North Korea has closed its borders in fear of the spread of the Ebola virus. But at a time when the secretive state was still welcoming tourists, former aid worker Andrew Macleod made the journey to the repressive nation. Andrew's holiday snaps and camera footage provide a unique insight into the reclusive country, where he came across deserted motorways, metro stations plastered with propaganda and attractive border guards. Here: a female traffic police officer in the snow in February 2013, in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Photo by Andrew Macleod/Barcroft Media)

North Korean youngsters sing and play accordions to entertain foreign visitors including United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim, who visited Pyongyang, May 4, 1979. Visitors report music education in North Korea begins at an early age and is taken seriously by children and adults. (Photo by Peter Arnett/AP Photo)

North Korean soldiers march during a military parade marking the 105th birth anniversary of the country's founding father Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang, North Korea, April 15, 2017. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

People visit the Mansu Hill to lay flowers to the bronze statues of late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the 108th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, April 15, 2020. (Photo by Alamy Live News)

In a photo taken on July 6, 2017 soldiers of the Korean People' s Army (KPA) watch a fireworks display as part of celebrations marking the July 4 launch of the Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile, in Pyongyang Fireworks lit up the sky over Pyongyang' s Juche Tower as North Korea celebrated its launch of intercontinental ballistic missile, a milestone in its decades- long weapons drive. On July 4 – the United States' Independence Day – it launched a Hwasong-14 rocket that analysts and overseas officials said had a range of up to 8,000 kilometres, which would put Alaska and Hawaii within reach. (Photo by Kim Won-Jin/AFP Photo)

A member of North Korean military holds flowers to be laid at the bronze statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Mansu Hill Grand Monument in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, December 17, 2018. North Koreans are marking the seventh anniversary of the death of leader Kim Jong Il with visits to the statues and vows of loyalty to his son, Kim Jong Un. (Photo by Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)

This picture taken on February 8, 2023 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on February 9, 2023 shows jets flying past during a military parade celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. (Photo by KCNA via KNS/AFP Photo)

Runners rest inside Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea on Sunday, April 14, 2013. North Korea hosted the 26th Mangyongdae Prize Marathon to mark the upcoming April 15, 2013 birthday of the late leader Kim Il Sung. (Photo by Alexander F. Yuan/AP Photo)