PYONGYANG ZOO

Sensitive people, be careful and animal lovers, back off! The Pyongyang Zoo is home to all the species of animals offered to North Korean leaders by foreign countries, but kept in poor conditions. Built on the express request of Kim Il-Sung to participate in the education of the Korean people, it now has more than 5 000 individuals and 650 different species. Some animals are more famous than others: so the Daily Telegraph tells that in 2003 a parrot would have been able to say "long life to Comrade Kim Il-Sung" in English. In 2016, the foreign media reported a 19-year-old female chimpanzee capable of smoking a pack of cigarettes a day (even if the Zoo's management assures that the animal does not swallow the smoke...). Finally, the elephants of the Zoo are descendants of a single individual offered in 1959 to Kim Il-Sung by Ho Chi Minh. It is interesting to note that the section reserved for dogs is particularly full: indeed, since it is not allowed for hygiene reasons to have a dog in Pyongyang, the only way for the population to see a dog is to go to the Zoo!

This place is not clean and the animals do not seem in good health. The locals do not hesitate to throw all sorts of things in the cages to make their occupants react but without success. The bears are the most unfortunate, settled in a section below, they undergo the jets of all sorts of things, but it is perhaps enviable for the goat to which a guide has launched a chewing gum... Aside from the entrance to the Zoo in the shape of a tiger's head that can make you smile, the rest is a bit depressing. However, in the event of a visit, try to remain quiet so as to avoid vexing the guides.

There is still a positive aspect to the visit: it is one of the few places where it is possible to wander freely for a specific duration without being always accompanied by the guides. Small shops sell products (sweets, beverages...) that are not necessarily found elsewhere, like fruit juices (certainly chemical) that are made in the country.