{"id":87532,"date":"2016-07-22T16:41:01","date_gmt":"2016-07-22T15:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/amateurphotographer.co.uk\/?p=87532"},"modified":"2016-07-14T16:43:10","modified_gmt":"2016-07-14T15:43:10","slug":"the-hermit-kingdom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/technique\/interviews\/the-hermit-kingdom\/","title":{"rendered":"Michal Huniewicz on his photographic trip through North Korea"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87543&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87543\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/VXSgifJ.jpg\" alt=\"Patiently waiting for the train\u00a0to pass\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/VXSgifJ.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/VXSgifJ.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/VXSgifJ.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">Patiently waiting for the train\u00a0to pass<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<p>There\u2019s something about North Korea that fascinates us. Bookshelves strain under the weight of volumes written by political analysts, curious journalists and the few who have escaped the clutches of the country\u2019s grip. We\u2019ve also been fortunate to see a great number of images taken by some intrepid photojournalists such as Julia Leeb and Eric Lafforgue; the latter was recently banned from ever setting foot in the country again. But for one photographer, Michal Huniewicz, scenes from North Korea resonated with his\u00a0upbringing.<\/p>\n<p>Although Michal has lived in London for the past five years, he was born and raised in Dobrocin in Poland. He explains: \u2018North Korea may seem like a distant nightmare to us in Europe, but not everywhere. Since Poland had a recent encounter with a totalitarian system, the madness of North Korea felt quite close to home. Animal Farm, 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 never felt much like works of fiction in Poland. Out of the four most recent generations of my family, I am the first one not to have been arrested by the\u00a0Communists.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87546&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87546\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/7Z4uRWA.jpg\" alt=\"North Korean citizens commuting on the train\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/7Z4uRWA.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/7Z4uRWA.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/7Z4uRWA.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">North Korean citizens commuting on the train<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<h2>Journey to North Korea<\/h2>\n<p>Michal\u2019s trip to North Korea lasted just four days and was tightly controlled from start to finish, with restrictions on how a tourist moves around the country indicative of the strict regime. \u2018You can only go on an organised trip,\u2019 Michal explains. \u2018You can\u2019t just show up at the border even if you have a visa. The Communist authorities must be aware and must approve of your visit. You get a visa for the exact days of the trip, and not a day more. Each attraction (be it a museum or a mausoleum \u2013 there isn\u2019t much else) has to be separately signed off. If you\u2019re American, it supposedly takes more paperwork on the North Korean side.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>There were seven tourists in Michal\u2019s group, including his British friend and other visitors from Britain, New Zealand, Norway and the USA. Everybody on the trip took photographs, but nobody in the group was a professional. Despite what may be previously thought, photography itself is not banned in North Korea \u2013 in fact, it is positively encouraged, but of course under highly controlled conditions. As Michal points out: \u2018They want you to take photos that show the country as normal and relatively affluent. We were endlessly shown the same skyscrapers, and the minivan we were in most of the time was driving slowly so you could take a sharp shot.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Some subjects were on the no-shot list, though. \u2018We were told that photos taken from the Dandong\u2013Pyongyang train were not allowed,\u2019 says Michal.<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87540&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87540\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/KemqUq4.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018You\u2019re not allowed to take pictures from the train,\u2019 says Michal of this image taken in transit. \u2018There are ordinary North Koreans on the train with you, but they didn\u2019t say anything when I took these pictures. There are also uniformed North Koreans, and I avoided taking pictures when they were around. It was very much like a stealth video game. However, if they do catch you, they will probably just get upset and have you delete the photo\u2019 \" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/KemqUq4.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/KemqUq4.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/KemqUq4.