Rason, North Korea (CNN) -- As the sole Western journalist covering a unique bicycle race in North Korea last month, I was provided with a personal guide, a car with a driver and the promise that I was free to take any photographs I wanted. As a journalist, it seemed like an incredible opportunity to document a small snapshot of what North Korea was really like.

However, the promise turned out not to be completely true.

At the border, before going back to China, a group of security guards confiscated my camera and erased all images they thought were inappropriate, or did not portray the country in a favorable light.

The North Korea I wasn't meant to see

But with the help of a computer expert in Hong Kong, I managed to get all the pictures back.

Officially, I only had two restrictions to obey during my trip: No photos of the military or military facilities and all shots of portraits of Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong-Il had to show their entire figures. And I was under no circumstances allowed to walk off alone.

My guide, Ko Chang Ho, was surprisingly friendly and talkative. Contrary to the propaganda machine I was expecting, the 42-year-old father of two talked at length about his days as an English student in Pyongyang and his interest in international literature. His favorite author was William Shakespeare; the last book he read was Sir Walter Scott's classic novel, "Ivanhoe."

We also talked about why the outside world has such a negative view of North Korea; something he was very sad about. He loved his country and I chose my words carefully.

Answer this series of questions:

1. What is the job of the person in article?
2. What happened at border?
3. Did they do anything?
4. Why?
5. Did he get all the images back?
6. How?
7. Where at?
8. Did the person have any rules to follow on his trip?
9. What were they?
10. Anything else?
11. Who was his guide?
12. How old was he?

Numbered answers:
1. Journalist
2. a group of security guards confiscated my camera
3. Erased all images
4. They thought were inappropriate or did not portray country in favorable light
5. Yes
6. Help of a computer expert
7. Hong Kong
8. Yes
9. No photos of the military or military facilities and all shots of portraits of Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong-Il had to show their entire figures
10. Could not walk off alone.
11. Ko Chang Ho
12. 42.