10 Most Bizarre Facts About North Korea

                  North Korea is one of those places that people wonder about, but are not really sure they'd ever want to visit. Still, it's not all insane rumors; sometimes hearing the truth is even more insane. Here are ten ridiculous facts about North Korea:-

10) State Approved Haircuts:-

               There are only twenty-eight state approved haircuts in North Korea. For women there are various styles to choose from, But married women are instructed to keep their hair short. Single women may have their hair longer or even slightly curled.

               For men they cannot grow their hair longer than 5 centimeters in length, but can be shorter than 2 centimeters. Older men may have their hair up to 7 centimeters long provided it falls under one of the approved styles. Leader KIM JONG-UN is exempt from this rule however, having a hairstyle that is not on the current list of approved cuts.

9) Unexpected Costs:-

           In most of the World students take things like desks for granted since they are typically provided by the schools. In North Korea families must pay for everything from desk and chairs, to heating fuel for winter months and building materials to maintain the schoolhouse. Students are often put to work in order to pay for their educations. The work can be harsh however, so many families may try to bribe teachers into excluding their children from the activities.

8) Pulgasari:-

              Back in the late 1970's North Korea's KIM JONG-IL had intelligence officers kidnap a south Korean director in order to create his own version of 'GODZILLA'. SHIN SANG-OK and his wife, CHOI EUN-HEE, who was an actress, were held in captivity from 1978 to 1986 while Sang-OK was forced to create 'PULGASARI' along with at least six others films. The director and his wife were fortunately able to escape after surviving for years in their fan's 'EMPLOY'.

7) Limited Channels:-

              All media, from newspapers to radio and television, are controlled by the government and used to distribute propaganda. Newscasters are not allowed to talk about the hardships their citizens go through or the fact that much of the population lives in poverty; They are only allowed to praise their leader and talk about how great North Korea is.

                  There are only three available channels in North Korea and all televisions and radios must be checked and registered with police to ensure they are being used correctly and are not able to receive outside transmissions.

6) Fake Village:-

             On the border of the North Korean half of the demilitarized zone there is a picturesque village known as KI JONG Dong, 'The Peace Village'. However in the rest of the World it's known by a different name. The 'Propaganda Village' was built by North Korea as a ploy to lure South Koreans to their country with beautifully painted dwellings.

             North Korea claims the village can support roughly two hundred families, provides childcare, schools and hospitals. But it has been uninhabited since it was built in the 1950s. When inspected through modern telescopes lenses though it is clear that the windows have no glass and the lights are all on timers to give the illusion of a functioning village.

5) Sweet Black Market:-

                 Since the devastating famine in the 1990s that killed over a million people in North Korea food production has suffered. Luxuries such as sweets, Pizza, hamburgers and fries have even been banned from the country. So when a South Korean factory that employs 50,000 North Korean laborers provided their product in the employees' lunches or in lieu of cash bonuses, they went mad over them. 'Choco Pies' are a snack cake with two round layers of cake, marshmallow filing and chocolate shell.

                Employees, who only make around $100 a month, would sometimes bring the treats home for their families or resell them on the black market for $10 apiece. When a crackdown was brought about by the North Korean government to stop the sales of the snacks, citing they were a symbol of capitalism, South Korea began sending balloons filled with 'Choco Pies' over the border.

4) Self-made Fertilizer:-

               Once upon a time , The Soviet Union provided North Korea with fertilizer to aid in their farming since they were situated mostly on mountainous ranges and unfavorable ground. When the union fell, their farms began to suffer.

                Following the famine in the 1990s, South Korea began shipping rice and fertilizer to aid in their recovery, but in 2008 they cut off their supply as well. Struggling to keep their corps afloat they began using a different and more readily available type of fertilizer; human waste. The need for fertilizer became so great that human feces are seen as a community and shops have opened to keep up with demand.

3) Different Year:-

                 In North Korea they do not use the Gregorian calendar like most of the World. Instead they use KIM IL-SUNG's date of birth, referring to it as the Juche calendar. So instead of it being 2017 like much of the World, It's only the year 105 for them.

                 April 15, 1912 is used as Juche 1 and continues on from there. They use the same number of days per month and days per year as the Gregorian calendar as well. The Juche calendar was first introduced to North Korea in September 1997. They also have their own time zone known as Pyongyang time.

2) Elite City:-

               Pyongyang is the capital city of North Korea with a population of nearly 3 million people, however it's not open to everyone. Consider to be Utopia Pyongyang is only the elite, healthy and wealthy citizens and high ranking military personal. Armed guards patrol the boarders to keep the lower class and unworthy from entering the city.

           Within the city people live in a life of luxury, meaning they have a little more food than everyone else and have electricity for a few hours a day. Most homes outside the city are not connected to the electrical grid at all. In the winter the power often goes out completely, leaving even those living within the city in the dark and fending off the better cold.

1) Punished For Not Being Sad:-

            After the death of their great leader, KIM JUNG-IL, in 2012, the entire country was in devastated. Soldiers, workers, children and the elderly sobbed and cried out when his death was announced and his body was placed alongside his father as the eternal leaders.

           The country declared a state of mourning lasting a hundred days and there were consequences for citizens that didn't participate. Anyone that didn't cry, didn't appear sad enough, appeared to be faking their sadness or criticized their new leader, KIM JONG-UN the youngest son of KIM JUNG-IL, were sentenced to six months or more in labor camps.