We Interviewed A Former Elite North Korean Spy | Stay Curious #36

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i wanted to listen to this in the background whilst doing work, then I realised I don't understand Korean.

He managed to talk for almost 40 minutes without saying anything unnecessary or boring. Every sentence was packed with information and the interviewer asked the right questions. Great Job from both.

This guy is clearly a man who has reached another level of wisdom. He's seen (and participated) in the worst aspects of his home country, abandoned hearth and home, rejected his old ways, started from nothing in a new country, and can speak honestly and frankly about the shortcomings and strengths of both countries (without making any false equivalence). Bravo!

I love how pragmatic he is. And how he just states facts without resorting to bias. Didn't even notice the time running. He would make a great analyst. Sure hope he gets to start his own channel soon.

"I don't think I spoke well". The entire time I was thinking that he was extremely good at story-telling and conveying his ideas.

I like how his tall friend just goes along with the “you go first” plan to get past the mines

I appreciate the guest's candor and he was so authentic about the good and bad in N. Korea. It's sad that employers discriminated him in S. Korea based off the fact that he was from N. Korea instead of looking at the perspective of a defector that was brave enough to escape for a better life. Great interview.

He strikes me as a man who cares more about truth and honesty than crafting a narrative to please or avoid offending certain group of people. Very refreshing, and I really hope he's able to make a positive impact throughout his life in South Korea or whereever he may end up in future.

I was really impressed with how easily he saw through South Korea's nationalism. He never idolizes anything, but rather objectively assesses his surroundings. He's really open-minded and I enjoyed hearing his story

He's eloquent and his story was very clearly communicated. What he said about not underestimating North Korea is probably the truth that people are not comfortable with. It's a mindset thing.

19:43 is one of those moments where you're like 'Wow. I bet so many others have tried to escape but WERE 10 minutes late, and those ten minutes cost them their lives.' Such a great interview, so interesting.

This is the best interview I’ve watched from North Korea defector so far... the details of how he get escaped and swim across the sea just so stunned... hope that he never gets anymore discrimination in SK, or if he gets, hope that he’s able to understand and ignores that and just having faith in whatever he does..

"I'm a simple man" Recognizes tidal cycles, alludes security, knows how.... tendons work in relation to an electric fence, or how they cramp in an eight mile swim.

He SWAM FOR 8 HOURS ?! To defect to South Korea?! This guy is EPIC!

This man's story is so amazing . Here he was living an elite life but could see the cruelty of the treatment of the poor and working class. I'm so happy he escaped and appreciate how well he told his story it could be a Netflix movie indeed.

I’m so happy I clicked on this video. I’ve never learn so much about anything in this short amount of time. It’s crazy to think that they swam for 4 hours. My hands start hurting after 40 minutes of being in water. He is honestly so inspiring and his friend. He really grabbed my attention and had me completely focused on every single word for 40 minutes. Definitely watching this again later. Favorite story so far.

This guy is something. You don't need to know the language to see how well-spoken he is. He cognizes the world and reflects each problem in its perspective. He is a dreamer. Even South Korea will become small for him. No wonder he defected.

Swimming 8 hours to freedom, now that is truely badass.

This is one of the best interviews I've seen in a long time. The man doing the interviewing asked some really great questions, and it was interesting to hear from a privileged class defector. The fact that he was able to get air time about his experience without being expected to recount his most traumatizing experiences was refreshing. I know it's important for those stories to get told too, but I worry about their PTSD getting worse after the stress of an interview like that. Getting re-traumatized is awful.