the beloved leader was here six times the venerable general was here four times the current leader has been here twice. who was where and how often you're constantly being informed of that in north korea i'm visiting a state vegetable plantation four hundred twenty three families live via new houses have been built to expand the agricultural collective. i'm hoping to be allowed to talk to the workers here i've been promised i'll be taken to one of the operations but i can only see a few people in a place that's meant to be home to four hundred twenty three families. on a small elevation feels like a surveillance platform i'm allowed to film the workers from a safe distance it's really not what i had imagined and once again it's typically north korean.

giving up isn't exactly one of my qualities and so i insist on being allowed to make it work as i don't just want to see what i'm supposed to be shown i'm here because i want to get to know the korean people a bit better to achieve that i need to meet them i finally convince my mind is and after they've made several telephone calls the group has quickly assembled the take me to the greenhouses as a side note there is nothing in north korea that's not meticulously organized i don't think that would improvise ation exists in north korea. by the way the red panel on the building says vegetables for the population of the

capital. regardless of all the propaganda and the i call it brainwashing the koreans always manage to surprise me positively it's always important to focus on the details. during these human encounters even though they're always organized and managed such meetings have an impact on the people here i think it's the only way to separate the people from the propaganda.

the. young young the capital with a population of more than three million is currently undergoing a construction boom new skyscrapers a shooting up all over the place shaping the city's skyline if you look closely you can see that south korean brand names have been covered by north korean banas like i say you just have to pay attention to the details i'm wondering when north korea suddenly got all the money for these gigantic construction projects almost eighty percent of pyongyang was destroyed in the korean war over the course of three years the united states dropped around thirty tons of napalm bombs on various towns and cities nevertheless north korea was economically stronger than south korea until

the seventy's thanks to the support of the soviet union after that north korea slid further and further into isolation. it's not possible every day to film a live concert for. workers on the streets of pyongyang in recent years i frequently try to capture such images but to no avail this footage dates back to twenty said team and i was allowed to film is every day seen in north korea or. a score for me i'm allowed to take

a taxi for the first time for that to happen my chaperon even had to call the foreign ministry because i'm not alone i have mind is to the left and right on me. and. then. i get here as a tourist of course i paid three times the price but that would happen in rome in new york to. promote it. i notice something new it may seem insignificant but this small picture of an aircraft belonging to a north korean airline is an advertisement and a surprise in a country in which public images only have a show that god like leader it's new and maybe a first gentle attempt to open up the country to a globalized world. the taxi driver who's missing his left thumb drives me to

a place you'd never guess is one of the most popular entertainment venues in pyongyang. the ice rink properly called feet people's ice rink in two thousand and seven it was even one of several venues for the women's world ice hockey championships the austrian team played here in pyongyang what's telling is that the games in north korea were the best attended and clearly not because there are so many fans here. from the middle class meet for ice skating ice cream in the sunday afternoon. down. unfortunately i didn't get a martini but there is table tennis and the enemy escapes me is allowed to play and

when on this occasion. i. let it slide. but a little. young young cityscape isn't just changing architecture the young people have discovered roller blading and can increasingly be seen out on the squares with tanks only roll or at least used to do they did. not even down i'm not certain whether it's early in the stores here but it's a start speaking of the river douchy the iran festival is always had a special fascination for me as it has i'm sure for anyone else who's seen it it's named after an old korean folk song and tries to present north korea's history in a roic manner using mass dances in gymnastics. more than one hundred thousand

people participate making it the world's largest dance event of this kind if i look beyond the propaganda madness the choreography is always hugely impressive. i. feel like. the and iran festival doesn't take place at regular intervals it's normally held in spring and autumn but sometimes it's not held at all anyone who participates i'm told gets a television or a fridge as

a reward the mass event is meant to commit the people to the political goals of the regime through the unmistakable imagery.