Theres an ongoing saying about foreigners coming to South Korea. They are either unpopular back home, running away from something, paying off debt, wanting to travel or all of the above.
I fit into three of those categories. I had debt I wasn’t comfortable with, haunted by images of a relationship past that was long dead, and I have the adventure bug in me that wants to see the world.
I came to South Korea, with the knowledge that I would learn to be comfortable alone and accept the fact that I won’t get married. Depressing eh? Well the truth is I do many things on my own and I am very comfortable doing them alone. I have been on several trips, I eat out I go to the movies. I meet a lot of new people that way. South Korea just enhanced that by giving me more things to do.
What that has done has helped me discover my love for hiking, and beaches and mountains. I have become comfortable in my own skin and regained my strength. It was on one of these solo jaunts that I met him.
Someone totally unexpected..never imagined anything would happen. He is funny, intelligent and tall. He challenges me, annoys me, loves me, surprises me and calms me. This wasn’t part of my plan. I’m a planner, I like to set goals and achieve them. This is hard to do when it comes to dealing with other humans. He messed up my plan and I have been having fun ever since.
I am at a crossroads now, between my old life and what is to come. I can feel that what is about to happen is about to be very good. But like Lot’s wife in the bible, its too tempting for me to look back at my old life. I am about to take the leap without knowing where I will land.
I think single women, like myself, here, we stereotype the foreign men in South Korea. Stereotypes always have some basis but the problem with stereotypes is they always discount a lot of people. I think if you are meant to date in South Korea it will happen. Until then, enjoy South Korea, enjoy yourself, don’t indulge in the pack mentality too much, spend a lot of time on yourself. If you don’t date here, at least you LIVED in South Korea. And by living I mean, doing more than getting drunk every weekend.
Great post. I am sure that lots of people have had similar problems to this one. As Ned Flanders would say, “That’s a real dilly of a pickle.”
Have fun and good luck with the plan! You just never know when something (or someone) will come along and throw a wrench into it!
That’s the right attitude. The thing I’ve noticed living here is that friendships/relationships with other foreigners develop very quickly. But too often they end just as quickly because someone suddenly goes back home. The trick is to enjoy the time that you have and not think ahead too much.
update…life in Korea is not about who you are with, but about how you use your time. For several months it was with a lovely man. But now I am looking forward to the next chapter of my life where I deepen my relationship with friends and God. I have already deepened my relationship with my family and its been lovely to get to know them better.
See Korea, live it, drink in the moments rather than the liquor. There is so much natural beauty to see, and so many people are missing it.