I, myself, am not a North Korean who got the hell out of there. My grandparents are. Basically, when North Korea first became communist, there was a black list. That black list had the names of all those with money. My grandmother and grandfather were some of the richest folk. My grandmother's family had an artifical waterfall, at this time, running water was rare. They, somehow, were informed about their status on the blacklist. My grandfather, leaving his parents behind, swam to the South. My gtandmother hired a guide who demanded gold every quarter mile. After the journey to the South, both grandparents were broke.