Food in North Korea

There is not much point in reviewing individual restaurants in North Korea, as visitors have no opportunity to go out and try a restaurant of their own choice.  Tours are fully escorted, and visitors will be taken to a specific restaurant for a set meal.

Royal Banquet

Although is relatively little choice over the food provided, most meals take the form of a variety of small dishes, so you can to some extent choose what you actually eat, and it was generally very tasty. The selection generally includes some form of soup, vegetables, fish, meat, hard-boiled eggs or omelette, as well as the ubiquitous kimchi (spicy pickled cabbage.)  Meals like this were provided at both lunch and dinner, which is rather more than I would usually eat in a day. In Kaesong we had a rather more elaborate version of the set meal, described as a royal banquet. 

The only actual menu choice we had was ‘rice or noodle’ for the filler provided at the end of the meal.  The noodles were Pyongyang cold noodles – a large bowl containing a tight knot of pre-cooked buckwheat noodles in cold water, with a garnish of a slice of meat and hard boiled egg.  You go in with your chopsticks and tease the noodles apart, adding spicy sauce to taste.  We tried these on our first night, but preferred the rice, which comes studded with small cubes of meat and vegetables. After we had both chosen rice at two successive meals, we were not offered noodles again.

A couple of times we ate in the KITC restaurant in Pyongyang  where the selection of dishes included cooked sausage and strips of potato in a batter, meaning that it was technically possible to have North Korean version of the great British ‘sausage, egg and chips.’  

Variations on the standard set meal are barbecue, where you cook your own slices of meat (pork, beef and octopus or squid) on a hotplate over a brazier, and hotpot, where you boil sliced meat, vegetables and egg in a pot at the table.  We had barbecue on our first night and a special duck barbecue on our last night. We also had hotpot on one occasion, and on New Year’s Eve, as a special treat, we had a small pizza alongside the other dishes.

I felt guilty that we were fed so much better than the average North Korean.

Doha: a city under siege?

View of West Bay, Doha

The local newspaper gives a count of the number of days the ‘siege’ has lasted, but in truth Doha does not feel like a city under siege. It is far more of a city under construction. Everywhere are building sites, and the road layout can change overnight.

The so-called ‘siege’ began during Ramadan, when Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt cut off diplomatic relations and imposed trade and travel bans, citing allegations of support for terrorism.  Qatar now imports vegetables from Iran and dairy products from Turkey. But aside from the supermarket translations from Turkish, the only noticeable signs of the siege, or more properly, blockade, are the images of the Emir which are now sported on buildings and in car windows.

Museum of Islamic Art, Doha

Meanwhile, the building work continues.  There are stadiums to be built in readiness for the 2022 World Cup, and the futuristic National Museum of Qatar is taking shape. 

For now, visitors can enjoy the new Museum of Islamic Art: a shining white fortress on an artificial island by the old harbour. The galleries are ranged on three sides round a central atrium, with windows on the fourth side giving views of the skyscrapers in the West Bay area.  There are two floors of permanent exhibitions. On floor two, the galleries are organised thematically: introduction; the Figure in Art, Calligraphy, Patterns in Art and Science in Art. There are some beautiful items, carefully displayed, and it helps to pace yourself, so we paid a visit to the ground floor café before tackling the third floor galleries.  There is  ample seating and plenty of opportunities to enjoy the view. Back on the third floor, exhibits are  grouped chronologically and geographically:  Early Islamic Art (pre 12^th century); Iran and  Central Asia (12^th -14^th centuries); Egypt and Syria (12^th-14^th centuries); Egypt and Syria (14^th and 15^th centuries); Iran and Central Asia (15^th -16^th centuries); Iran (16^th-19^th century); India and Turkey (16^th -19^th century.)

The exhibits are fascinating, but overall there is little sense of provenance. Unlike most museums where items from particular sites are grouped together, many are not even identified as from a particular country, let along region or city. The overall sense is one of a ‘greatest hits’ album.

Courtyard of Radwani House

If you can bear to walk along the Corniche in the heat past the dhow harbour to the Pearl Monument, and cross the road (no easy feat – it can take 20 minutes for the lights to change) you can reach Souq Waqif, a restored traditional market and popular place for tourists to buy souvenirs. There are also restaurants and cafes to suit all tastes.

Beyond the Souq is the Msheireb District. This was one of the earliest parts of the city to be developed, with the first bank, the first pharmacy and the first hotel. The area declined as the rest of the city developed but it is now being redeveloped on environmentally friendly lines with pedestrian friendly streets and cycleways. Four of the traditional houses have been restored to form the Msheireb Museums.

Each house has a different theme, but the displays are very modern and interactive.

The Bin Jelmood House tells the history of slavery from the ancient world to modern slavery.

Company House was once the headquarters of Qatar’s first oil company. Initially Qatar’s main export industry was pearl fishing. Fortunately the decline in fortunes brought about by the introduction of cultured pearls was soon followed by the discovery of oil. The displays and a short film tell the story of the oil company and its workers.

Mohammed Bin Jassim House tells the history of Doha and the Msheireb district in particular, including visions for the future.

Where Company House and Mohammed Bin Jassim House give a corporate and public view of Qatari life, Radwani House takes a more personal approach, providing an insight into the transformation of domestic family life.

Together, the houses provide a much needed local counterpoint to the pan-Islamic collections on the Museum of Islamic Art.  I would love to return when the National Museum finally opens.