When I went to DPRK, the entire visit was completely orchestrated - but I still got to see people go about their daily lives (even tho I had no idea who they we

When I went to DPRK, the entire visit was completely orchestrated - but I still got to see people go about their daily lives (even tho I had no idea who they were and had no way of interacting with them). I saw peasants carrying bundles of sticks along empty roads and witnessed how impoverished they really are. I got to kick a ball around with some kids and see locals enjoying a sunny Sunday in the park. I also looked out my hotel window at night and saw a city in darkness. When visiting Turkmenistan, I was completely unsupervised - and it was eye-opening and completely bizarre. I actually interacted with the locals and got to hear their stories - same in China and Uzbekistan.