Introducing Key Facilities While Staying at a Resort in Pyongannam-do
Border Opening Imminent... Preparations to Attract Chinese Tourists
As prospects for the reopening of the border between North Korea and China are emerging, North Korean YouTuber Yeonmi introduced a hot spring resort in South Pyongan Province in Chinese and showed herself eating eggs cooked in hot spring water.
North Korean YouTuber Yeonmi is eating eggs boiled in hot spring water at Yangdok Hot Spring Cultural Recreation Area in South Pyongan Province, saying "haochi (好吃)," which means delicious in Chinese. [Image source: Screenshot from YouTube channel 'NEW DPRK']
On the 22nd, an 8-minute and 42-second video titled "A North Korean girl exploring a famous hot spring and tasting delicious hot spring eggs" was uploaded to the YouTube channel "NEW DPRK," presumed to be operated by North Korean authorities. This is the fourth video featuring Yeonmi (燕美), a Pyongyang woman, who first appeared on the channel on the 11th of last month. On the 8th, Yeonmi introduced the "2023 Spring Women's Clothing Exhibition," held in Pyongyang from late April to early May, in a vlog format under the title "Discover the latest fashion trends of this year with a North Korean girl enjoying shopping."
In the newly uploaded video, Yeonmi stays for one night and two days at the Yangdok Hot Spring Cultural Resort in South Pyongan Province and introduces the main facilities to viewers in Chinese. She showcases the exterior of the resort and the interior of the hotel rooms, and also experiences the hot spring facilities, including a scene where she tastes eggs boiled in hot spring water. The video is tagged with hashtags such as '#NorthKorea #Travel #Spa #HotSpring.'
The Yangdok Hot Spring Cultural Resort, completed in December 2019, opened in January 2020. It is located on a site of approximately 1.66 million square meters and includes indoor and outdoor hot spring baths, a ski resort, an equestrian park, inns, treatment and recuperation zones, sports and cultural bases, and convenience service facilities. However, operations were suspended shortly after opening due to the COVID-19 pandemic and later resumed in 2021.
On the 11th, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that North Korea, which had closed its borders for over three years due to concerns about the influx of COVID-19 patients, is expected to reopen its borders as early as next month. The Voice of America (VOA) also reported on the 1st that satellite images from the private satellite company Planet Labs confirmed signs of resumed land trade between North Korea and China.
Accordingly, there is speculation that North Korea posted such videos introducing resort facilities to actively attract Chinese tourists once the North Korea-China border blockade is lifted in the near future.
According to the paper "North Korea's Use of YouTube as an External Propaganda Medium (2020)" by Professor Ha Seung-hee of Dongguk University's North Korean Studies Institute, North Korea began using YouTube for the first time in December 2014 through the channel "Joseon Today." Last year, videos of Song-a, a Pyongyang child YouTuber who speaks British English, became a hot topic, and YouTubers Yumi and Eun-a, who speak fluent English, have also been active by uploading vlog-style videos mainly showing their daily lives.
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