JosephKim_NK

I mean, I didn't really know much about the outside world until I got to China. The biggest surprise was probably when I was watching TV in China, with the commercials or advertisements for medicine to help you lose weight - that was really something I never expected to see.

I think that was the biggest cultural shock. Because we were in a completely isolated country, I was not able to access information, even just going to China was culturally shocking. Coming to America, probably the biggest shocking moment was how everyone was living different lives. I guess one thing would be, for example, going to public parks with family, refreshments and barbecues, laying on the ground - I think that was something I never really imagined. I never had that in North Korea. We never had those kind of things.

I definitely miss some things. I do miss my friends, and also my hometown, my hometown has so many memories. It's a place that I learned how to swim in the river there, there were mountains we climbed for fun, and one thing I do really miss is the pear tree from my backyard. Even if I go back to North Korea, which is not going to happen, I won't be able to say "Oh, this is my home" because most of my family is no longer there. So seeing the pear tree I planted would give me some memories.

Well, it's hard to say. Yes and no. Because if you're talking about nowadays North Koreans, it's a little bit hard for me to say that a majority of North Koreans believe propaganda. But I do think that older generations definitely believe government propaganda, because in the 1970's, economically the North Koreans were better off than South Korea, but after the 1990s famine, things have proven that it is not the best country in the world as the government or state claim, because how can you accept the propaganda when your best friend dies of starvation? So I think nowadays more and more people are critical of government propaganda, but I can't say what all North Koreans do now.

Definitely. I mean, I can't say no, because I know that North Korean government is crazy enough to do anything that rational people would not do. At this point, in the US, one thing I could do for my people is to take my story public.

A lot. I mean, especially in the West media. So much political conflicts and issues. Just about the leader. But I think what we are really missing is that because of heavy subjects, we tend to forget that there are people like myself who have hopes and dreams for a better life. And people who want to be happy. But because of all those heavy subjects, I think we sometimes don't get to see the average North Korean, and you can't really connect or relate to them because of heavy subjects.

I hope so. And I have some hope, because as I mentioned earlier in the conversation, I think more and more North Koreans become more and more critical about the regime. And the activities, people tend to become more independent. Before they did what the government asked them to do. So I hope the North Koreans become more aware of the wrongness of the government. And also, another reason why I feel like I have some hope is North Korea government is not stupid enough that they will step down on black market, but the black market is really the engine that helps eye-open North Korean people. So at some point, the government will have to compromise with the North Korean people, or come up with something. There will be pressure from the ground level, from the people. So I don't know how they will respond to it. I hope more and more people will become aware of the situation, and find some leverage to pressure the government.