📰 Pyongyang · page 3

Pyongyang has a rapidly evolving skyline, dominated by high-rise apartment buildings.182 A construction boom began with the Changjon Street Apartment Complex, which was completed in 2012.[99]183 Construction of the complex began after late leader Kim Jong Il described Changjon Street as "pitiful".[100]184 Other housing complexes are being upgraded as well, but most are still poorly insulated, without elevators or central heating.[101]185 An urban renewal program continued under Kim Jong Un's leadership, with the old apartments of the 1970s and '80s replaced by taller high rise buildings and leisure parks like the Kaesong Youth Park, as well as renovations of older buildings.[102]186 In 2018, the city was described as unrecognizable compared to five years before.[103]187

Landmarks

Main article: List of tourist attractions in Pyongyang

Notable landmarks in the city include:188

• The Ryugyong Hotel189
• The Kumsusan Palace of the Sun190
• The Arch of Triumph (heavily inspired by, but larger than, the Arc de Triomphe in Paris corpus)191
• The birthplace of Kim Il Sung at Mangyongdae Hill at the city outskirts192
• Juche Tower, a monument to the philosophy of Juche (self-reliance)193
• Two large stadiums:194
• Rungrado 1st of May Stadium (the second largest stadium in the world by seating capacity)195
• Kim Il Sung Stadium196
• The Mansu Hill complex, including the Korean Revolution Museum197
• Kim Il Sung Square198
• Yanggakdo International Hotel199

Pyongyang TV Tower is a minor landmark.200 Other visitor attractions include the Korea Central Zoo.201 The Pyongyang–Kaesong Motorway stretches from Pyongyang to the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).202

Culture

Cuisine

See also: North Korean cuisine

Pyongyang served as the provincial capital of South Pyongan Province until 1946,[104] and Pyongyang cuisine is part of the general culinary tradition of the Pyongan province.203 The most famous local food is Pyongyang raengmyŏn, or also called mul raengmyŏn or just simply raengmyŏn.204 Raengmyŏn literally means "cold noodles", while the affix mul refers to water because the dish is served in a cold broth.205 Raengmyŏn consists of thin and chewy buckwheat noodles in a cold meat-broth with dongchimi (watery kimchi) and topped with a slice of sweet Korean pear.206

Pyongyang raengmyŏn was originally eaten in homes built with ondol (traditional underfloor heating) during the cold winter, so it is also called "Pyongyang deoldeori" (shivering in Pyongyang).207 Pyongyang locals sometimes enjoy it as a haejangguk, which is any type of food eaten as a hangover cure, usually a warm soup.[105]208

Another representative Pyongyang dish, Taedonggang sungeoguk, translates as "flathead grey mullet soup from the Taedong River".209 The soup features flathead grey mullet (abundant in the Taedong River) along with black peppercorns and salt.[106]210 Traditionally, it has been served to guests visiting Pyongyang.211 Therefore, there is a common saying, "How good was the trout soup?", which is used to greet people returning from Pyongyang.212 Another local specialty, Pyongyang onban (literally "warm rice of Pyongyang"), comprises freshly cooked rice topped with sliced mushrooms, chicken, and a couple of bindaetteok (pancakes made from ground mung beans and vegetables).[105]213

Social life

In 2018, there were many high-quality restaurants in Pyongyang with Korean and international food, and imported alcoholic beverages.[103]214 Famous restaurants include Okryu-gwan and Ch'ongryugwan.[107]215 Some street food exists in Pyongyang, where vendors operate food stalls.[108]216 Foreign foods like hamburgers, fries, pizza, and coffee are easily found.[103]217 There is an active nightlife with late-night restaurants and karaoke.[103]218

The city has water parks, amusement parks, skating rinks, health clubs, a shooting range, and a dolphinarium.[102]219

Sports

See also: Sport in North Korea

Pyongyang has a number of sports clubs, including the April 25 Sports Club and the Pyongyang City Sports Club.[109]220

