1. The idea of ‘gay’ is different between the United States and Korea. In the USA, it is becoming more and more acceptable to be part of the LGBT+ community or an ally. In Korea, it is still commonly looked down upon to be part of that community due to the more conservative values of the population. Yet this has not stopped Koreans of the same gender to hold hands, sit on each others’ laps, and in general, showcase more same-gender skinship.
“I told Friend 2 that Friend 1 was pretty and she gave me a super weird look and said “so???”. Friend 2 thought I was gay and I had to clear up the misunderstanding.”
2. “There are no barriers between men and women. Skinship just openly happens, whether it’s putting their head on the other’s shoulders, linking arms, or hugs, stuff like that. At parties, they’ll drink and then give each other kisses on the cheek or on the lips and sit on each other’s laps.”
3. “Drugs. It depends on where you are but where I am at in the USA, once you’re 18 years old, you’ve probably experienced it or been exposed to it once. It’s really easy to get them. I’ve seen many cars parked strangely together by a house and the people were all quietly doing drugs.”
4. “They’re open to exposure. Girls will wear sleeveless shirts all the time here but not in Korea. They really promote exposing the upper body here and talk about sexual things like it’s nothing. Kids I met for the first time (who were girls) came up and asked me if I was waxed ‘down there’, something you’d never ask friends in Korea.”
5. “It’s so nice riding in a car with the other kids. At 15 (9th grade), they can drive with their parents but that’s no fun. At 16 (10th grade), they can drive alone. It’s really nice for going out to play.”
6. “On the other hand, if you don’t have a car, you can’t go anywhere f**k, it’s no lie. The convenience store or supermarket at all at least 5 minutes away by driving.”
7. “The importance of studies and work is pretty high, about the same as Korea’s. Each week I have 2 or 3 quizzes and I get homework every day. F**k, foreign students who escaped abroad always open their mouths and spew out stuff like you don’t know anything. Please realize this.” Although, there are very few after-school academies compared to Korea.
8. “Parties aren’t just similar to the ones that appear in American dramas. They’re exactly the same. The police appear at American teen parties just like the dramas. International students throw big parties so don’t go to those because the police will appear.”
9. “K-Pop is kind of popular. It’s more popular than before. BTS is really big. GOT7 and BLACKPINK are pretty popular.”
