The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay “A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine.  Fabulous!” Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker Aug 2013 BACK ISSUE by Olaf Schuelke The following images show some unique glimpses of daily life in the last Stalinist regime of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The photos were taken during a tour last year which took me to Pyongyang, Kaesong, Panmunjom, Wonsan and Nampho. I spent a total of nine days in North Korea and couldn't move around freely. We were constantly chaperoned by minders and photography was very restricted.  Nevertheless I managed to get a few shots that show the naked face of the country. Some of the images might seem mundane, but capturing such ordinary scenes as: people at a subway station, commuters riding on a truck or a street scene in rural North Korea all of a sudden become extra-ordinary because these are sights that would normally remain unseen by Westerners. The majority of images were taken in Pyongyang which does not represent North Korea. The people of Pyongyang live a much better life and are relatively privileged when compared to people living in other parts of North Korea. The capital city has a functioning infrastructure with subways, trams and buses. Roads and buildings are generally in better condition and the city even has a few funfairs which attract many locals. Pyongyang also has the country`s best educational institutions. Outside of Pyongyang the life is much harsher. People often struggle to get enough food and when North Koreans are seen fishing they do it so as to enhance their poor protein diet. The North Korean people all seem to be friendly and polite but they are reluctant in coming forwards especially in front of tourists and strangers. North Korea still remains a mysterious and closed off country, despite the gradual opening of its borders to tourists. A North Korean soldier watches a video tape of an opera inside a room of the Grand People's Study Hall in Pyongyang, August 8, 2012. The Study Hall offers a limited selection of carefully chosen music videos and audio cassettes and CDs and is apparently open to the public. It also offers courses and seminars such as computer classes. North Korean soldiers walk in front of the Rungrado May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, August 8, 2012. Inside the famous Arirang Mass Games are held during the summer months. The games are a large-scale show during which thousands of dancers and performers depict the life, hardship and struggle of the North Korean people before they freed themselves from tyranny. A large group of Taekwondo fighters carry the North Korean National Flag as a sign of pride, honor and victory at a sports performance during the Arirang Mass Games in Pyongyang, August 8, 2012. The Mass Games are a huge spectacle with thousands of participants. During the Mass Games sports, dance and gymnastic performances are presented. The event takes place inside the huge Rungrado May Day Stadium. Three elderly North Korean men sit inside a metro train in Pyongyang, August 9, 2012. The subway carriages were bought from Germany and used to run on the tracks in Berlin. They were sold to North Korea in 1998. Inside each carriage hang small pictures of the deceased leaders, neatly framed behind glass. North Korean commuters on the station platform of the Pyongyang Metro, August 9, 2012. A young North Korean girl stands on the stage of the School Children’s Palace Mangyongdae in Pyongyang during the opening ceremony, August 9, 2012. Behind her a big red curtain hides the stage. The School Children’s Palace is the biggest among the countless institutions where kids participate in numerous activities and classes. They take part in dance and singing classes or learn how to play a musical instrument. North Koreans going about their daily business on a street near Wonsan, August 12, 2012. The standard of living in rural parts of North Korea is low and many people still encounter poverty. The residents of Pyongyang live a fairly privileged life as opposed to the majority of people outside of the capital. Nonresidents of Pyongyang are not permitted to travel to the capital city without a valid document which they have to obtain prior to each visit. Outside the capital, a lot of houses are badly maintained. Roads need to be repaired and traffic is scarce. People go about their busy lives, struggling most of the time. A man stands and watches a group of local men fishing on a grey and rainy morning in Wonsan, August 12, 2012. The image might be a little misleading as the men seen in the picture don't fish for leisure but to enhance their poor diet with some rich protein derived from the fish. A lot of people in North Korea still lack regular and proper nutrition and many suffer from hunger. A North Korean Buddhist Monk standing inside his monastery near Pyongyang, August 12, 2012. The temple compound is about half an hour’s drive from Pyongyang. He is one of an estimated 200 Buddhist monks in North Korea. The majority of the North Korean people are without any confession although the traditional religions of the country are Buddhism and Confucianism. A North Korean woman walks through a lush green field of crops in rural North Korea, August 15, 2012. The image might suggest that the isolated country is far from humanitarian crises but despite the crops there are still many people suffering from malnutrition and starvation. Most of the harvested crops go to the elite and to the North Korean military.