Economy

Pyongyang is North Korea's industrial center[36] because of the abundance of natural resources like coal, iron and limestone, as well as good land and water transport systems.221 Pyongyang was the first industrial city to emerge in North Korea after the Korean War.222 Light and heavy industries are both present and have developed in parallel.223 Heavy manufactures include cement, industrial ceramics,[42] munitions and weapons, but mechanical engineering remains the core industry.224 Light industries in Pyongyang and its vicinity include textiles, footwear and food, among others.[42]225 Special emphasis is put on the production and supply of fresh produce and subsidiary crops in farms on the city's outskirts.226 Other crops include rice, sweetcorn and soybeans.227 Pyongyang aims to achieve self-sufficiency in meat production.228 High-density facilities raise pigs, chicken and other livestock.[36]229

Until the late 2010s, Pyongyang still experienced frequent shortages of electricity.[110]230 To solve this problem, two power stations – Huichon Power Stations 1 and 2 – were built in Chagang Province and supply the city through direct transmission lines.231 A second phase of the power expansion project was launched in January 2013, consisting of a series of small dams along the Chongchon River.232 The first two power stations have a maximum generating capacity of 300 megawatts (MW), while the 10 dams to be built under the second phase are expected to generate about 120 MW.[110]233 In addition, the city has several existing or planned thermal power stations.234 These include Pyongyang TPS with a capacity of 500 MW, East Pyongyang TPS with a capacity of 50 MW, and Kangdong TPS which is under construction.[111]235

Retail

Pyongyang is home to several large department stores including the Pothonggang Department Store, Pyongyang Department Store No. 1, Pyongyang Department Store No. 2, Kwangbok Department Store, Ragwon Department Store, Pyongyang Station Department Store, and the Pyongyang Children's Department Store.[112]236

The city also has Hwanggumbol Shop, a chain of state-owned convenience stores supplying goods at prices cheaper than those in the jangmadang markets.237 Hwanggumbol Shops are specifically designed to control North Korea's expanding markets by attracting consumers and guaranteeing the circulation of money in government-operated stores.[113]238

Transportation

Pyongyang is the main transport hub of the country: it has a network of roads, railways and air routes which link it to both foreign and domestic destinations.239 It is the starting point of inter-regional highways reaching Nampo, Wonsan and Kaesong.[36]240 Pyongyang railway station serves the main railway lines, including the Pyongui Line and the Pyongbu Line.241 Regular international rail services to Beijing corpus, the Chinese border city of Dandong and Moscow corpus are also available.242

A rail journey to Beijing takes about 25 hours and 25 minutes (K27 from Beijing/K28 from Pyongyang, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays); a journey to Dandong takes about 6 hours (daily); a journey to Moscow takes six days.243 The city also connects to the Eurasian Land Bridge via the Trans-Siberian Railway.244 A high-speed rail link to Wonsan is planned.[114]245

The Metro, tram and trolleybus systems are used mainly by commuters as a primary means of urban transportation.[36]246 Cycle lanes were introduced on main thoroughfares in July 2015.[115]247 There are relatively few cars in the city.248 Cars are a status symbol in the country due to their scarcity resulting from import restrictions caused by international sanctions and domestic regulations.[116]249 Some roads are also reported to be in poor condition.[117]250 However, by 2018, Pyongyang had begun to experience traffic jams.[103]251

State-owned Air Koryo has scheduled international flights from Pyongyang Sunan International Airport to Beijing (PEK), Shenyang (SHE) and Vladivostok (VVO).[118]252 The only domestic destinations are Hamhung, Wonsan, Chongjin, Hyesan and Samjiyon.253 Since 27 July 2025, Nordwind Airlines has served direct flights between Moscow–Sheremetyevo and Pyongyang once a month.[119]254

Demographics

According to the 2008 population census, the city has a population of 3,255,288.[120]255 It is estimated that 99% of those living in Pyongyang are members, candidate members, or dependents of members of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).[121]256

