Women

One thing that I love about living in Korea is meeting so many different kinds of people. I meet people from different countries everytime I go out, and I work with an assortment of Canadians and Americans. I dated a Korean guy for a few weeks and then as you know, dated Walid from Libya for maybe 2 months or so. And yes, I wrote that correctly, it is in the past tense.

Even people from Canada or America can offer up new perspectives and points of view you never would have thought of. You're forced into contact with people that maybe in a "normal" (by that I mean, at home or at school, or whatever) setting you would never get to know. I have always enjoyed my coworkers (most of the time) because you probably normally wouldn't happen to be friends with these people, but sometimes people can shock you. Generally I have liked most of the people I have come across and appreciated their view on things. However, there have been some exceptions.

For example. Dating a Libyan Muslim is quite an experience. Going into it, I didn't want a boyfriend at all, but he insisted so I swayed my vote and decided it was ok. That was a big change for me, and a sacrifice I believe. It's interesting though how different we are. He is a very devout Muslim and calls his mother every day. I am no religion and very rarely call home. He doesn't eat meat because it is not prepared in the Muslim fashion. This is all fine and good with me. These minor differences are great and refreshing. But then he started saying things like, only Muslims go to paradise. It's true because it's in the Koran. Women have a place and that place is in the home. Married women cannot travel alone, and most importantly, men and women are not equal.

If you know me at all, you know that this does not fly right with me. I, who was a political science major from an all-girl Catholic college that stresses feminism. We had many a discussion, maybe argument, about these points. I flat out told him that I didn't agree and if he was ok with my perspective and respected my thoughts, then I would do likewise. In so many words because there's also the language barrier to worry about. But it ended in a smoldering blaze sometime this week after he just stopped calling me. My friend Scott is friends with him and called and found out from Walid that he will not be calling me to tell me this because our thinking is different.

So long story short, I got dumped (more or less) because I think that men and women are equal. And that maybe there is no Allah, maybe the Koran is imperfect because it was written by imperfect man, and maybe if there is a paradise, why can't everyone go. Because I forced him to see another perspective. Why are people so averse to change? I don't mean people as in other than me, because I know I am too. But change happens to be a really great thing.

Also, what is with this macho caveman thinking? If this was the 1950s, or even 60s, I can see it. But hello? 2006? Libyan society is incredibly restricted because of Qaddafi (sp) and I know that Islam in general isn't too keen on women's rights. And apparently people like Walid are not ok with letting people having opinions different than their own.

I guess I didn't expect this in Korea...and by this I would even go so far as to say just dating a Muslim Libyan in general. He's gorgeous, but it's difficult to be with someone who thinks that you should rely on him and only him for everything. Who has to know your whereabouts at all times. I guess it has done me some good also because now I know that people like him really do exist. And there's some background for my next encounter.

Sorry this was a little long-winded! I'm just confused and a little hurt right now and trying to put things into perspective without being bitter or angry. I was going to write about this sweet little girl on the subway but that can wait. And as to not be disappointed there are no pictures, here is one of my classes and I:

L-R: Suzy, Jin-Ho, Andrew, Sue, Jim, Me, Jenny Kim