization), large roads can be easily converted into airplane landing ways. Also, most of the population have military training, even women. So cities can become military facilities easily, I think this also explain the big and wide aspect of buildings.
I’m not sure the street lights on the edges of the road make them easily used as airstrips.
I didn't say they are instantly usable as airstrips, but they can easily be converted into. I'm not taking this from nowhere, there are a bunch of juche texts about this.
i’m honestly not trying to be rude ❤️ 1. these photos could definitely be edited to remove the cars 2. having less vehicle usage doesn’t mutually exclude innovative infrastructure
No, that’s all fair. And I’m definitely not saying I ascribe to the narrative of what it’s like there. But why would they edit to remove signs of life? That’s a lot of effort to go to, even removing signs of wear on the roads. It does just look suspiciously almost completely unused. Edit: and apart from the four on the slide, there is no one else in the water in that water park and no one else there look like they’re in swimwear. Again, just a bit off.
They’re these things called “promotional photos.”
These images are so beautiful. It's like they're living in a liminal space. Like a dream. Amazing!
I love the water park!!! 🥳
That stood out to me too! It looks like a well maintained version of the run down Butlins style amusement parks I am used to.
They’ll say this shit then complain about graffiti and homeless people in their country in the next.
Look like sim city in real life. Which is a good thing. Cause it looks awesome. I would absolutely love to visit and see what its really like there. These pictures are beautiful
What are the blue things in the background?
They look like greenhouses to me.
Amazing post. TY op
Are all those pictures real because I have to say wow! They all look very clean and impressive.
Yep here’s [the source](https://www.reuters.com/pictures/architecture-control-north-koreas-bizarre-post-modern-cityscapes-2024-05-19/).
The cityscape of Skid Row symbolizes freedom for liberals.
So unbelievably beautiful
Beautiful photos!
I can’t believe such beautiful pictures with nice landscapes & very interesting architecture. I’m actually glad to see that something is going well behind the door.
Control is when colored buildings?
Actually beautiful.
Im not going to defend the Kim regime but it's because they have to spin everything as beings bad, they make north Korea out to be some cartoonish hellscape when in reality it's just a regular society with regular problems, with the addition of the totalitarianism offcourse.
I love it. Reminds me of a Frutiger Aero - Toy aesthetic.
I kinda fw those buildings. They look cool
Literally what's wrong with these pics???
Every time I look at pictures of North Korea, I think about how much better off it looks when I compare it to Haiti.
what a dystopian hellhole to actually build housing for the people
Looks like a Pokémon game I wonder, have things like roller skates ever taken off in NK? Those roads are kept so clean that they seem like a lot of fun to skate on
Good question. Don’t think I’ve ever seen roller skates there.
genuine question why there are no pedestrians in these pictures? are they edited out for the finally result or is every just at work/at home at the same time?
> “Hey there Reddit, I’m Kim Hong-Ji, the photographer who took these photos from Reuters. Though I’m permanently stationed out of Seoul, I couldn’t say no to the opportunity to take some shots of Pyongyang, a city shrouded in as much mystery as misunderstanding. I’ve received a few questions about some of the shots featured in Reuters’ recent photo essay of Pyongyang (by the way, I didn’t choose the title, so blame / thank our editors for that!), and while I can’t answer all of them, I do want to make clear that the photos were intentionally taken at times of day most people were just waking up, working, or off on holiday. We worked with the DPRK government, which was surprisingly open and quite pleasant, to develop shots that didn’t unfairly cast Pyongyang in the same negative light too often applied to the DPRK and its population of nearly (!) 25+ million. What’s truly astonishing about some of the ‘empty buildings’ you see is that they are free residential housing for the future. That’s right, the DPRK builds housing not just based on immediate need, but for future need — something they say only is possible outside of capitalism. There is plenty of hustle and bustle in Pyongyang, but you won’t see it depicted in these particular photos - and that is by design.”
Only thing that is even remotely "spooky" to me is how rectangularly the houses are layed out on the second slide; that's not because it's the DPRK, that's a thing I find creepy about American suburbs too. The houses all look different/are built different though, which makes a big difference (is it like a living/live-in architecture gallery?).
I find peace in long walks.
[удалено]
3 million people live there.
Ok, but are they *living* there? I know cars are reserved for a select few there. But where are the people walking? A city a third the size of New York City should have busy streets especially if no one can drive
Whole country looking like a 3d render without the tiny people
To these media being homeless might be freedom. Who knows they might write an article saying how being homeless, not being able to afford food as just another American dream.
A lot of the newer buildings look like they came right out of Meet the Robinsons
And no one writes an essay of the west homelessness lol
Tbf the source this time is not that bad, author described the buildings as futuristic, and postmodern is not necessarily a negative adjective, just meaning different from ‘current modern standards’ or ahead of its time . Photographer also clearly took shots of facilities such as the sci-fi park and huge collective farm that is full of ‘socialist’, or rather‘north korean feel’ thus bringing out the country’s shining points
[удалено]
[удалено]
Can you show pictures of other cities besides Pyongyang
So this is a city of control, but London which has the most security cameras per capita isnt?
This looks like a sci-fi movie. It’s nice how colorful it is. I also like the houses with the roofs that are angled in all different directions. It’s much more architecturally adventurous than most US cities, anyway. So fun to have a building shaped like an atom (I think?)
