“Third row, third on the left.” The girl tore his ticket, then looked through Orlando Humphries as if he didn’t exist. Just as he liked. Orlando made his way down the hallowed aisle of the Wigmore Hall, a small but prestigious concert hall in London, England. The room was buzzing, the audience chattering excitedly, flapping extortionately-priced programmes, smiling and waving to other concert-going friends and acquaintances, whether real or imagined. A number of oriental-looking men and women, dressed in smart suits and exuberant gowns respectively, dotted the audience. The atmosphere was electric. So-Young Lee’s first performance outside North Korea was in the offing.
Tag: North Korea
Red Snow
(500 words) It is snowing at the checkpoint and John and Abbie are outside, gazing over the border to the Taebaek mountains, and freedom. “You come, please,” says the guard, his green tunic emblazoned with enigmatic decorations and his oversized green cap looking surprisingly uncomic. I look through the window to see Abbie throw a snowball at her dad. They are both laughing. “But we’re going soon, the bus’ll be here.” “You come.” North Korean guards aren’t people you ignore. He leads me into a small, austere office.