What is it like being a white men in Korea? Do you think there is any advantages as a white man in Korea? I have also been approached... not approached, but a random girl said “Hi” just because she wanted, I guess, to get my attention. It's especially strange in situations where my Korean is better than their English. But they keep trying to speak English to me. That's really annoying, to be honest. Hello, friends. Welcome back to my channel. I'm Jin. Today I ask people about “What is it like being a white man in Korea?” Let's check it out. What do you do in Korea? Currently studying Korean at the Yonsei KLI (Korean Language Institute). Currently an exchange student at Kyung Hee University. I mostly work in the translation industry. I work on translations and editing and comparing translations and things like that. I work at a university. How has been your experience in Korea so far? It's been very positive. I have not experienced any negative disposition towards me, or me as a white person, or as a foreigner so far. It's honestly the best thing I've ever done out of all the things I've done in my life. And I'm not just saying this for the camera but I'm most proud of my time here working at the university, working with young people. When I first came here, I thought I might live here for a year, maybe two. But that was 15 years ago. That's a very broad question. Generally, my experience has been very positive. I quite enjoy living in Korea. Of course, there have been negative things. But the positive things outweigh the negative things by a lot. To give you some examples, I'm from a very small town in the countryside. Nothing is convenient from where I'm from. But in Korea I can get anything very close to my home very quickly. It's very convenient to live in Seoul. I've been loving it so far. Korean culture is something else. It's totally not compared to Europe. It’s quite insane how generous and kind people are. And they're really open and nice to you. People are open to foreigners? Umm... No, no they aren’t... Some people have very difficulties with speaking English. And you see that people like, especially the older people, they kind of tend to do not want to talk to us. Because they don't speak our language. First we thought that they were really racist. Because there are like in restaurants “No, no, no, don't come here.” And we were like, “it's just because we're white?” But then we ask some Korean people and they told us that's just because they don't speak English. So they find it a little bit scared to talk to us. What I fully understand now. Today's topic is “What is it like being a white man in Korea?” I can see a lot of videos about black people living in Korea, but I couldn't see any videos about white men, so I wanted to cover this topic. So, what is it like being a white man in Korea? Okay, interesting question. I think it's very much changed over time. When I came to Korea 16 years ago, a white person was very rare or any foreigners at all. Especially outside of Seoul. You always felt like people were watching you or treating you differently. It's very different now. Nowadays, I usually don't even think about the fact that I'm different. I feel totally normal. Most of the time, but not always. And that's especially true in Seoul. When I travel outside of Seoul, I get questions, I get looks. But even in the countryside, it's different than it was 16 years ago. Well, I can't speak for all Caucasians. I can only speak for my own personal experience. But I do feel like there might be a higher level of tolerance for certain nationalities. For example, Canadian or American versus other nationalities. I do feel like there are different expectations and standards for foreigners in general. But, umm perhaps there is a higher level of tolerance for certain nationalities. Could you tell me a little bit more specifically? Well, I don't have any examples to cite. It's just a feeling that I feel more welcome. That's just how you feel in public around people on the subway or on the bus. I feel like Koreans feel comfortable around me. Again, I don't want to speak for the Korean nation, but Koreans might have some reservations or feel perhaps a little bit nervous around nationalities they're less familiar with. I've also seen the videos about black people having bad experiences because they're black or because some Korean people have not seen or are not acquainted with black people. So it's something new to them. I have not seen that about white people, I guess. Because they have been more exposed to Western media and European media. So it's more common for Koreans to know more about white people than black people, I guess. The only bad experience that I've had was 3 years ago. When I was on a trip, I went to a club in Daegu where I've been blamed for a small accident that has happened there, even though I did not cause it. And it was just because I was the foreigner there. You see a lot of people watch you. And you kind of imagine like, “are they thinking of something good or something bad?” You see some people are a little bit afraid, I guess. Because of our height. Because I'm here with my friends and we all really big. And sometimes I can see some comments of people who have darker skin. They noticed that Korean people treated them differently between white people and people who have darker skin. Do you think there’s any advantages as a white man in Korea? I have some friends from Africa. I've heard stories and I'm not surprised when I hear stories of people might feel a little hesitant to take a seat next to a foreigner. But honestly, I have not experienced any kind of... I mean, there are good and bad people all over the world. So, I mean, anyone can have a negative experience. But I've been very fortunate. It's a really difficult question to parse. I think that generally speaking, white foreigners probably receive better treatment than foreigners from Southeast Asia or Africa in Korea. At least, white foreigners who can speak English. But I also feel like that is also something that's been disappearing over time. And I think in Korea there's a very big generation gap. Koreans who are maybe over 40 compared to Koreans who are maybe under 30. There is a very different relationship or opinion or something like that to the world outside of Korea. So younger people tend to accept everything as it is and older people tend to prefer Korean ways and be skeptical or suspicious of non-Korean ways in a lot