I've just been down to Boracay Island in the Philippines for a week - and it was great - I had a lovely time. It's also a popular destination for travelling Koreans. They don't, it has to be said, have a great reputation down there! I met several people who had very strong opinions on the Koreans and their 'ways'.
I live in Korea, and I like it - but it does have a few idiosyncrasies that simply do not travel well.
Firstly, there is no 'excuse me' in Korean. Here, you'll get a gentle (and here it's polite) nudge in the back or arm. This does not translate politely abroad.
In typical Western style bars you go to a bar to get the drinks yourself. In Korea, you shout "Yogi Yo", which means 'here please' (again, this is polite) and your drinks are brought over. You cannot, in a foreign country, bellow at the bar staff to bring you drinks.
Korean culture is fine, it really is, but they really should learn other countries' customs and ways if they don't want to be thought of as rude travellers.
It's interesting how much the Koreans are largely ignorant of other cultures ways and how groups of western people are categorized as the same and the cultural differences between Europeans, US American, Irish, English, South Africans, and Kiwis are ignored. I'd really like to bring this up to a Korean who I feel comfortable with to understand this more...
ReplyDeleteWhat things do you here down there