Archive

The Mass Games It is, in some ways, misleading to call them ‘The Mass Games’. The enormous, grandiose, colour-drenched, epic performance has nothing to do with competition or playfulness. It is a 90-minute orgy of coordination, talent, dancing, acrobatics, music, patriotism and propaganda. The setting – in Pyongyang’s May Day Stadium – is impressive enough. ...

Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee It wasn’t so long ago, I recall, that the Royal Family was a bit of a joke. An entire generation of them seemed unable to keep their private lives out of the tabloids with their adulterous, gaffe-prone, toe-sucking scandals. And the response to it all from the top left the ...

Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam Paraguay When you think of Paraguay (which, admittedly, doesn’t happen often), you don’t necessarily think of engineering wonders of the twentieth century. But there, tucked away in the east of the country, is a marvel to rival some of the most famous constructions in the world. It is, though, as controversial as ...

Fair food at Dallas, Texas Just when you thought pizza couldn’t get any unhealthier, they gone deep-fried it. Not that it seems out of place at the Texas State Fair in Dallas. Deep-frying the food is pretty much mandatory at the food stalls, which could give you a coronary from just reading the menu. Deep-fried ...

Sunset at Washington DC On a visit to Washington DC, I was reminded of that old phrase, “the sun never sets on the British Empire”. Walking down the National Mall, the sun was setting behind the Lincoln Memorial, casting an orange glow before darkness fell over America’s seat of government. It may seem a little ...

JFK Presidential Library, Boston There’s a moment on a tour of the JFK Presidential Library that brings on tears. Around me, as I stood there, some people sobbed. I could even feel that slight sting in the eyes myself. The moment comes right at the end of the exhibits in the room dedicated to that ...

The Boston Freedom Trail It’s in Boston, the city sometimes described as ‘the cradle of America’, that we pick up this story of ‘America, the resentful adolescent’. You see, to stick with this metaphor, the USA has been a rather spoilt child over the years. It was born into privilege with rights it feels are ...

Not far from the New York Stock Exchange, which now has more barriers around it than a fortnight ago, protesters are still occupying a park as part of their campaign to… to… well, to do whatever they’re trying to do. The hundreds (and, at times, thousands) of people who have been gathering are committed to ...

Life in North Korea Trying to find out what life is like in North Korea is a bit like trying to find out if the light turns off when you close the fridge door. You can never truly look inside and discover anything with certainty, but by talking with people and keeping your eyes open, ...

North Korea news In bookstores across North Korea, there’s quite a collection of literature for sale. The musings of Kim Il Sung seem to be quite a popular set of books. Kim Jong Il shares some pearls of wisdom in a few volumes as well. And then there’s everybody’s favourite paperback: “The US Imperialists started ...