Dating in South Korea

May 14, 2014

When I first arrived in South Korea eight months ago, I never considered the dating opportunities here–or their lack thereof. I thought I would be in a location that had lots of foreigners and that I would find at least one guy who I could date.

As it turns out, that is not the case. The situation in Korea is like this–the foreign guys are either in a relationship, only looking to hook up, socially awkward, or only looking for Korean women.

To make matters even worse, I live in a very small town and Seoul is three hours away. My location makes dating that much harder.

I am also a woman of color and even in this day and age, there are still guys who will count me out based on my skin color. To make matters even worse, I live in a very small town and Seoul is three hours away. My location makes dating that much harder.

Since I wasn’t meeting any guys, I decided to join a dating website called OkCupid. Again, the guys were socially awkward. After exchanging one or two messages, the guys wanted to send me dirty pictures of themselves naked. So I decided OkCupid was not for me.

I have come to the conclusion that my time and experience in Korea will be more about traveling and making friends than about dating.

I have come to the conclusion that my time and experience in Korea will be more about traveling and making friends than about dating.

Dating Korean guys just isn’t an option for me–what with the communication barrier, them being a little afraid of foreign women and them not being able to wrap their minds around the fact that my skin doesn’t rub off. I know other women who have dated and hooked up in Korea, but that just won’t be my journey.

Dating in South Korea