Did you know that taking photos of North Korea is illegal? You aren't allowed to take photographs of anything other than designated public tourist spots. Not surprisingly, life in North Korea is a mystery to us.
However, some people have dared to take photos of the country, revealing what life in North Korea is really like. Get ready to see a whole new side of the country!
If you are a North Korean who is allowed to travel throughout your country, then you are more than likely going to be travelling on a bus from 1965 like this one, and more than likely, with no air conditioning or heat.
But if you’re an average North Korean then even this is looked upon with a lot of envy because at least those people get to leave their village!
This is a grocery store for the elite in the rich part of Pyongyang. As the rest of the country starves, these people can buy anything from Dove shampoo, Hennessey, Hugo Boss cologne, Victoria’s Secret perfume, and as many fruits and vegetables as they want.
They can even buy soda! The average North Korean probably has no idea that soda exists, let alone knows how their elite are living.
For some reason, the North Koreans really really like to go bowling as these two girls are in this picture. There are several regulation sized bowling alleys in Pyongyang, undoubtedly only used by the regime’s elite.
This is just another example of how when it comes to fun, North Korea is still stuck in somewhere in the mid 1990’s.
The military in North Korea is ever present, even in the smallest village and town. They are used to keep a close eye on the population and ensure that no one even steps one foot out of line.
With the world’s biggest military, and with most of that military geared towards defending against a US invasion, soldiers simply need something to do! Here, this soldier is acting as a crossing guard for a train which probably comes only once a week.
The North Korean subway system is perhaps one of the strangest in the world. It has giant murals of the “great leaders” along with beautiful lights, marble floors, and gold chandeliers. The subway cars are decked out to the max as well!
However, there is no subway map and no tourist has ever seen more than two stations. The subway also doubles as a bomb shelter which can hold tens of thousands of people.
North Korea doesn’t allow for private enterprise, so there is a zero percent chance that you would be able to get an Uber or Lyft out there. All of the cabs are state owned, and they seem to be everywhere (as long as you are on a tour of course).
The only ones who can afford them are the elite, who are known for siphoning off any and all money to their wallets, thus keeping their people in poverty. True communism in action!
Rural North Korea is severely lacking in infrastructure, with most of the back country looking like it did back in 1945. This is definitely evidenced by this dirt path which constitutes a rural train station!
But it’s not like any of those villagers are actually able to get on or use the train, as North Koreans need special permission from the government to leave their villages. Maybe the infrastructure money was spent on missiles instead?
North Korea is a poor communist dictatorship where only the most wealthy can afford cars. Since the country hasn’t really progressed since the early 20th century, the people still don’t really have cars and a culture of travel has never really taken off.
Therefore, it’s not at all uncommon to see people walking in the streets as they know that there is a close to 0 percent chance that a car will come!
While the children in the previous picture are all from Pyongyang and from moderately well off families, these children in the countryside aren’t so lucky.
They must carry water jugs to help their family in their hovel. The lack of infrastructure in the countryside is also clear, as they are forced to walk along a dirt path, as there isn’t a paved road.
These super modern looking buildings are some of the pride and joy of North Korea, and according to many sources, is something that tour guides love to show off to tourists. These buildings appear to hold offices for law firms, engineering companies, accounting firms, and many others.
However, just like in many cases in North Korea, these buildings are shams and are just for show. Most of them are empty, and the majority aren’t even hooked up to the electric grid!
This bridge is big, beautiful, and all lit it. It must be a striking symbol of North Korean power and strength right? Well, it turns out that it is not. This is China’s $350 million Friendship Bridge which connects the Chinese city of Dandong with the North Korean town of Ponbu-Dong.
However, the North Korean side has yet to be completed. The bridge ends in a dirt road on the North Korean side and there isn’t even a customs office!
It is common in North Korea for women and even sometimes men to be walking around holding hands, like in this picture. This is because North Korea is very divided amongst gender lines with women and men separated into traditional gender roles.
Women form especially close bonds with each other, and work alongside only each other for most of the day.
If you want to go to North Korea, you have to go on a tour organized by the state. There are few private tours with most people being shuttled from site to site on a giant tour bus. If you want to speak to an average person, they need to be vetted by the state so that only the state’s message gets out.
Just don’t get lost, or else both you and your tour guide will be bunkmates in a concentration camp!
Due to constant fuel shortages, North Korea very rarely has any electricity, with only Pyongyang having electricity for more than a few hours a day. In fact when looking at a satellite image of North Korea at night, all you can see is inky blackness.
