Contact Admin. In the seaside city of Wonsan, North Korean families cook up barbecues on the beach, go fishing, and eat royal jelly flavour ice cream in the summer breeze. For their leader Kim Jong Un, the resort is a summer retreat, a future temple to tourism, and a good place to test missiles.
He is rebuilding the city of , people and wants to turn it into a billion-dollar tourist hotspot. At the same time, he has launched nearly 40 missiles from the area, as part of his accelerated tests of North Korea's nuclear deterrent.
This combination of tourism and nuclear weapons is emblematic of Kim Jong Un's strategy for survival, say researchers and people familiar with the project.
North Korea's development plans for Wonsan have mushroomed since they were first announced in Examined here in detail for the first time, they run across pages in nearly 30 brochures produced by the Wonsan Zone Development Corporation in Korean, Chinese, Russian and English in and Mr Kim has already constructed a ski resort and a new airport there. According to one brochure, the Zone includes approximately historical relics, 10 sand beaches, tourist attractions, four mineral springs, several bathing resorts and natural lakes and "more than 3.
Earlier this year Mr Kim sent 16 of his officials to Spain to get ideas for Wonsan. Terra Mitica caters to fans "of extreme sensations," according to its website. Both parks confirmed the visits; a spokeswoman for Terra Mitica said the North Koreans were impressed by its themes including the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece and Rome.
