Ryugyong Hotel
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| Ryugyong Hotel | |
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| Chosŏn'gŭl: | 류경 호텔 |
| Hanja: | 柳京 호텔 |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Ryugyŏng Hot'el |
| Revised Romanization: | Ryugyeong Hotel |
The Ryugyong Hotel (or Ryu-Gyong Hotel or Yu-Kyung Hotel or the 105 Building) is a towering, empty concrete shell that was once intended for use as a hotel in Sojang-dong, in the Potong-gang District of Pyongyang, North Korea. The hotel’s name comes from one of the historic names for Pyongyang: Ryugyong, or “capital of willows.” Its 105 stories rise to a height of 330 m (1,083 ft), and it boasts some 360,000 m² (3.9 million square feet) of floor space, making it the most prominent feature of the city’s skyline and by far the largest structure in the country. Construction started in 1987 and ceased in 1992.
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[edit] History
[edit] Initial framing
Construction on the pyramid-shaped hotel began in 1987 by Baekdu Mountain Architects & Engineers.[1] The reinforced concrete structure consists of three wings, the face of each wing measuring 100 m (328 ft) long and 18 m (59 ft) wide, which converge at a common point to form a pinnacle. At the top is a huge 40 m (131 ft) wide circular structure which contains eight rotating floors, topped by a further 6 static floors. A construction crane is perched at the top, and has assumed the role of a permanent fixture. The hotel is surrounded by a number of pavilions, gardens, and terraces.
The building’s plan for a 105-story height was reportedly a Cold War response to a South Korean company’s completion of the Westin Stamford Hotel in Singapore the previous year. North Korean leadership envisioned the project as a channel for Western investors to step into the marketplace. A firm, the Ryugyong Hotel Investment and Management Co., was established to attract a hoped for 230 million dollars in foreign investment. A representative for the North Korean government promised relaxed oversight, saying, “The foreign investors can even operate casinos, nightclubs or Japanese lounges if they want to.”[2] It was added to maps and North Korean postage stamps before it was half-finished.
[edit] Construction deadlock
The Ryugyong’s planned 3,000 rooms and 7 revolving restaurants were scheduled to open in June 1989 for the World Festival of Youth and Students, but problems with building methods and materials delayed it. Japanese newspapers estimated the cost of construction was $750 million[3]—2% of North Korea’s GDP—and it is generally assumed construction came to a halt in 1992 due to lack of funding, acute electricity shortages, and the prevailing famine. Official pictures of Pyongyang often show the building illuminated at night, but this is due to photo manipulation.
[edit] Ryugyong today
The basic structure is complete, but no windows, fixtures, or fittings have been installed, presumably due to the high cost. According to Emporis,[4] the building will never open as presently constructed, partially due to the poor quality of concrete used in its construction making the structure unsafe, and the North Korean government is trying to invite a foreign investment of $300 million to improve and finish the hotel. In the meantime, it has removed the Ryugyong from maps and stamps and built a newer five-star hotel of more conventional design on the Taedong River.
[edit] Popular Culture
The Ryugyong Hotel appears in Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction, a video game for the Playstation 2 and Xbox, as the fully completed Song Tower. During the first ace mission of the game, the player is ordered to destroy it with a bunker buster bomb. There is no indication of what it was being used for in the game, other than housing one of North Korea’s many generals.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Companies - Baikdoosan Architects & Engineers. Emporis. Retrieved on 2006-08-26.
- ^ Ngor, Oh Kwee (June 9 1990). "Western decadence hits N. Korea". The Japan Economic Journal: 12.
- ^ (November 15 1990) "North Korea builds record-height hotel". Engineering News-Record: 41.
- ^ News: Ryugyong Hotel on hold. Emporis Building (2000-07-28). Retrieved on 2006-04-01.
[edit] External links
- The Shape of Days on The Ryugyong Hotel
- http://www.travel-earth.com/dprk/pyongyang-ryugyong.jpg
- http://homepage3.nifty.com/dprk/ryugyong.JPG
- Flickr Photos