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">\u2018You\u2019re not allowed to take pictures from the train,\u2019 says Michal of this image taken in transit. \u2018There are ordinary North Koreans on the train with you, but they didn\u2019t say anything when I took these pictures. There are also uniformed North Koreans, and I avoided taking pictures when they were around. It was very much like a stealth video game. However, if they do catch you, they will probably just get upset and have you delete the photo\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<p>\u2018Photos of soldiers were also not allowed, as were photos around 200km before the DMZ [Korean Demilitarised Zone]. Once in the DMZ, photography was allowed, but again not of soldiers \u2013 except for one designated soldier. You could take photos from the front and profile, but not of his back. Photos of the military installations are not allowed, nor from inside the Victorious War Museum \u2013 the war technically isn\u2019t over yet.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87537&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87537\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/cZINc7U.jpg\" alt=\"Two North Korean soldiers deep in conversation\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/cZINc7U.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/cZINc7U.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/cZINc7U.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">Two North Korean soldiers deep in conversation<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<p>Tourist groups are assigned guides who accompany you throughout your trip, keeping an eye on any banned or restricted behaviour. \u2018Usually, we had one guide in front of us, and one in the back,\u2019 says Michal. \u2018They made a mistake at one point, and two or three of us managed to enter a shop that we were not allowed to enter. It was for local people only, and I took two sneak shots before we were kicked out. We were told our photos (both our cameras and photos) would be thoroughly searched, and should they find anything, we\u2019d be detained. The guide took me aside, looked me in the eyes and said, \u201cYou took many pictures. Too many.\u201d One day our guide said: \u201cYou\u2019re not allowed to take photos here, so you will now go to sleep.\u201d We had to go to sleep at 8am, right after breakfast.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Michal believes it was fortuitous there was an American in the group. \u2018They always keep an eye on you, but I was lucky to have an American in my group. He was my lightning rod \u2013 the guides were looking at him more than anyone else, so he had to be super careful, and I could take sneak shots. He had some of his photos deleted of the back of the soldier we were allowed to\u00a0photograph.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>There were still some shots that Michal wasn\u2019t able to get. \u2018There were some slums in the outskirts of Pyongyang,\u2019 he says. \u2018Their very existence contradicts the North Korean narrative of the superiority of their system and their ways, so it would have been a thrill to photograph. But we only saw it briefly, and of course they wouldn\u2019t stop the car for us to see \u2013 I managed only a blurry photo from\u00a0afar.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87542&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87542\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/SatmqLy.jpg\" alt=\"China borders North Korea on the Yalu River. In the city of Dandong, China, (pictured here) visitors who cannot obtain a visa can jump on a boat that sails past the country. For many this is their only taste of the city, particularly South Korean citizens\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/SatmqLy.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/SatmqLy.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/SatmqLy.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">China borders North Korea on the Yalu River. In the city of Dandong, China, (pictured here) visitors who cannot obtain a visa can jump on a boat that sails past the country. For many this is their only taste of the city, particularly South Korean citizens<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<h2>Hidden faces<\/h2>\n<p>Interactions with ordinary citizens of North Korea was a different experience than Michal is used to from his other travels. \u2018Usually, they pretended they couldn\u2019t see us,\u2019 he says. \u2018Everywhere around the world that I\u2019ve been, regardless of cultural and language barriers, people are excited to see someone from abroad visiting. In North Korea, no such thing ever happened. They acted as if merely talking to us was a threat to them, which maybe it was. Occasionally, people would literally hide from the lens.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Michal also believes that some scenes were actively staged for the cameras. \u2018I couldn\u2019t prove anything that we saw was fake, but many scenes looked highly unnatural,\u2019 he adds. \u2018We all know what a busy city looks like \u2013 it\u2019s chaotic and loud, the opposite of Pyongyang. At one point, we were told that a spontaneous gathering had just taken place, where people on their way to work or elsewhere decided to join in a big dance, and we were lucky to be passing by. We stopped and were encouraged to take photos, so I captured women wearing ceremonial dresses, cars with large speakers playing music\u2026 it didn\u2019t strike me as massively spontaneous. I took a photo of a man participating in it, with a permanent, joyless smile fixed on his face.