Ask A North Korean
Your chance to ask questions to North Koreans about life growing up in the DPRK
Settling in Seoul: How a North Korean defector found a second family on Chuseok
The joy of the holiday mingles with sadness of family separation for those who can’t visit hometowns and loved ones
Ask a North Korean: What is beach culture like in North Korea?
Much like people around the world, North Koreans like to eat, drink and play at the beach. The problem is getting there.
Ask a North Korean: How do you buy contraception in North Korea?
The lack of sex education in the country means many have little knowledge about how to prevent pregnancy
Ask a North Korean: What is it like to defect across the Northern Limit Line?
One of the few defectors to escape by sea tells the story of how he and his father pulled it off
Ask a North Korean: How do you move to a new house in the DPRK?
North Koreans can only move under specific circumstances, and even then finding affordable housing is nigh impossible
Ask a North Korean: Do North Koreans enjoy state media?
Organizations set aside time for reading newspapers, but most citizens find it tedious and overstuffed with ideology
Ask a North Korean: What are toilets like in the DPRK?
Public restrooms and toilet paper are in short supply, while expense of flush toilets results in a porcelain ‘hierarchy’
Ask a North Korean: How do North Koreans stay cool in the summer heat?
Special foods and solar-powered fans are common remedies, and even soldiers will take siestas on hottest days
Ask a North Korean: The long, dangerous journey to freedom in the South
The final chapter in a harrowing escape from North Korea that forced one defector to leave her child and husband behind
Ask a North Korean: What superstitions and urban myths exist in North Korea?
The state has failed to fully root out folk beliefs, which range from wedding rituals to tall tales about Kim Il Sung
