Please, before contacting me:

1. Since first posting the North Korea stories in 2002 I've gotten a lot of requests asking for help getting into North Korea, and then other various hard-to-reach places. Unfortunately I cannot help anyone with this - each situation, country, time and person is unique. The best I can offer are the tips below:

• Your best bet for North Korea is to visit the NK travel experts at http://www.koryogroup.com (NO relation to my website, for their own safety/deniability ...).
• To get into Iraq simply hop online and book a flight to Baghdad, or head to your nearest military or government recruiter (they'll be happy to see you ...)
• To get into Iran, first head to your favorite search site and check the listings for 'tours to Iran' or something similar. Then choose what looks good. Be forewarned, however, that for Americans the trip will be expensive and the visa process lengthy, allow at least 4-6 months. To help protect the agency I dealt with I do not release their information.

2. The book's introduction also offers info and background on the tour and how I was able to visit each country.