Discover North Korea

I chat with Veronika who was one of the Russians to visit North Korea recently and who posted her trip on social media. She tells us all about her trip to North Korea!

NOTE: The North Korean borders are NOT yet open. Some limited Russian tourist groups are currently permitted to go in only. Sign up to this newsletter or WhatsApp group for border opening updates.

My biggest thanks to Veronika for spending her time for this episode, and forever jealous of your visit!

Check out Veronika's page on the links below. I love the aesthetic!

@nikakochetkova / https://www.instagram.com/nikakochetkova

Check out my North Korea borderlands vlogs on YouTube, full series out now! ->

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8I7OHw5_cDNUZjngE6c3NNFgt5i8eF-t&si=xqc3Dyon-V6Uc5nW

Can't wait any longer to see North Korea for yourself? Check out the North Korea From a Near Distance tour and get $150 USD discount with code ZoeDMZ!

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The podcast is back after a non-deliberate break! A little update from me and about the podcast in the future.

Next full episode coming out next week.

North Korean borders are not yet open to tourism. Sign up to this newsletter or WhatsApp group for border opening updates.

Can't wait any longer? Check out the North Korea From a Near Distance tour and get $150 USD discount with code ZoeDMZ!

Get bonus content on Patreon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The last in this series* and we go out with a bang! I chat with Greg, Lesley, and Peter about a very unique trip to South Korea - one truly like no other. That you can be part of this year, too!

*Don't worry, I'm just taking a break and will be back in mid-September time :). I'll be back after a trip and also with another podcast in the making... watch this space!

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Follow me on;

- Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

- TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

- YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

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Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

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Links from the show;

https://koryogroup.com/tours/greg-vaczi-s-dmz-adventure

Leslie Instagram/Flickr @foliopix

#northkorea #dprk #southkorea

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The second part in the 2-part episode "Inside the North Korean Countryside". In this episode, we head to a few key spots in the North Korean countryside known for their beauty or indeed because they're hardly known at all and worth a mention...

More details of each of these in the Travel Guides section on koryogroup.com (links below).

Places we cover;

Pakyon Falls

Ryongmun Caves

Ulim Waterfall

Samil Lagoon

Sinphyong

Lake Sijung

Sijung Beach

Pujon Highlands

Pujon Stone River

Chongsokjong

DMZ

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Follow me on;

- Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

- TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

- YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

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Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

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Links from the show;

https://www.artic.edu/artworks/197182/chongsokjong-kyongju-from-the-series-eight-views-of-korea-chosen-hakkei-keishu-sosekitei

https://koryogroup.com/travel-guides/north-korea-dprk

#northkorea #dprk #discovernorthkorea

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this 2-part episode, I delve into the North Korean countryside to give an overview on what the North Korean countryside has to offer. This first episode is all about mountains; North Korea's most famous mountain ranges. Indeed, of the 6 famous mountains on the Korean Peninsula - 5 of them lie in the northern half. So, there's a lot to cover!

A lot of this information was taken from Koryo Tours' North Korea Travel Guides section, a comprehensive online travel guide into North Korea.

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

Links from the show;

Aim High in Creation Watch & Competition - https://koryostudio.com/films/aim-high-in-creation/ / https://koryostudio.com/blog/Aim-High-In-Creation-Competition

Paektusan - https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/mt-paektu-north-korea-north-korea-travel-guide

Chilbosan - https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/mt-chilbo-north-korea-north-korea-travel-guide

Kuwolsan - https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/mt-kuwol-kuwolsan-north-korea-travel-guide

Myohyangsan - https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/mt-myohyang-north-korea-north-korea-travel-guide

Kumgangsan - https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/mt-kumgang-north-korea-north-korea-travel-guide

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I chat with Nick Bonner, Koryo Studio director and producer/director of several movies & documentaries inside North Korea. He's the go-to man for facilitating these kinds of projects (and much more) in North Korea, and a film he co-directed also won an award a the Pyongyang International Film Festival. He's also the associate producer of Aim High in Creation, a film by an Australian movie producer Anna Broinowski. The film is newly available on Vimeo and there is also a competition running where you get the opportunity to rent/download it online! Listen until the end for how to enter... (or just skip to the link at the bottom!).

Massive thanks to Nick for the incredibly interesting chat!!!! Show him some love over at Koryostudio.com or email [email protected] for more info on art purchases and other projects in North Korea.

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

Links from the show -

MOVIES/DOCUMENTARIES

Aim High in Creation / Comrade Kim Goes Flying / Crossing the Line / A State of Mind / Michael Palin in North Korea / Game of Their Lives; https://koryostudio.com/films/

Vimeo; https://vimeo.com/comradekimgoesflying

NORTH KOREAN ART

Map of Pyongyang (Gareth Fuller); https://koryostudio.com/purchase/original/tourist-map-of-pyongyang/

"Wash Your Hands"; https://koryostudio.com/purchase/original/lets-wash-our-hands/

Silence; https://koryostudio.com/sale/original/silence/

COMPETITION

Win Aim High in Creation; https://koryostudio.com/blog/Aim-High-In-Creation-Competition

Get bonus content on Patreon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What makes the North East so special? I chat with my colleague and friend Pete who works as a freelance tour guide for Koryo Tours (pre-pandemic..!) and visited the DPRK 6 times alone in 2019. He first visited North Korea on a simple trip to Pyongyang but decided that he needed to go back to explore more.

Pete also gave a really interesting insight into an SEZ that came up as a topic in the Rason episode.

He's also an avid podcast listener, so thanks for the constant support Pete and was lovely having you on the show! Until next time!

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

Links from the show;

Pierre Depont's Instagram; https://www.instagram.com/pierredepont/

The Real North Korea (Andrei Lankov); https://www.amazon.com/Real-North-Korea-Politics-Stalinist/dp/0199390037

More info on the KFA: https://korea-dpr.com/

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From shooting pheasants (chickens?) and taking them home for dinner to having a soak completely naked with the locals at the spa. In this episode, I chat about some things you probably never knew you could do in North Korea.

This is a list mainly inspired by everyone's reactions when I tell them what I've been up to on tour. Sure, some of these actually surprised me too - but it's mainly the things that are everyday and mundane that surprise the most people.

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Thanks to my Patrons!!!

Become a Patron: www.patreon.com/zoediscovers

Links from the show;

Crowdfunder: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/beyondthehorizon

Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2021/08/31/what-its-like-to-get-stranded-in-paradise-a-true-story/

CNN: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/british-woman-who-spent-pandemic-in-tonga/index.html

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I decided to get on the ChatGPT bandwagon and use it to see the best, most popular, and most ridiculous myths on North Korea and I discuss their origins and the truth behind them.

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Links from the show;

Dinosaur Footprints; https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/dinosaur-footprint-and-fossils-north-korea-travel-guide

Game of their Lives; https://koryostudio.com/films/the-game-of-their-lives/

Get bonus content on Patreon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode, I chat about North Korea's Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Rason, in the very northeast of North Korea. It's also the first place I ever visited in North Korea! Get a North Korean bank account, visit a casino, go to the local market, and say hi to the seals!

Contact me with your questions & guest recommendations on [email protected].

Follow me on;

-> Instagram @zoediscoversnk for pictures, videos, and live sessions (when it's possible) from inside North Korea

-> TikTok @zoediscovers for long and short-form videos inside North Korea

-> YouTube @zoediscovers for vlogs inside North Korea

Visit North Korea: www.koryogroup.com / @koryotours

Links from the show;

Rason Travel Guide: https://koryogroup.com/travel-guide/rason-north-korea-north-korea-travel-guide

Get bonus content on Patreon

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.