[brianshaler]

I photo bombed a wedding photo in that same spot. Apparently most Pyongyang weddings include a family photo there, several a day. They were not smiling in their photos, and I don't think the bride smiled at all (the dress and makeup didn't look entirely comfortable). However, there was plenty of smiling in between photos, mostly caused by the awkwardness of our inability to communicate.

That reminds me, I read somewhere that people in North Korea tend to smile when uncomfortable.

In an amusement park, at a bowling alley, at dancing events, in the park, and playing in streams, it seemed like people smiled about as much as you would expect them to anywhere else. I encountered some who wouldn't stop smiling.

What always tends to happen with photos and conversations of certain things (e.g. DPRK) people tend to see what they want to see and manifest their own narrative. Tend to.