20.12.2008, 09:04
Einige interessante Informationen eines oftmalig nach Nordkorea reisenden Ausländers zum Mobilfunknetz, Internet und Ryugong-Hotel sind in einer Antwort zum Orascom-Thread bei nkeconwatch nachzulesen:
"It’s been possible to hire mobile phones in Pyongyang (for foreigners of course!) for the last few years, these are the phones running on the previous network installed by Loxley telecom of Thailand, the cost is high however but they do work outside of Pyongyang in other urban areas including those on the east coast far from the capital. Glass-cladding of the Ryugyong is going at a fairly brisk pace with one side of it looking around 20% complete and what I have heard is that the aim is to make the lower 30 or 35 floors usable as a hotel (maybe some offices too) by the all-important big date of April 15th 2012 and to have the top 5 or so revolving restaurants running by then as well while the intervening 70 or so floors will be clad but not operational by then. I have to say it is an odd feeling to see lights on in that building at night, makes it look like Sydney at the end of Mad Max 3 (yes, the one with Tina Turner), interesting times for that building. I’ll be interested to see in February (when I will next visit) if phones are available to buy and how much they cost, if you can use a foreign handset, if calls can be made abroad, rates and tariffs, restrictions on the network, and also if the wireless internet speculated about at the Potonggang hotel will in fact be in existence (wireless existed at the Yanggakdo hotel during the New York Philharmonic trip in February this year but was turned off as soon as the press corps left)"
"It’s been possible to hire mobile phones in Pyongyang (for foreigners of course!) for the last few years, these are the phones running on the previous network installed by Loxley telecom of Thailand, the cost is high however but they do work outside of Pyongyang in other urban areas including those on the east coast far from the capital. Glass-cladding of the Ryugyong is going at a fairly brisk pace with one side of it looking around 20% complete and what I have heard is that the aim is to make the lower 30 or 35 floors usable as a hotel (maybe some offices too) by the all-important big date of April 15th 2012 and to have the top 5 or so revolving restaurants running by then as well while the intervening 70 or so floors will be clad but not operational by then. I have to say it is an odd feeling to see lights on in that building at night, makes it look like Sydney at the end of Mad Max 3 (yes, the one with Tina Turner), interesting times for that building. I’ll be interested to see in February (when I will next visit) if phones are available to buy and how much they cost, if you can use a foreign handset, if calls can be made abroad, rates and tariffs, restrictions on the network, and also if the wireless internet speculated about at the Potonggang hotel will in fact be in existence (wireless existed at the Yanggakdo hotel during the New York Philharmonic trip in February this year but was turned off as soon as the press corps left)"