Here is a rare sight of apartment buildings in Pyongyang all lit up! But when the lights turn off, it really is lights out for the city.
North Korea has established a reputation as a “hermit kingdom,” due in large part to the sheltered lifestyle they live away from the rest of the world. During the Joseon dynasty, the country went as far as to close themselves off from foreign contact or communication.
State-controlled media has been feeding the country their news and information since the late 1950’s.
Although it is extremely difficult to obtain a tourist visa to the Hermit Kingdom, there is a fledgling tourism industry. More and more Japanese, Chinese, European, and even Americans are going to tour the country to try and see what is underneath the veil of secrecy.
You can tell who is and who isn’t a North Korean actor when touring the country because the actors will mill around and answer questions from minders, whereas the average citizen will stare at you in awe.
In North Korea, women serve in the military as part of the regime’s promotion of gender equality, with compulsory service lasting around seven years. Despite propaganda depicting female soldiers as patriotic symbols, they often face harsh conditions, including poor living quarters, malnutrition, and limited access to combat roles.
While women are involved in various roles within the military, their post-service life can be challenging, as military experience doesn't always lead to civilian career opportunities or social advancement.
Since the 1950s, the majority of North Koreans have received their food through a government-controlled food distribution program so we might not think of it as a country with regular grocery stores. It is also known for having food shortages when trade breaks down or crops fail.
However, North Korean grocery stores these days are home to more and more locally-produced goods, including food, cosmetics, and other essentials.
In North Korea, there is a widespread culture of labor under challenging conditions, with many citizens required to work in various sectors such as farming, construction, and even being sent abroad to earn foreign currency. Participation is mandatory, and declining work can result in consequences like the loss of food rations.
These expectations extend to children, who are often involved in unpaid tasks. Though the work environment can be difficult, it is part of the structured system many North Koreans face in their daily lives.
Due to severe fuel shortages and very few private vehicles, North Korea's highways are eerily empty. The desolate pothole-filled roads illustrate the infrastructure challenges faced outside the capital city, Pyongyang.
Strict government control over travel further contributes to the lack of traffic, creating an unsettling and silent landscape that contrasts sharply with the congested streets of major cities around the world.
Military bands serve as symbols of national pride and political propaganda in North Korea. These bands are often featured at major state events, military parades, and celebrations, where they perform stirring patriotic songs and martial music. Their presence is a reflection of the regime's emphasis on military power and loyalty to the state.
North Korean military bands are highly disciplined and meticulously trained, with performances designed to inspire unity, strength, and devotion to the country’s leadership. Their music reinforces the ideals of patriotism and the importance of the military in the country’s culture.
As opposed to many Western countries where the main religion is Christianity, or even Far Eastern nations who practice Buddhism, Shintoism, and Hinduism, the main religion in North Korea is praying to their leaders! The leader of their country is a man named Kim Il Sung, and is “105 years old.”
The Kims have built a cult of personality around their family, which is the reason that these people all bowing to these statues – they are revered as gods!
Floating restaurants and department stores in Pyongyang are keen on serving local hot dogs and milkshakes. In fact, once a year, an annual hot dog eating contest is held during the Magnificent Bounty Harvest Festival.
The only catch is that participants don’t actually eat the hot dogs to win a prize; they fight in hand to hand combat and a hot dog, accompanied by a cold Pepsi, is the actual prize in itself.
This is what’s known as a bustling North Korean supermarket. This picture was secretly taken during a recent trip to the country by French photographer Eric Lafforgue.
Due to horrible farming techniques, most of North Korea is starving and what little food there is usually gets rationed out. North Korean families have a selection of Turnips, leeks, apples, and potatoes on offer to eat. I guess anything is acceptable if you’re starving…
Pc’s are still a primary tool in the average 9-5, North Korean office job. A woman’s involvement in the workforce is essential to the economy of North Korea but they still receive substantially lower wages than their male counterparts.
Mothers who have 3 or more children aren’t required to work more than 6 hours a day; mothers with 2 children or less (or single women) are required to work the full, 8 hour day.
According to the North Korean government the entirety of the Korean peninsula is part of North Korea. In fact, North Korea doesn’t even call itself “North Korea,” preferring the moniker “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
This is interesting, as there is no democracy and no republic in the country at all! This pariah state only has 4 friends in the world: China, Sudan, Syria, and Iran.
North Korean farming techniques are closer to 1700’s Europe in terms of mechanization and efficiency. This is one of the reasons that many of the Hermit Kingdom’s subjects are starving, as there simply just isn’t enough food in the country to sustain everyone.
