Here are some pictures I took recently in the park. It is located in the Taesong District, north-east of Pyongyang. The park is surrounded by greenery. A zoo and botanical garden are in place here. It is known as a recreation area for people.

In the afternoon of a sunny day, a young couple drove right up in a shiny black Mercedes. Both seemed to be privileged. They were dressed up in wedding costumes and began to take wedding pictures.In the corner of the park, unauthorized street vendors were busy with their own business of selling light snacks and foods like bowls of noodles. A man in dark clothes was sitting in silence and kept slurping up his noodles.

In the other corner, I saw a homeless kid picking through the garbage on the ground. It was the trash of a lunch left by a group on a school excursion. It was a contrast for me to see a young couple with gaudy outfits and a shabby-looking man in dark clothes sitting down eating noodles.

There are young couples celebrating their weddings in every country, but we see harsh realities in my country. There are little kids with rag clothes trying to live from hand to mouth picking up food from the garbage. I was filled with heart-rending sorrow to see these realities of gaps.
(Report By Gu Gwang-ho. 2011, June)