New Korean Friends

There is only one other foreign teacher that is a girl at my school, and she and I are very different, so I have yet to have any girlfriends out here. I enjoy hanging out with my friends from back home, their friends, and a friend of mine from school, but it is invariably me with six guys. I am always outnumbered, and boysclub all the time isn't my cup of tea. 

So, I decided to invite the Koreans that I work with out to dinner one night. We went out yesterday and it was so much fun. It was just me and three Korean women. I think they are really nervous about their English abilities, so I know it will be difficult to persuade them to come out with a group of us; but I am so glad to know that I can go out with them now. They are so nice, and were great when it was just me. 

They tell me my Korean is very good, which I am always very flattered to hear. It just boosts my ego and pushes me to learn more, but at the same time makes them feel more comfortable. It's really a win-win. Anyways, one of them really enjoys snowboarding so she is going to take me as soon as it gets cold. I can't wait. It's funny, I never thought I would want girlfriends so badly. But, I definitely have missed having those relationships like I had in college.

All of these women are a few years older than me, around 25/26. But in their culture, they usually live at home until marriage. I was so surprised when one of them took a phone call from her parents who were waiting for her at home. She promptly left. I could not even imagine! My parents are the most important people to me in the world, but both of us appreciate each other more when we don't live together. Having my independence is so very important. With that said, that's how I was raised. My mother always taught me to be independent. If I grew up here; I'm sure my feelings would not be as strong as they are now.

Even so, I cannot even imagine graduating from college, going out and getting a real job, and having to live at home until you get married. The boys do to for the most part from what I understand.

This is such a wonderful experience, and I have truly loved every minute of it thus far. But as I continue to learn more and more about the culture and the way it works, it just makes me that much prouder to be an American, especially a Texan, and to come from my parents home. We are truly blessed.

That's not even remotely what I intended to write about. The point is, I'm really glad that I was able to break down the barrier between myself and the Korean teachers and make some new friends. Especially to have some female relationships out here. It is really surprising to me how few women teach overseas here. It's probably a 10 to 1 ratio male to female. I have never gone out with Weguk (foreigners), and not been the only girl.