BEIJING, China (CNN) -- North Korea, formally called the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is also known as the Hermit Kingdom for a good reason. Chinese border guards patrol in Jilin province across from the North Korean border on March 21, 2009. For decades, it has been shrouded by a veil of secrecy that has prevented us from better understanding this important nation. As journalists we seek out the realities of life there, beyond the myths and hype, but that is difficult because the DPRK is generally inaccessible to journalists. The gap between reality and illusion remains profound. Journalists, such as the two Americans being detained in North Korea, do travel to the border between China and North Korea to get a sense of what life is like in the isolated nation of 22 million people. The circumstances surrounding the journalists' arrest are still unclear.
@highlight
Secretive and closed off for decades, North Korea is known as the Hermit Kingdom
@highlight
By land, China and North Korea are linked by 7 road crossings and 4 railway points
@highlight
In recent years, N. Korean refugees have fled into China seeking food, jobs, freedom
@highlight
Tentative reforms have been aborted and North Korea remains isolated and poor
Over the years, I have visited three towns on the @placeholder side of the border.