Changsuwon Residential Palace (Pyongyang)

 palace, presidential residence, 20th century construction

Luxury house built in honor of then-Prince, King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia (to the left of SPA Head Kim Yong Nam in this 2004 photograph, and at the right of KIS in this 1970s era photo) who was marginalized then exiled by Pol Pot and his merry band, the Khmer Rouge. DPRK President, General Kim Il-Sung, had this palace constructed by a KPA construction crew in 1974 for Prince Sihanouk. During Prince Sihanouk's exile from Cambodia he lived one-third of the year at this palace in the DPRK, and the other two-thirds of the year at a home of similar appointment in Beijing. With a Korean gabled roof, this 40 room house is bedecked in crystal chandeliers and heavy wood panels and includes a courtyard, a ballroom, a formal dining room, executive offices for the Prince's use, ornate guest rooms, a Buddhist temple and a gymnasium. It overlooks Changsuwon Lake ("Lake of the Garden of Longevity"), an artificial lake surrounded by the wooded foothills of Mount Taesong.