Like a scene from an epic film, thousands of workers swarm over the building sites of Samjiyon, a monumental construction project in the far reaches of North Korea ordered by leader Kim Jong Un. They clamber over wooden scaffolding and dangle from window frames, and whether they are carrying loads, sifting sand or mixing concrete, most of the work is carried out by hand. The plan involves nothing less than the rebuilding of the entire town of Samjiyon, the seat of a county that includes the supposed birthplace of Kim`s father and predecessor Kim Jong Il, and Mount Paektu, the spiritual birthplace of the Korean nation. It encompasses a museum of revolutionary activities, a winter sports training complex, processing plants for blueberries and potatoes -- two of the area`s most important crops -- a new railway line to Hyesan,
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