With North Korea, though, while you may never know what you will get, it will always be unexpected. The trip had been months in the making, the sum of much anxiety, excitement, effort and cost – and a cold Air Koryo chicken sandwich famous for its terribleness to cap it all. I ended up thoroughly disappointed when, contrary to my expectations, the foreign attendees were expected to give presentations to the locals. I declined, and not a single North Korean gave a talk at the conference, which provided no information on the state’s alleged activities. Still, looking back, considering the international scandal that would spring from that conference, it was a trip that I would never forget.
