In pictures: Unseen North Korea

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Introduction

A Western businessman who has had the rare chance to travel throughout North Korea has sent these images of daily life to the BBC News website. These are his observations from within the normally secretive state.

I could travel more or less where I pleased for my work, and even though we always had translators and minders, I was rarely prevented from taking photographs.

I am under no illusions about the nature of the state. What I saw was how North Koreans live and work.

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Ghost Highways

North Korea is a land of vast motorways, some with as many as 10 lanes. But they are always empty. Very few people own cars.

Pedestrians and cyclists zig-zag across them as they are so unused to traffic.

But even though these roads host few vehicles, they are beautifully tended. Every Sunday, the people who live close by can be seen dusting down the gutter and pruning the shrubs on the road. Some might be visible in the distance here.

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Inside a village

A woman stands in contemplation at the side of a village lane.

The most impressive aspect of such villages is that even in the remotest areas and despite their poverty, they are maintained with great care.

Scrap metal and twigs are intricately entwined to create the fencing that demarcates each home. Villagers often tend allotments together and share the produce.

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Home improvements

Men thatch the roof of their home as winter draws in. People are responsible for the upkeep of their own properties and in remote rural areas they can only rely on the natural resources that lie around.

In the background, there is a TV aerial jutting out of the neighbouring roof. Many homes in rural areas have such aerials and I can only imagine they are for receiving broadcasts from the local state-controlled channels.

The yards are tidy. Even the most humble dwellings are clean and well-presented.

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Digging for victory

On a frosty day, peasants cluster on a remote country lane to dig at the ice caking roads and streams so they can access the mud underneath.

Mud is valuable as a fertiliser. Throughout the seasons, piles of mud and even human manure will be applied onto fields in order to make the crops grow better.

Red flags and banners bearing government propaganda slogans dot these fields. Their motto is: 'Dig for victory'. In this case they seem to be digging for sheer survival.

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Winter games

Despite the deprivation, children will always find creative ways to play. As they are too poor to afford ice skates, these boys have improvised with knife blades stuck onto blocks of wood. They propel themselves along with sticks.

The ice on this lake is about 25cm deep. As people walk across it you hear pistol shots ringing out as hairline cracks develop. But it is perfectly safe and in the winter people cycle across the lake to get to the other side.

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Goods for sale

This department store in the centre of Pyongyang has the latest goods for sale.

The food counters sell vacuum-packed foods. There are also traditional medicines and imported pharmaceuticals. Electronic devices are also on sale, including digital cameras and the occasional MP3 player.

Just who can afford these items on a Korean salary is not clear. Perhaps some are just there for show.

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Enemy presence

The USS Pueblo is an incongruous presence, moored as it is in the centre of Pyongyang. It's a US spyship that was captured in 1968 for spying in North Korean waters.

The Koreans are very proud to display this as a symbol of their resistance to US "aggression", and to demonstrate to their people the apparently hostile attitude of the USA.

The author and photographer prefers to remain anonymous.