Dusk settles over Pyongyang, North Korea, as the 105-story Ryugyong Hotel towers over residential apartments. Under construction for nearly 30 years, it has become a major Pyongyang landmark, but has never been used as a hotel as it was intended; Wong Maye-E [1500 x 951]

Vice News did a documentary about Dennis Rodman's visit to North Korea. The reporter stayed at this building.

The Vice crew was near the top of the building along with Rodman and the Harlem Globetrotters, but only the top 3 floors had power and plumbing. They ate at a restaurant in the same building (they weren't allowed to leave the hotel) but there was literally no one else in the restaurant. There were also cameras everywhere.

Then they got taken to some technology center building and met some scientists. This was the most bizzare scene. It was about 100 people sitting at desks, arranged like an elementary school, with monitors that had the Google homepage. No one was typing anything. The reporter asked one of the "scientists" what he was doing. The man answered, "I am doing my research on quantum physics" and nervously looked away back at the Google home page.

They were taken to the sports arena and the stadium was completely packed with thousands of people. But it was also dead silent. All these thousands of people and you could hear a pin drop. Kim Jung Un finally shows up and the place erupts in applause that goes on for several long minutes. The Globetrotters put on a show for the Dear Leader and a spirited game between Korean ballers and the Trotters happened, with the score constantly being neck-and-neck (the whole game was probably scripted). Rodman then sits directly next to Kim Jung Un but what they talked about couldn't be heard.

The camera crew and Vice and the rest of the Globetrotters are taken to a state dinner and are seated with Kim Jung Un. The last bit and the most interesting part happens when they're all on the bus going back to the airport, when the bus stops because the Globetrotters spotted some children playing basketball.

They all get out and play basketball with the children.

/r/NorthKoreaPics Thread Link - cdn.theatlantic.com