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It made me feel so sorry and guilty to have to witness this, knowing almost for certain they must have gathered those poor tired people for our entertainment, like circus animals.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87538&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87538\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/DdZSMa5.jpg\" alt=\"\u2018Juche, or self-reliance, is the ideology of North Korea,\u2019 says Michal. \u2018But the omnipresent poverty that even your guides won\u2019t dispute makes one doubt about how self-reliant North Korea really is, especially with its dependence on international aid (which is explained to ordinary North Koreans as the spoils of war)\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/DdZSMa5.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/DdZSMa5.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/DdZSMa5.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">\u2018Juche, or self-reliance, is the ideology of North Korea,\u2019 says Michal. \u2018But the omnipresent poverty that even your guides won\u2019t dispute makes one doubt about how self-reliant North Korea really is, especially with its dependence on international aid (which is explained to ordinary North Koreans as the spoils of war)<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<h2>Getting the photos out<\/h2>\n<p>Then, of course, the next challenge was to get the photos out of the country without them being erased or confiscated \u2013 or for Michal to face punishment. For this, Michal varied his tactics. \u2018I used many small memory cards, and they were hidden all over my rucksack,\u2019 he says. \u2018There was nothing high tech. My assumption was that, as a Polish citizen, I would be kicked out, as we are not particularly valuable as hostages. I made all my notes during the trip in Polish \u2013 and my handwriting is like a form of encryption anyway.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Crossing the border was especially stressful, says Michal, \u2018since I had taken all those dodgy photos and the guide tried to scare me into deleting them prior to setting off for the border.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>However, Michal says he had some luck. \u2018Since I had left my phone in China, they ignored me; they were really interested in people\u2019s phones. Then, someone asked if I had a camera, to which I said no. And they left me standing on my own. So I walked out of the facility trying to look bored and confident, and they never called me back. I nearly kissed the Chinese soil once we did leave.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87544&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87544\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/YKZKspo.jpg\" alt=\"A North Korean citizen makes a quick stop\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/YKZKspo.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/YKZKspo.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/YKZKspo.jpg?resize=562,374 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">A North Korean citizen makes a quick stop<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<h2>A truthful picture<\/h2>\n<p>Despite all the stress and risks Michal took to get (and keep) his photographs, he believes it was worth getting them out into the world. \u2018We can\u2019t deliver a complete portrait of the country, but we can try to present what shows through the cracks of the propaganda and Potemkin villages they put up for us to see,\u2019 he says. \u2018Thousands of people have written to me, thanking me for teaching them about the place.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Describing the instant reaction to his images, it\u2019s clear that Michal is humbled. \u2018I uploaded one [photograph] online and came back to it a while later.<\/p>\n<p>It had 2.5 million views and thousands of comments. I decided I would reply to everyone, so I sat in front of the screen for 14 hours. There was weeks and weeks of praise, grilling, trolling, and TV and radio interviews in several countries.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Michal attributes the photographs going viral both to the mystery of North Korea, and because around the same time American tourist Otto Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years\u2019 hard labour for supposedly stealing a poster from the Yanggakdo Hotel \u2013 where Michal had also stayed.<\/p>\n<p>What was the reaction of the North Korean authorities once these photographs were published globally? \u2018A Polish TV station tried to get a North Korean embassy employee on a show with me, but apparently the embassy refused,\u2019 he says. \u2018I don\u2019t think I said anything particularly scandalous, nor did I expose any military secrets.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>The only real concern Michal has is for the guides who accompanied his group on the trip. \u2018I hope nothing bad happened to my guides,\u2019 he says. \u2018A lot of people have expressed that concern, and it is a legitimate one, but I feel our freedom of speech is not to be compromised by any form of violence that is trying to blackmail us into self-censorship.