The North-Korea situation

[Atheon]

You are one of the best travelers I've seen. Not surprising that it was bad. 

Do you have any pics? How are people? How are they to tourists? Talked to anyone?

Yes, I have pics!

Most people (in privileged Pyongyang, at least) are normal people just trying to live their lives like the rest of us. Going to work, raising families, etc. Out in the countryside, it's harsher... farmers have minimal equipment to farm with, and ox-drawn carts are a common sight. But they're caught in a crazy system in which they have to make sure they don't express aloud any ideas that are disloyal to the regime. A whole culture has developed as a way to cope with the system. I'd equate it to people living in a very strict Islamic state, with believers truly faithful to Islam and nonbelievers going through the motions.

One thing that they can't hide is the look of malnutrition in many of the people. Gaunt people with leathery faces are common. In general you can tell how privileged a person is in their highly hierarchical society by how healthy they look.

The local North Korean tour company, KITS, is very good to tourists, and their itineraries are well planned and guides very friendly, informative and surprisingly forthcoming (though they will not express any heretical thoughts either, of course). The company that arranged the tours, Koryo Tours in Beijing, is of top-notch professionalism.

It's hard to speak to locals in NK... you don't get much contact with them. And most don't speak English anyway. The closest you get to them physically is on their subway (which when I went was quite crowded). The only North Korean I actually communicated with, besides the employees of KITS, was one of the bartenders at the hotel, but only because she spoke Mandarin, which I also speak.

[Nam]

-Nam

[Atheon]

Sorry, I meant KITC, not KITS.