mr_go

Someone smuggled a video camera into the North Korean capital city and took some surreptitious footage...

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/03/17/...-lived/?hpt=C2

Interesting, if a bit surreal.

ekscrunchy

There is also a first-hand chapter on this city in Tony Wheeler's new book, Bad Lands:


http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Planet-.../dp/1742201040

This is the best book I've read about the country and I recommend very highly:

http://www.amazon.com/Nothing-Envy-O...0532537&sr=1-1

Just read most of this one, which not quite up to date, having been written in 2006, but still worthwhile for those interested in achieving an understanding of the country, and the Kims; includes many interviews with defectors. The author has made at least three trips to DPRK.

http://www.amazon.com/Under-Loving-C.../dp/0312322216

rkkwan

Too bad the guy ruined it with the editing in of his haircut.

Kathie

eks, I'm half-way through Tony Wheeler's book and it is excellent.

nagiffag

I realize this is thread is a few months old, but wanted to comment. Interesting video, but I find the story a overly dramatic considering our experience as Americans visiting North Korea a few years ago.

Everyone took video and photos. I never heard the guides (ok, minders) tell anyone not to do any particular thing. We were told if we wanted to go somewhere that wasn't on the tour to ask one of the guides to come with us. It wasn't a big deal. Just follow the rules. When we left they didn't check anybody's cameras, even though we were told that they might when we had arrived. As a point of interest they did take everyone's phones when we arrived and returned them to us upon departure.

Looks to me that the filmmaker pretty much went to the same places that everyone is taken to. His haircut had to have been in a shop that foreigners were allowed to go to because foreigners aren't allowed to use local currency. It isn't like they'd take a chance of taking foreigners somewhere they wanted to keep secret. There's probably tons of that type of footage around. For that reason I think the story is overly dramatic.

mr_go

Very interesting. Do you have any NK photos of your own you can link to, nagiffag?

nagiffag

Sorry for the very late reply. I don't really check the forum now that we've moved back to the US.

I'll set up a public site and post some photos. Hopefully it won't take me a month to get that done!