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Does Michal hope to return to the country one day? \u2018I would be absolutely thrilled to go back once the regime collapses; before that, it would probably be unwise,\u2019 he admits. \u2018But I would love to have an honest conversation with those people and understand what they were actually thinking. Usually I don\u2019t go back though, and I prefer going to new places; so I\u2019m glad North Korea is off my bucket list.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t<div id=&quot;attachment_87545&quot;  class=\"c-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 620px\">\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-87545\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/z8KrPfO.jpg\" alt=\"Street sweepers keep Pyongyang\u2019s streets clean under the watchful eye of a\u00a0solider\" width=\"600\" height=\"398\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/z8KrPfO.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/z8KrPfO.jpg?resize=300,199 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/z8KrPfO.jpg?resize=562,373 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\t\t\t<p class=\"c-caption__text\">Street sweepers keep Pyongyang\u2019s streets clean under the watchful eye of a\u00a0solider<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n<h2>Future projects<\/h2>\n<p>Michal describes himself as \u2018completely amateur\u2019 and says he has no ambitions to turn professional, \u2018I\u2019m afraid going full time would kill the fun,\u2019 he says. \u2018Right now I can do whatever I want whenever I want, rather than having to follow a commercial instinct.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>There are a few more projects in the pipeline for Michal, one of which indicates he\u2019s not about to stop taking risks .\u2018I\u2019m working on a story about Mexican women who help illegal migrants,\u2019 he says. \u2018I stopped being a neutral observer, got involved and could have got human trafficking charges. I\u2019d love to go and learn some Farsi and go to Iran, to return and tell a story. What story, I don\u2019t yet know.\u2019<\/p>\n<h2>The bare essentials<\/h2>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-87536\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg\" alt=\"78269_high\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg 600w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg?resize=135,100 135w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg?resize=533,400 533w, https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2016\/07\/78269_high.jpg?resize=562,422 562w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/>\n<p>Keeping equipment to a minimum is ideal for this kind of work. \u2018I use a Nikon D300S and a 24-70mm lens most of the time,\u2019 says Michal. \u2018Although I used to have an 18-200mm and 11-16mm lens, both were damaged beyond repair on a trip to a desert. I had a 50mm lens with me in North Korea, which, being significantly smaller, looks less threatening than the zoom.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Still, that didn\u2019t mean Michal escaped questioning at customs. \u2018An officer saw my camera and the big lens attached to it,\u2019 he says. \u2018She would not let go, as if a big DSLR implied espionage; she was going through the camera and found GPS. \u201cAh ha!\u201d she triumphed. In reality, all this means is I can attach a GPS unit to the camera, not that it has it built in. But good luck explaining that.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Laptops were fairly thoroughly searched, but if you had encrypted files, dual-boot, or anything slightly out of the ordinary, they were helpless. People generally assumed it was some sort of high-tech check, but I actually felt sorry for the computer expert they brought onto our train, and how out of touch he was with technology.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><em>Michal is a photographer and software developer based in London. His photography and writing have been featured in Outside Magazine, The Telegraph, Stern, Metro, The Travel Stories, Daily Mail, La Repubblica, Wyborcza.pl and many others. Visit m1key.me or his Flickr page at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/m1key-me\" target=\"_blank\">www.flickr.com\/photos\/m1key-me<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s something about North Korea that fascinates us. Bookshelves strain under the weight of volumes written by political analysts, curious journalists and the few who have escaped the clutches of the country\u2019s grip. We\u2019ve also been fortunate to see a great number of images taken by some intrepid photojournalists such as Julia Leeb and Eric [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1384,"featured_media":87543,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[374],"tags":[],"product-category":[],"class_list":["post-87532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.8 (Yoast SEO v26.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Michal Huniewicz on his photographic trip through North Korea - Amateur Photographer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/other.kelsey.host\/amateurphotographer\/technique\/interviews\/the-hermit-kingdom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Michal Huniewicz on his photographic trip through North Korea\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There\u2019s something about North Korea that fascinates us. 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