Bizarre. As the Architectural Record article said, something like only 2,000 westerners visited North Korea all last year. No way they're going to be able to make a 3,000 room hotel even remotely profitable.

Also interesting that the article said that Orascom Group says they have nothing to do with the project as was said in that initial bit of news.

Too bad North Korea is still a communist sinkhole in the earth. :slob:

Well at least we now know food aid money is being well spent, sigh.

^^^wrabbit. That's really funny. Thanks for the laugh. :)

The glass actually looks kind of good.

from flickr

http://i42.tinypic.com/2ebbvgy.jpg
http://i44.tinypic.com/2qnp2iu.jpg

originally posted on ssc

Can they finally let that poor woman come down from the crane??

I remember reading blogs from people who had traveled to NK and toured the area around this building. I laughed when I read the part where the tour guide said that this building would be the tallest hotel when completed. I thought "How delusional can one be to think a building that has been on hold for 16 years can resume construction?'' I feel kind of stupid now.
Anyway, I hope it's safe and that the concrete hasn't been compromised.

New pics

http://i42.tinypic.com/2ebbvgy.jpg



http://i44.tinypic.com/2qnp2iu.jpg


from ZimasterX at SSC.

I still can't believe this is happening, has to be the most striking news about supertalls of the year, and we're actually liking the building

It's interesting to think that this building started construction 9 years before SkyscraperPage was founded. We've all set here looking at the unfinished project and have sort of mocked it. It's strange seeing it actually being worked on after all these years. This thing started construction in 1986! I was 7 years old when they started it.

It is a tale of two buildings...1) fun for a skyscraper enthusiast to watch continue to develop in its odd way 2) a devestating blow to most citizens who fight near the passing trains for spilled grains of rice every day.

But #1 is more fun. Let's go with that.

WOW! I can't believe I'm actually seeing cladding on this thing! I never thought we would see the day!

The concrete appears to have been retrofitted or fixed up, look at the closeups of the top of the tower today versus those of years before. Concrete looks alot more fresh than it did before, and it doesn't appear to have any weathering.

That's exactly what I was thinking. I don't think they would or could afford to let one of their most prominent structures fall apart, especially now.

It's especially noticeable around the edges of the balconies.

I've always like the building, and now that it is being completed it is looking great. The glass is going to make it look really good.

I'm kinda dissapointed. I always kinda liked the concrete brutalist bleakness of this thing. Or maybe I just liked hating it. Either way I am oddly sad it is changing.

Couldn't they have just slapped some dinky windows into it from WindowWizards and left the concrete bare? That would be a nice compromise.

I suspect that this building will have other uses beside hotel for foreign visitors.

Wow, even more glass. Great to see so much progress.

Wow! Amazing piece of architecture. This is truly a world landmark. To see this happening after such a long time is simply amazing!

Eigenwelt, I felt the same way too. I liked seeing the building the way it is. It's just weird thinking about it. Now that the building will resume construction there will be no other structure of the kind. I'm sad that this is happening.

Anyways, we always see it from the front. But are there any pics from the back?