April 20, 2024

About the author

Taylor Darby

Taylor Darby is a pseudonym for a foreign diplomat that worked in Pyongyang before leaving in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

More articles by 'Taylor Darby'

A diplomat’s life: North Korea’s brutal training for parades and mass games

A diplomat’s life: North Korea’s brutal training for parades and mass games

North Koreans train for hours on end and late into the night to prepare for these events in Pyongyang

A diplomat’s life: North Korea’s brutal training for parades and mass games
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby October 27, 2021
A diplomat’s life: The North Koreans are always watching you

A diplomat’s life: The North Koreans are always watching you

There is no escaping Big Brother in a country that encourages and rewards citizens for reporting on each other

A diplomat’s life: The North Koreans are always watching you
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby October 20, 2021
A diplomat’s life: Learning to cope with leisure in Pyongyang

A diplomat’s life: Learning to cope with leisure in Pyongyang

Finding entertainment is not always easy, but foreigners can still enjoy movies, karaoke and other activities

A diplomat’s life: Learning to cope with leisure in Pyongyang
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby October 13, 2021
A diplomat’s life: Navigating Pyongyang’s byzantine payment system

A diplomat’s life: Navigating Pyongyang’s byzantine payment system

Foreigners may pay in one currency and receive change in others, while converting back and forth into virtual money

A diplomat’s life: Navigating Pyongyang’s byzantine payment system
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby October 4, 2021
A diplomat’s life: The pleasures of retail therapy in the North Korean capital

A diplomat’s life: The pleasures of retail therapy in the North Korean capital

A former diplomat in Pyongyang recounts the realities of shopping in the city and the propaganda purpose of many stores

A diplomat’s life: The pleasures of retail therapy in the North Korean capital
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby September 27, 2021
A diplomat’s life: The uncertainty and tedium of lockdown in North Korea

A diplomat’s life: The uncertainty and tedium of lockdown in North Korea

A former diplomat in Pyongyang gives a first-person account of how authorities responded to the pandemic

A diplomat’s life: The uncertainty and tedium of lockdown in North Korea
Taylor Darby
Taylor Darby September 20, 2021