in the north, kijong-dong features a number of brightly painted, poured-concrete multi-story buildings and apartments with electric lighting. these features represented an unheard of level of luxury for rural koreans, north or south, in the 1950s. the town was oriented so that the bright blue roofs and white sides of the buildings would be the most distinguishing features when viewed from the border. however scrutiny with modern telescopic lenses reveals that the buildings are mere concrete shells lacking window glass or even interior rooms, with the building lights turned on and off at set times and the empty sidewalks swept by a skeleton crew of caretakers in an effort to preserve the illusion of activity.