Everything about the structure is soooo North Korean. ItÂ’s shaped like a steep pyramid with architecture that invokes evil with every angle. It has no windows. And although itÂ’s the most imposing building in Pyongyang, itÂ’s empty. The North Korean government began construction in 1987 (at an estimated cost of $750 million, or 2% of their total GDP) only to stop work in 1992 because the building is structurally unsound. The building will never be completed, but the surrounding area is too densely populated and developed to knock the hotel down. For more than a decade, the water-stained concrete block has stood there as an ever-present reminder that when it comes to anything productive, North Korea falls totally flat.