More expats

There's a park with paved paths along both sides of a stream not far from here. I went for a walk there last weekend and there were lots of people out biking and skating and strolling. I saw two Westerners wearing hockey jerseys and skating over a small bridge. They said hi. Their accent could have been either American or Canadian, but their skating was kind of clumsy, so I'm betting American.



Earlier the same day I struck up a conversation with an Ethiopian computer science grad student at the Dunkin Donuts near campus. We were both waiting for our coffees and I was so pleased to see someone who looked like he spoke English well that I just started chatting with him. He was with a group of friends and told me that they've been here just two months and, like me, have found it hard to meet Koreans socially. So, I gave him my card.

Even though I've always wanted not to socialize just with other foreigners here, I can understand why some people do so. It's not just that there's a comfort to the familiarity of your own compatriots. It's also about sharing the experience of being outsiders in a very homogeneous culture.