A North Korean train chugged into the South yesterday for the first time in decades with a great paint job, lousy brakes and a lot of portraits of Pyongyang’s leaders. The two Koreas sent trains across the border for the first time since their 1950-1953 war, and the arrival of the olive-green locomotive and five passenger carriages from the impoverished North drew numerous onlookers – especially among workers of the South’s railway.

Inside, the train was pristine, with portraits of the North’s “Great Leader” Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il hanging between cars. The 150 passengers aboard had munched on fresh fruit for their 25 km (15 mile) trip across the border.

The exterior of the train was spotless and displayed signs of great care given ahead of the historic train run, the mechanics said.

“This is one heck of a paint job,” said Nam Ki-ho, 42, as he ran his hand along the smooth body of one of the passenger cars pulled by a locomotive with a banner noting the North’s eternal President Kim Il-sung had personally boarded the train in 1968.