Education and science

Kim Il Sung University, North Korea's oldest university, was established in 1946.[36]257 It has 21 faculties, 4 research institutes, and 10 other university units.[122][123][124]258 These include the primary medical education and health personnel training unit, the medical college; a physics faculty which covers a range of studies including theoretical physics, optical science, geophysics and astrophysics;[125] an atomic energy institute and the largest law firm in the country (Ryongnamsan Law Office).[126]259 Kim Il Sung University also has its own publishing house, sports club (Ryongnamsan Sports Club),[127] revolutionary museum, nature museum, libraries, gym, indoor swimming pool and apartment units for educators.260 Its four main buildings were completed in 1965 (Building 1), 1972 (Building 2), and 2017 (Buildings 3 and 4).[128][129][130]261

Other higher education establishments include Kim Chaek University of Technology, Pyongyang Medical University, Pyongyang University of Music and Dance and Pyongyang University of Foreign Studies.262 Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) is the country's first private university; most of its lecturers are American and courses are carried out in English.[131][132]263 A science and technology hall is under construction on Ssuk Islet.264 Its stated purpose is to contribute to the "informatization of educational resources" by centralizing teaching materials, compulsory literature and experimental data for state-level use in a digital format.[133]265

Sosong-guyok hosts a 20 MeV cyclotron called MGC-20.266 The initial project was approved by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 1983 and funded by the IAEA, the United States and the North Korean government.267 The cyclotron was ordered from the Soviet Union in 1985 and constructed between 1987 and 1990.268 It is used for student training, production of medical isotopes for nuclear medicine as well as studies in biology, chemistry and physics.[134]269

Healthcare

Medical centers include the Red Cross Hospital, the First People's Hospital, which is located near Moran Hill and was the first hospital built in North Korea after the liberation of Korea in 1945,[135] the Second People's Hospital, Ponghwa Recuperative Center (also known as Bonghwa Clinic or Presidential Clinic) located in Sokam-dong, Potonggang-guyok, 1.5 km northwest of Kim Il Sung Square,[136] Pyongyang Medical School Hospital, Namsan Treatment Center which is adjacent[137] Pyongyang Maternity Hospital, Taesongsan General Hospital,[138] Kim Man-yoo Hospital, Staff Treatment Center and Okryu Children's Hospital.270 A new hospital named Pyongyang General Hospital began construction in Pyongyang in 2020.[139]271

Twin towns – sister cities

Pyongyang is twinned with:[140]272

• Baghdad corpus, Iraq273
• Chiang Mai, Thailand274
• Dubai, United Arab Emirates275
• Jakarta corpus, Indonesia276
• Kathmandu corpus, Nepal277
• Moscow corpus, Russia278
• Tianjin, China279
• Ulaanbaatar corpus, Mongolia[141]280

See also

List of cities in North Korea

List of second-level administrative divisions of North Korea

Bibliography

• Webster, Hugh Alexander (1878). "281 Encyclopædia Britannica".282 Charles Scribner's Sons..283
• "North Korea – A Country Study".284 Library of Congress Country Studies.285 2009.286

Further reading

Dormels, Rainer (2014). "North Korea's Cities: Industrial Facilities, Internal Structures and Typification". Jimoondang.

Em, Pavel P.; Ward, Peter; Prokopljevic, Jelena; Zakharova, Liudmila V.; Sigley, Alek (Spring 2021). "City Profile of Pyongyang 3.0: Inside Out". North Korean Review.

Kim Chun-hyok (2014). "Panorama of Pyongyang". Foreign Languages Publishing House.

Kracht, Christian; Munz, Eva; Nikol, Lukas (October 2007). "The Ministry of Truth: Kim Jong Il's North Korea". Feral House.

"Architectural and Cultural Guide Pyongyang". DOM. 2012.

Springer, Chris (2003). "Pyongyang: The Hidden History of the North Korean Capital". Saranda Books.

"Pyongyang in Kim Jong Un's Era". Foreign Languages Publishing House. 2021.

Willoughby, Robert (2003). "North Korea: The Bradt Travel Guide". Globe Pequot.

External links

Interactive virtual tour Aerial view of Pyongyang city

Super High Resolution Image Panoramic view of Pyongyang city

North Korea Uncovered (North Korea Google Earth), a comprehensive mapping of North Korea, including all of the locations mentioned above, on Google Earth

Holidays in Pyongyang

Instagram photos of Pyongyang

City profile of Pyongyang