The government has therefore given out cookbooks on the best kinds of grasses and shrubs to eat, how to make treebark soup, and how best to trap and skin squirrels!
The North Korean military is the largest military in the world in terms of manpower. Everyone in the country is required to join the military for a period of approximately five years.
If you can get the right strings pulled, you can become an officer, ensuring that you and your family receive a living wage salary, and being able to afford to shop at an actual grocery store! Too bad they will NEVER be able to afford a car though.
As photographer Eric Lafforgue was traveling by train through the North Korean countryside, he happened upon a quite interesting scene, and quickly snapped a photo of the weird instance before him.
While this picture may appear to just show a couple of people riding in the back of a pickup truck (not too uncommon an occurrence if you’re from rural America), upon closer inspection you can see that they are actually soldiers from the “mighty” North Korean military! If that’s what passes as troop transport then the world really has nothing to worry about.
The leaders of North Korea make sure to portray their country as a communist dictatorship paradise, with full employment, big buildings, and most importantly, happy smiling people.
However photographer Eric Lafforgue used a secret camera to sneakily capture this candid show of average North Koreans on their way to work. These people look miserable, and you can almost feel their bitterness through the photo.
These women are cleaning the streets of Pyongyang. With severe fuel shortage and no fear of cars on the road, why would any regime choose NOT to have old women stooped over for hours on end in order to sweep off streets?
And making sure that they do it well and aren’t complaining about their honorable work, a military officer stands erect, always watching. Who knows, these women just might start a revolution!
During the months of July and August, rain pours down hard on the fortress nation. In 2007, floods left hundreds of people homeless and as a result reported fatalities and missing persons reached staggering heights.
Seasonal flooding in North Korea is most likely a direct effect of deforestation throughout the countryside.
This is a picture of the center of Pyongyang during a national holiday. While many countries have barbeques and free flowing fun at their national holiday parties, North Korean holidays are different.
The citizens line up and go from memorial to memorial to pray and pay their respects to the party. Looks like a whole lot of… fun?
While doing this in the United States may get you a ticket, relieving yourself in public is an offense punishable by being sent to a concentration camp! North Korean ground and infrastructure is considered “holy,” and therefore relieving yourself on it is considered to be an act of protest and an act of subverting the ruling regime.
Hopefully there are enough bathrooms to make sure that fewer people do something like this!
Building up the hermit kingdom requires a lot of hard work, especially when there isn’t much in the way of modern technology to help build skyscrapers in a safe and efficient manner.
Despite these guys’ valiant and incredible efforts (keeping in mind that they’ve probably only been eating grass soup for the past week), it’s a marvel that any construction even happens!
These railway workers are taking a smoke break after working on the railroad tracks all the live long day. According to the photographer, the cargo cars are full of human excrement to be shipped out to the countryside.
The North Korean government collects the excrement to be used as fertilizer due to the huge food shortage in the country. Definitely gives you confidence in the food the photographer was eating on his trip!
The North Korean government loves to point out that it has absolutely no unemployment and that everyone has a great, meaningful job! But a “meaningful job” in North Korea may include doing what these girls do which is sweeping dust off the street with brooms like they used to make in the 1500’s.
This is a government known for lying about nearly everything, so maybe we shouldn’t take that unemployment figure to heart…
National Day in North Korea is a time for genuine celebration, regardless of the outside world and daily lifestyle restrictions. On this holiday, families gather together and have picnics where they indulge in Soju (rice wine).
Inside the patriotic nation, the holiday is called Day of the Sun and all private, government, and public organizations are given the day off.
China is on one side of this river while North Korea is on the other side, and it’s easy to guess which is which. In case you’re wondering, the side with the big, modern buildings is not North Korea.
This Chinese city is called Tumen, and North Korean citizens literally run to it when the river (also called Tumen) freezes over in the winter. However, North Korean troops are also known for crossing the river in order to kidnap people.
Any type of private enterprise is strictly prohibited in North Korea, but the authorities turn blind eyes to small little stall sellers, such as this woman in a small town in the countryside.
She probably has some sort of police protection, as she is probably one of the only places the local soldiers can buy non-military issued goods – such as cigarettes and home baked goods – for miles.
This contraption which looks like it was put together by 12 year olds using sticks and twine at summer camp is how building workers move up and down Pyongyang’s skyscrapers.
They use these to paint, build, and clean windows. There are no figures on how often these ropes snap, sending a North Korean worker plunging to the ground.
