Men! Men? Men.

It is 8:15pm on a Thursday night and I am sipping a Grande, green tea latte from Starbucks at the Beijing airport. That’s riiiiiight! After a long week of studying for mid-terms, I am taking a mini vacation in China for 6 days. I am currently in PEK airport waiting for Winnie to land so that we can meet up with Rebekah and Matt (fellow Pepperdine MBA students). We will explore the Great Wall of China, Forbidden City, KungFu Panda’s, fashion, food and men. (Winnie and I are both single at the moment) ☺

That brings me to my topic this week~ as a cute, young single girl from LA, it’s inevitable that I am attracted to the latest shoes, handbag, fashion, hotspots and the obvious…. MEN. Studying abroad in Korea, I cannot help but compare the men from different continents.

Disclaimer: The following views are stereo-typed from my personal experience. Your views and outlook on men, may be quite different from mine. But as this is Anne’s blog, this comes straight from my personal thoughts. ☺

American boys: Their fabulous. And if you need me to further explain, then clearly you have neither dated men in America, nor have you met someone whose your match. But ladies, if you’re single and moving to SoCal, you got to know the rules. I have been dating Cali boys since the age of 14 and trust me, you need to play by the rules. Interested in playing the game? Want to know the rules?

Ask me.

Korean boys: It’s almost as if I went back to the future to the 1950’s. Remember “Leave it to Beaver?” Exactly that era, where it was normal for boys to pursue girls and never the other way around. It is quite refreshing when a guy knows that he has to be the “guy” and approach the girl and actually work to get our attention. But with my lack of patience, I almost wish I could get this “thing” moving a bit faster. After all, I am only here for 3 more months. And if this certain “K-boy” is ever going to score a date with me, he needs to move a little faster. Why don’t I ask “K-boy” out you ask? Well in Korean culture, if I were to pursue him, I would be labeled “aggressive.” And no Korean boy wants to date an “aggressive” girl. (sigh) So I wait patiently, fully knowing that “K-boy” has a huge crush on me.

European boys: Impressed. Very impressed. To be quite honest, I have never known any FOB European boys. (fresh off the boat) There are a total of 19 exchange students and 14 of them being male and European. All 19 of us took a road trip a few weeks ago to Busan (the San Diego of Korea) and the boys carried all the girls luggage and got all the doors for us. They were literally fighting to be awarded “Gentlemen of the week.” However, a certain Italian boy comes to mind, and I ask, “Are all men from Italy as genuine and romantic as my “I-boy?”” (open ended question)

My "I-boy" started showering me with attention and presenting me with my favorite cookies for the first few weeks. I am now getting flowers on my door once a week. (Yes, I get lots of envious "coos" from the girls at the dorm) And this week during mid-term week, “I-boy” brought me several perfect cups of coffee (and I didn’t even ask) so that I wouldn’t fall asleep. Shall I go on with the sappiness as the list continues???

I’ll stop here as I am sure you get the point. But here’s the thing that totally blows my mind. Men in America play it “cool.” But my “I-boy” does not seem to care that everyone knows of his infatuation with me. His buddies tease him all the time, but he shrugs it off in “I’m manly enough” kind of way. A certain confidence that I have never seen before…  And Korean girls at KAIST seem to drool over the attention I am getting from “I-boy.” As for me? I cannot help but feel intrigued as this is all so new to me. My dating experiences in the past have been very Jay-Z/ Beyonce- quiet, minimal/non-existent PDA, “no comment” kind of relationship. But suddenly, this is beginning to resemble Bennifer where it’s all out there. (remember when Ben Affleck wrote Jennifer Lopez a love letter in Vanity Fair? Pretty out there…)

But again, I am a cute, young single girl from America in Korea enjoying the attention. I am neither committed nor seriously contemplating on forming any deep relationship here. After all, don’t girls just want international attention?