Today's News

Camping is now in full swing at the Songdowon International Children’s Camp after the first-term camping there in 2025 began in April.

The blue waves which roll in endlessly, the glittering white beach, pine forests stretching along the seashore, white seagulls flying over the waves and children romping happily at the seaside—they all look like a picture.

The children’s camp is furnished with the international friendship children’s hall, an artificial turf football pitch, outdoor wading pool, aviary located distinctively in the pine forest, aquarium, outdoor archery range, mirror house and others.

In the past many schoolchildren from different countries in the world spent unforgettable camping days at it.

A student from Dar es Salaam of Tanzania wrote on the visitor’s book that he went camping in several countries, but he had never seen such a large camp like it and that he felt after visiting the parks and amusement parks in Pyongyang that all African children need to come and see the DPRK. Only when they see with their own eyes, can they believe the fact that the best system in the world is here in the DPRK, he noted, adding the more he looked round the camp, the better he could understand the greatness of the respected Marshal Kim Jong Un.

It takes young campers one day to look round all the places of the camp and they are full of admiration everywhere they go.

They gaze with admiration at the big and small fishes swimming by wagging their tails and rare marine animals including the loggerhead that has been living for more than 60 years at the aquarium wonderfully built like a palace in the sea.

They also widen their horizons by acquiring new knowledge of animals and plants at the aviary which arouses special emotion with the twitter of different kinds of birds and the mountaineering knowledge diffusion room which seems to have a pleasant fragrance of pine forests.

“During their camping, the campers conduct various activities and their favourites among them are mountain-climbing and cooking practice,” said Kim Hyon Chol, chief of the education department.

Schoolboys show particular interest in cooking practice.

Schoolgirls try to demonstrate their culinary skills competitively as if they are celebrity chefs and schoolboys wearing aprons and cook’s caps are busy cutting cooking materials and frying eggs. Their looks are so amusing that they provoke hearty laughter from all of them.

A student from Haeju said with pride that so far he had had food prepared by his mother, but he cooked food by himself during the camping period and gained confidence in his ability and that he would make tasty dishes and serve them to his parents when he returned home after the camping.

And every place of the children’s camp is full of joy and optimism of young campers, including the indoor swimming pool bustling with children dabbling in water and engaged in swimming competitions, outdoor playground where they play games competitively in various sports, mirror house, electronic recreation hall and 4D simulation cinema.

The camping programme also includes such activities as skills show, quiz and schoolchildren's sports and the campers are very much interested in and enthusiastic about them, said Kim.

In the evening they write in their diaries the pleasant camping life they enjoy every day at the rooms of the camp building in which a mysterious world of moon and stars seems to be unfolded with the effect of ceiling lights.

A schoolgirl from Phyongsong Middle School for Orphans noted in her diary:

“Today I saw the sea for the first time. Our teacher told us that we will perform over 30 kinds of extracurricular activities including the collection of sea animals and plants during the camping period.

“How interesting they will be. How happy we are. If my mom and dad saw me doing… .

“I will surely become a good person and repay the love shown by the fatherly Marshal Kim Jong Un.”