Chef - For the most part, taking photos of people up close was not allowed. Other than the officially sanctioned locals guides or people on set tours, I don't have any photos of citizens from close up. I got a lot of stares walking around with my camera, but that happens a lot of places. I felt there was an underlying interest when people would see me but most were very afraid of having their photo taken. As an example, if I took a shot of someone that just so happened to not be wearing their shirt pin, and the authorities found the photo online, that person could face serious consequences. Because of this, people become very nervous when they see a camera.
Glowrock - Thanks, Nat Geo has an office here in NYC. Maybe I'll go say hello
huantedheadnc - It's hard to say. While it seems obvious to outsiders that the leadership is running the country and its citizens into the ground, there is so much propaganda instilled since birth, that the people probably do believe most of the absurdities. Like I mentioned, the faith in the Leaders is like a religion. People around the world have a strong belief that God is on their side and is there for them, no matter how bad their situation. It is no different in NK. Interestingly, the Kim brand has been developed into it's own religion with borrowed mythological and Christian themes. You have the trinity of the father, Kim Il Sung, the Son, Kim Jong Il, and the holy ghost, Kim Jong Un, though the legacy of Jong Un is still being written. The birth of Kim Jong Il has been canonized, being foretold by a swallow and occurring under a double rainbow with a new bright star in the sky. Is this really more unbelievable than other religious tales?
Mayday - The people squatting outside the buildings in the rain was the most bizarre sight for me. I don't have any shots, but the highways between towns were some of the strangest places I saw. They were absolutely enormous, at least the width of the largest interstates in the US. They were in terrible condition and had little to no traffic. Every now and then I'd see a military truck packed with soldiers or some poor person on their bike, riding down the giant road in the rain. After leaving Pyongyang, I don't think I saw anyone smile.
giallo - I had the same confliction before I went. I suppose the regime is getting some money from me but there are a lot of people that have better jobs because of the tourism. I think there are more positive direct effects of tourism that the locals experience than the negative indirect benefits the regime realizes. I could be wrong though and maybe just trying to justify my trip. Anyway, if you have a chance, I'd say go. The way I thought about it was this, either the country begins to liberalize and open to outside investment, becoming like any other place in the world, or it becomes even crazier and more secluded and bans foreigners from visiting. Either way, the sooner you go the better. If I have a chance, I'd like to go back and see some places further away from Pyongyang. Like I mentioned in the intro, NK really is the last country of its kind on Earth.
dewE - There is a lot of money coming in from China. They are using NK for their resources and fund the regime. The recent saber rattling by NK came to an abrupt halt after the Chinese threatened to pull their support. There are virtually no cameras or tourists. For comparison - I think 15,000 tourists, of those, 3-4,000 are Westerners, visit NK per year. SK gets 11.1 million foreign tourists per year.
ue - yeah, I think you are right. In fact I think China in the late 70s would have been nearly identical. Actually, I think NK was better off than China, development wise, in the late 70s. Things have changed since.
Thanks everyone for the comments and interest.