folsom addend: N. Korea 'Hotel of Doom' nearly done 30 years late

Friday, September 28, 2012

N. Korea 'Hotel of Doom' nearly done 30 years late

The pyramid-shaped 105-story Ryugyong Hotel in Pyongyang, North Korea, appears to be almost complete in this picture on Sept. 23.

By Ian Johnston, NBC News

With more than 3,000 rooms, North Korea's enormous pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel was designed to be a confident declaration of the isolationist communist state's status in the world.

More than three decades after it was supposed to open, the so-called "Hotel of Doom"?in the capital Pyongyang has recently shown signs that it is finally close to being finished, according to reports.

Visitors tour the top floor of the Ryugyong Hotel on Sept. 23. Some three decades after construction began, there is still some work to do.

But photographs released this week reveal that there is still some way to go.

When it's complete, Ryugyong will be one of the tallest hotels in the world, boasting not just one but five revolving restaurants, the?Business Insider website?noted.

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Despite not being open, the hotel has already gathered a number of reviews on its Google+ entry.

"This resort is a jewel ... It's unreal how trendy this place is with its neoclassical industrial decor, exotic cuisine, and world class casino that rivals anything in Vegas. The shopping is fabulous, especially if you are in to [sic] antiques. Apparently, antiques are trendy for decades...even the dust is trendy! Definitely one for the bucket list," said one tongue-in-cheek reviewer, who set the tone for the others.

Read more stories about North Korea here