What I learned from a North Korean education

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What I learned from a North Korean education

Despite all I learned, I'll never forgive them for teaching me lies about the Korean War

Monique Macias March 14, 2014

What I learned from a North Korean education

Eric Lafforgue

I couldn’t have survived the rocky journey I’ve been through in life without the education I received in North Korea. Attending a military boarding school as I did, we were taught discipline, which I liked – it made me strong, and in every situation I’m ready to survive.

Many of the things I learned in North Korea are the sorts of things schoolchildren across the world learn. We studied Western literature, for example, reading Tolstoy and Shakespeare and, my favorite, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. We even read science fiction, and Victor Hugo – I loved Les Misérables!

About the Author

Monique Macias

Monique was born in Equatorial Guinea and grew up in Pyongyang, North Korea. She graduated at the University of Light Industry, with a BA as a Textile Engineer. Since leaving North Korea, Macias has been working as a fashion designer in countries including Spain, South Korea, and the U.S. Macias recently wrote a book about her life in North Korea which will soon be translated in to English.

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