The Boyfriend Post.
As you may or may not have heard, the big questions upon meeting someone in Korea are as follows:
(1) The age bomb. It usually goes as follows:
“Nice to meet you”(Bashful look and Korean murmurings.) “Do you mind, I ask how old you are?”
To which I’ll respond, in Korean years, which are one year more than most human years, being that the 9 months in Korean utero are counted as near- enough to pop you out as a one- year old. (Also, all Koreans increase their age at the new year–not on their birthday! So though they still celebrate their birthday with cakes and stuff, since cake and bread is all the rage for delicacy and special occasion ’round these parts, they don’t get older. Weird, huh.)
Even despite using Korean years to boost my age, I’m always met with “ooohhhhhhhh” and “murmurmurmurjjjealous” and “so young!” So, needless to say, I generally dread this question.
Furthermore, in the event I ask the curious questioning Korean their own age, they will be super- duper tricky and say, “Guess!” which is IMPOSSIBLE to do, due to the fact that (1) all Koreans dye their hair dark, and (2) it is impossible to guess Asian ages. Seriously. So hard.
(2) Your blood type. Now, I was given ample warning that this question would hit me regularly, but it’s still a little goofy to me. From what I gather, knowing your blood type is a little like knowing whether you are type A or type B personality, or knowing what sign you are, or any other means to guage personality and compatibility upon first impression.
Basically, I can never tell them my blood type, because I don’t know. I’ve never known. Unless you donate blood, which I’ve tried to do a couple times but was short on iron due to lack of red meat and broccoli consumption in my late high- school years, you just don’t know.
They always look so disappointed when I can’t tell them.
Oh! Also.
My personal favorite is that in many of the calendar/ planner books in Korea, on the back page where you write your name and info and stuff, you have to option to fill in these corresponding boxes: Name, Address, Phone Number, Birthday, Blood Type, School, etc.
(3) The Boyfriend. If you’ve managed to continue conversation past the first two bombs, you may be met with this:
“I’m sorry, but may I ask… do you have a boyfriend?”
To which, when responding with a ‘no’, you are met with either surprise or concern. “But, oh… but you so pretty!! Why boyfriend, no?”
I’ve made the mistake of feigning disappointment at a couple of these questionings (do not underestimate how many questionings I’ve had… endless upon endless encounters with these three bombs…) which just brings on a huge show of genuine pity, and/ or the attempt to set me up on blind dates.
Also, side- side note, blind dates in Korea are a pretty common thing.
One of the most comical boyfriend moments: One day, a few weeks back, I was walking with one of the young female teachers from my school to the Post Office. One of the foreigners in Yeoju (of which there are only about 20-30 foreigners to the population of 100,000 Koreans in Yeoju), who happened to be a boy, and who I also happened to know, biked past and said hello to me. We briefly asked each other about dinner plans before saying goodbye and moving on.
Ms. Lee turned to me, excitedly, and asked, “Your boyfriend!?!”
I told her, not regretfully at all, no.
She was quiet for a moment before turning to me and saying, quite solemnly, “You missed an opportunity there. Really, I think.”
Ba dum dum. But! No fear. I’m happy as a clam in jam.
Aaaaaand, school’s out. Today is Wednesday and I get to go home while the sun still sets! (No such thing as Daylight Savings Time in Korea! Sun is gone by 5.20pm).
Love!