of cases. Yeah, we had some restaurants where we went especially with young people who work there. and who owned restaurants as well, who were like, “You're so nice, come next time. and you get extra service.” And you see the girls laughing all the time. So that's quite fun and quite good for your... for your self-confidence, I guess. Then have ever experienced any racism in Korea? Not directly. No, I haven't. Sometimes I feel like I get treated differently for being a foreigner. A good example is I've been to the Dong office where I live. I feel like one of the people who works there always treats me differently and it annoys me. Another is that because I'm a foreigner, when I go places, often people try to speak English to me. It's fine, I understand. But the annoying thing that happens to me is when I go somewhere and I order something in Korean or I say something in Korean and my Korean is pretty good, It's not perfect, but the person tries to speak to me in English and it's especially strange in situations where my Korean is better than their English, but they keep trying to speak English to me. That's really annoying, to be honest. The truth is, this isn't just Korea, this can be found in America or Europe. Ignorance is everywhere. How people treat others is case by case situation. So yes, of course, if I hear a story where someone was mistreated, apparently not justified. And that's always going to be disheartening and disappointing. Not just in Korea but around the world. We all have to be tolerant regardless of how we look on the outside. I can see like some people say something or act in some way which is pretty racism. But they don't even know if this is racism or not. I think people have to learn about how they should behave or... Yeah, that's a good point. In terms of cultural sensitivity and people inadvertently displaying ignorance. There's a lot of that. Unfortunately, people might not be aware that the questions they pose are hurtful or offensive. I'm not sure what to do in a situation like that other than perhaps try to educate that person politely that what you're saying or what you're doing is painful. Do you think Koreans have stereotype about white guys or is there anything you have been told a lot just because you're white? Yeah, especially in class, when we have group projects, they kind of think that we are not going to work as hard. Like, we’re a little bit laid back and lazy and we only party all day. I guess it's kind of true because we do, so. Asian people in overall work harder I guess. But we do it all in a different way. And we all finish the job at the good time. I'll give you two stereotypes. One is a stereotype that my wife had before she married me. My wife is Korean. And she had the idea that, “oh, white men make very good husbands.” And then she married me and she found out that it is not much of a difference, I think. The other kind of funny stereotype is, these days it's not a big thing, but in the past, a lot of Korean people would assume that foreigners or white foreigners could not eat spicy food. I had a friend who went to a restaurant one time and he ordered this spicy dish on the menu and they told him it was really spicy. And he said that's okay. And they gave him a dish which was not spicy at all. They deliberately removed the spicy ingredients. So he gave it back to them and complained and said he likes spicy food. And then the cook was angry, so they made it as spicy as they possibly could with that. I would say generally, maybe some Koreans, their impression of Americans might come from Hollywood movies or television series that are popular. So maybe foreigners might seem “Michyeosseo?” “Crazy!” The last question is about experience with girls. Oh girls! Have you had any experience that girls come up to you and ask your number or give you a compliment? They're not as direct as we are. Because we Dutch people are very direct. So we immediately ask stuff. I see it from my friends. They immediately go to a girl and ask like, “What's your number?” “Let's go home.” And the Korean girls are like, “Oh, that's too fast.” But you see, girls giggling and then they shout at you “Oh, so handsome.” And also we know it in Korean now, “Yeppeoyo (=pretty)” So we heard that now a lot of times. it's quite funny to hear. I can see a lot of comments that it's easier to date Korean girls if you're all white men. (compared to other foreigners) Do you think it's true? I guess we desire what we do not know. I have been also told by one guy that Korean girls are interested in white guys. Because they are not that common here. I have also been approached, not approached, but a random girl said “Hi” just because she wanted, I guess, to get my attention. The grass is always greener on the other side. If you were a girl that were surrounded by Koreans and you see a foreigner, then you're more interested I guess, maybe to approach and get to know somebody else because it's more interesting. Because you're not acquainted with that. I don't know. If you have been watching lots of Western media then you also might have like a romanticized vision of a white guy or a Westerner person. I guess the same goes the other way. If you watch a lot of k-dramas, then you have a romanticized vision of a Korean boyfriend or Korean girlfriend in your head. So I think it goes both ways. Korean women and their taste for men. I don't know. I think there might be some curiosity. Maybe they might want to spend time with a foreigner. But my impression is they might want to date a foreigner, but ultimately they will marry a Korean guy. Do you have anything you want to say to people who want to come to Korea and worried about discrimination or being different from others? Korea is a unique country. I highly recommend visiting if you're able to. Or if you're a young person, consider studying abroad. The experience is ineffable. It's beyond words, beyond description. I don't know how long I will live here, but I'll always have a special place in my heart for Korea. Again, every country has some challenges. There's no perfect society. But overall, it's been a sensational experience. I have no regrets at all. And whatever your nationality or race, It’s certainly a country worth visiting. Thank you so much for the interview today. I hope you have a good day. Yeah, thank you. Yeah, of course. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you for interviewing me. This has been fun. Alright. See you again.