This unique picture shows children playing and enjoying one of the few sports or athletic activities in North Korea. For some reason, the authorities, which ban almost everything Western, are totally enthusiastic about children roller blading!
While their economy, infrastructure, and agricultural sectors may all be remnants of the late 1800s, at least their sports are solidly in 1995! However, the children in the countryside can’t afford roller blades, so these lucky kids are probably children of the elite.
This government sanctioned photo of the main train station in the North Korean capital Pyongyang shows a train station busy and overflowing with passengers. However, only after understanding the background of the picture does this scene’s ridiculousness come out.
The trains had stopped running for the day when this photo was taken, but for some reason no one had bothered to inform the actors pretending to be train passengers!
This couple has come together to what is perhaps the “holiest” place in North Korea – the main square in Pyongyang where the statues larger than life bronze of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are found.
Due to the lack of excitement in the picture it’s impossible to tell if this is a photo of a couple who are just actors pretending to get married, or a couple who are weak from hunger after a week of only eating grass soup.
This photo was taken from a tall building in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang and shows the stark difference between rich and poor in the city. As mentioned before, due to the taller buildings’ shoddy construction and craftsmanship, many people choose instead to live in dirt floor huts.
If a hut collapses, you simply rebuild, whereas if a concrete building collapses, then you most likely aren’t making it out.
It is illegal to take photographs of the North Korean military unless it is during an officially sanctioned event from an officially sanctioned photographer. Otherwise taking a picture of a soldier who isn’t standing at his finest and at attention could result in arrest.
The photographer who captured this human moment of two soldiers smoking a cigarette could have gotten him deported or have landed him in jail.
While the previous page showed a grocery store intended for average North Koreans in the capital of Pyongyang, most rural villages have no place to go buy food, and the people live off of subsistence farming.
However, due to poor soil management along with a several year long drought, many people are starving, being forced to eat grass to survive. In fact, the situation has gotten so bad that the government has even put out a grass cookbook!
The Pyongyang Marathon takes place annually every April, and takes about 4 hours to complete for runners attempting to complete the entire distance. 10 kilometers takes up to 23 hours to complete and the half marathon takes about 2.5 hours.
During this sports event, North Koreans are treated to a tour of the countryside at the final leg of the race after running through the country’s most iconic buildings and structures.
Being situated on a peninsula, North Korea has miles and miles of coastline and beaches. However, no one is allowed to use them. As can be seen in this secretly snapped photograph, the entirety of the coastline is cut off from the rest of the country by a high voltage electric fence!
Fences only have two purpose – to keep things in or to keep things out. More than likely, the reason for this fence is the former.
One could be mistaken for thinking that this picture was taken in Soviet era Russia, but this is actually a view of the North Korean capital Pyongyang. As with most things in the Hermit Kingdom, while these buildings appear to be strong and structurally sounds, they are more like a house of cards which may collapse at any moment!
In fact, it’s so dangerous to live in these buildings, most people just live in dirt floor huts!
This train station in North Korea is nearly empty, but not because it isn’t rush hour – North Koreans simply aren’t allowed to travel around their own country. This photo could have landed photographer Eric Lafforgue in jail, or worse.
North Korean propaganda attempts to portray the country as having a modern, robust economy. Too bad they don’t realize that a strong economy means that people need the ability to travel!
Taking a page out of George Orwell’s book 1984, the North Korean government and military monitor everyone and everything at all times. There are hidden cameras and microphones everywhere in the country in order to ensure that you are doing what the regime tells you.
The countryside is full of military watchtowers as well – not to defend against enemies, rather to ensure that North Korean citizens are behaving!
These people are waiting incredibly patiently to get on their busses back home in the North Korean capital Pyongyang. Imagine after a long day at work that you are forced to wait in such a line just to get home!
There is no word as to whether or not this is the case for the commuters when they are going to work however.
In order to give the portrayal of having a huge and happy population, the North Korean government will force entire villages to up and move to other, empty villages from time to time. They do this in order to make it seem to foreign satellites that the cities and towns in the country are populated, happy, and full of life.
But, as everyone knows, sometimes a change of scenery isn’t all that bad!
In an attempt to grow more food for their starving population, farmers are forced to try and grow food where food can’t be grown, including this field full of boulders. Had the government been able to provide him with farming equipment more modern than what the American settlers used in the mid 1700’s, then MAYBE there wouldn’t be much of a food shortage.
Sadly, this man must use a hand plow to plow this field of rocks and hope that something will grow.
