Not Welcome Here

[maestasa]

Last night, I experienced the inevitable reality that there are negative aspects that result from being a foreigner in Korea. And I will never be accepted as an equal here. Until this point I have been treated extremely well by most of the Korean people I have met. My host family is very kind, my director does whatever he can to make me

Comments

ooh angemalo.... :(

[anonymous]

I hate to hear that you had that experience but it is also an experience that perhaps you needed to have. Not because you are a bad person or anything else, but because, sometimes we have to understand the social context and underlying tones that hide beneath the countries that we visit. Semester at sea was constantly reminding us that we didn't fit into any of the countries we visited, but when we tried to blend in or learn from the culture, that is when we were finally at rest. Ya know?? I am so upset that they would treat you this way, and a bit upset at you for responding the way you did, but I know you and I understand why you reacted in this manner. I am glad that you took a while to truly grasp all of your emotions and try to figure out what happened and why. If you look at some of the stories on the BBC about Korea, you will find the stories of rape by us soldiers, so it is only natural that they hate or even fear foreigners but even more Americans. I hope you are able to bounce back from this and learn from this experience. :) I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!