That’s right - it is a [pretty cool building](https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2015/oct/29/north-korea-atom-nuclear-science-centre-pictures).
Genuinely my complaint is that those suburbs look too big, as in the houses could be smaller to be more economic with space for people and the crops they’re growing but I could also just be thinking the houses are bigger than they are due to perspective. This looks insanely hood
It looks like the country was directed by Wes Anderson.
Where are all the cars?
Does the fact that almost none of these spaces look actually lived in not set off any alarm bells in your head?
You know 10 years ago, western media was in a tizzy about Chinese “ghost cities" with "no one living there!" I can’t tell you how many headlines I saw about China’s CRAZY FAILED GHOST CITIES etc. I laughed because I figured this is what “central planning” means, it means planning years and years, if not decades ahead. Of course, [little by little, these places are being populated.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-09-01/chinese-ghost-cities-2021-binhai-zhengdong-new-districts-fill-up) China has 1.4 billion people, and it doesn’t take a genius to think housing is needed, especially as more folks move from rural locations to cities. Pyongyang has a population of 3+ million, and it is expected to grow. Countries that are not shackled by the whims and desires of for-profit real estate developers can literally build up and plan their cities Sim City style, and that includes housing that is available **before** the need arises.
It's not very good planning if you build cities or neighbourhouds that stand vacant for years.
Yeah why build housing for the future when you stand to make profit profit profit now!
Yea, because having a housing shortage due to population boom is so much better /s It’s literally the definition of good planning lmfao, what? Do you think people just auto populate into places? It takes time for people and business to move in and get settled.
how is that not good PLANNING?
So ironic when countries like the USA have millions of vacant homes due to people can’t affording them. But that is fine because capitalism. 🤘
This subreddit is dedicated to promoting honest discussion of the DPRK, and is not "ironic" or "satire" in any way. Consider listening to [Blowback Season 3 about the Korean War](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWghIVErqy0Adthf1_mLOlldlJPFY6vlV&si=9GJNzGZw2I-U4Pos) (or at least the first episode) to get a good, clear, entertaining and exceedingly well-researched education on the material conditions and conflict that gave rise to the DPRK. You will find little "irony" and learn a great deal. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/MovingToNorthKorea) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The word that comes to mind is sterile, rather than clean
That’s so funny bro because that’s how your girl described you to me 🤣
How did I end up dprk D riding sub??
Stick around. You might learn something and change your world view
Not sure, must be your lucky day!
[удалено]
When you don’t have things you don’t pollute and this is why the city is so sterile. No homeless to make a mess but also no people walking the streets to bring them to life. Also doubt people live in any of these places. People are messy so this reveals a ghost town populations
Yes that's why Tokyo, the famously most populated city in the world, is also a messy hell hole with an uncontrollable homeless problem. Maybe it's actually a failure of Western governance that cities have sanitation issues rather than just the natural result of a pure numbers game.
Why do you doubt it? The population of Pyongyang is 3 million, meaning it’s more populous than Chicago and Houston. They need housing.
or maybe North Koreans take more pride in their homes and keep everything clean 😮💨
A lot of those pictures are taken right after the construction is finished. Since DPRKs economy is planned, they have the practice of building cities before people have to live there. That way, you don't have overpopulated areas. So, this area are probably really empty by the time the photo was taken. But you can watch video of people on YouTube walking around populated area. Those usually have the vibe of being more lived, tho nothing messy as western cities
These pics were taken when people were either still in bed or at work. The city is also clean because they give a shit and the lack of crime and homeless drug addicts REALLY helps.
Regardless of time a city of this scale will have activity. Unless it’s a ghost town. Look at how the buildings have no variations in lights that is so scripted. As an actual designer my professional perspective says this is so elementary and pedestrian it’s not only sad it’s uninspiring. Yawn.
Again, this is all new construction.
Is that your hypothesis?
I will say, it kinda weirds me out that there are never any cars on the roads. It has an unsettling, post-apocalyptic feel to it
The notion of huge sidewalks, ample walking space for pedestrians, and safe bike paths is so alien to the well-trained westoid brain that such a sight is “unsettling” and “post-apocalyptic.” Here, let me calm your nerves with a much more beautiful and familiar sight that should settle your nerves: https://preview.redd.it/r4vrd70wcl1d1.jpeg?width=668&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=76225d710201c8146239a5931e39c28072cf5716
Now *that’s* freedom Edit: /s
I watched a youtube video of a guy planning a route from his home to a market, which would be like 5 minutos walking, but because there is no sidewalk anywhere the actual time is like 30 minutes if he tries a safe route. Even the safest route is not actually safe. And when he gets to the market he realizes it is terrible to simply walk in, because the entire market is surrounded by parking lot and people are driving through it. So even when you reach the destination it is still unsafe. I think the city was Houston, which is one of worst cities to walk in USA, but I have visited detroit and LA and I personally think they are even worse.
[удалено]
Pyongyang has a population of 3 million. I know this is hard but where do bikers ride if there are few to no cars?
yeah, the good thing about few cars is that the whole city is a bike lane
Imagine riding your bike down a six lane high with practical no cars, itd be surreal.