Every week we ask a North Korean your questions, giving you the chance to learn more about the country we know so little about.

This week’s question is:

Do North Koreans use condoms? Are they readily available over there?

While I was growing up in Pyongyang, I hadn’t even heard the word “condom,” neither did I know what it meant. In the early days after my defection, I didn’t even know why condoms existed or how to use one. It was not a matter which I was particularly interested in. Thus, I paid little attention to it. I didn’t even