In a bid to avoid using foreign loanwords, North Korea has instructed its tour guides to use the term “double bread with ground beef” instead of “hamburger”, which is one of the few words the guides were barred from using.
According to South Korea-based outlet Daily NK, the aim of the practice is allegedly to prevent foreign culture and ideology from entering the country.
In order to receive foreign tourists, North Korea is putting its tour guides through an intensive training programme with some rather peculiar objectives.
“The main tourist areas received party instructions in early August to focus on training tour guides for foreign visitors,” said a source from inside the reclusive country.
“Training programs launched nationwide on Aug 21, and Wonsan is pouring resources into the program.”
Wonsan is an oceanside city, mainly developed as a tourist destination, located on the eastern coast of North Korea.
Source: ShanghaiEye魔都眼 on YouTube
According to insider information, the programme teaches basic etiquette and professional standards as well as phrases typically used by foreigners.
Despite that, the guides are instructed to avoid certain loanwords and South Korean expressions.
Prominent examples include avoiding “hamburger” and “ice cream”. Both are loanwords used in South Korea.
The guides are also told to call karaoke machines, which are popular in South Korea, “on-screen accompaniment machines”.
“The goal is to teach tourism professionals to consciously use North Korean vocabulary and expressions while carefully avoiding South Korean-style expressions and foreign loanwords they may have been using unknowingly,” the source said.
Despite being stacked with hotels on the beach, Wonsan faces one significant problem — there are simply no visitors.
According to CNN, footage from June revealed that only around 15 people, all from Russia, visited the pristine beaches.
The tourists reported that the area was divided into zones for foreign and domestic tourists.
“There was also a large aqua park — we had the opportunity to see it from the outside, but we were not allowed in because it was in the domestic zone,” one tourist said. “There were so many locals there, massive crowds.”
But it appears the training programmes, including those for tour guides, were effective as foreign visitors praised the North Koreans’ exceptional service.
“They tried very hard for all of us,” one tourist said. “They were very strict with themselves to ensure they provided us with the highest quality of services.”
Also read: North Korea bans hotdogs, deems cooking wieners an act of treason
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Featured image adapted from News1 and ShanghaiEye魔都眼 on YouTube.