A Pyongyang hotel staff sports day: fun and games, North Korea style
Ayesha Sitara gets a taste of what North Koreans get up to in their downtime
We stand in single file, the six of us, with a rope tied to our right ankles. We are aiming to beat three other teams in a synchronised-running race, which means we have to be well coordinated as a team. We get into position, with our feet slightly apart, waiting for the signal. The three referees seem bemused, the crowd amused.
The whistle goes and so do we. First the left feet, then the right, left, right, left, right. I struggle to keep up. I hold on to the shoulders of the man in front of me for dear life. One mistake and the whole team will crash and burn.
We don't win, but we do make it up and down the course safely. I congratu-late my team. Who would have thought that one day I would be high-fiving North Koreans?
It all started with the deafening noise outside my Pyongyang hotel. Curious to know what was going on, I stepped out into the car park - and sports day for the staff of the Yanggakdo Hotel.
Korean music blares, drums are being beaten and wooden clappers slapped together as an ecstatic crowd of 100 or so - cleaners, managers, waiters, chefs and the guy who brews the beer at the hotel - watch teams compete.