OK, so I know I promised you politics. But North Korean missiles can wait a little while... I have realized that I truly am a rarity in this country. I'm of mixed ethnicities, some including Asian and Hispanic. All-American, mind you, but since I don't look like it (i.e. no blue eyes or blonde hair), I've had much different experiences in Korea than the typical tourist. For example, I've had a new revelation recently: of why the little ol' Korean ladies sometimes give me dirty looks. I was talking to the Canadian foreign teacher that lives in my apartment complex the other day, when he was playing soccer with the neighborhood kids. (Phil is a middle-aged man that's been in Korea for what seems like forever, and is now teaching English at the nearby public school). And he was telling me that there were a couple Filipina girls working at a bar down the street. And that, to the locals here, I don't look exactly American, so they probably think I'm one of those girls. So all the pieces of the puzzle have slowly fallen into place that the Koreans in Munsan (the town I live in) assume I'm a protitute. And so, I've had to explain many times to any Koreans that start up a conversation (including taxi drivers, shopkeepers and the like), that I'm an English teacher. Let's just say it's quite interesting to explain when sometimes the other party only knows how to say "hello" in English... I know white girls here don't get that assumption. Everyone will automatically try their best English with my Anglo counterparts, but more locals assume I speak Korean. That is, until, I give them this look of utter confusion, which I have practiced to perfection in the last few months. So the summary is this: if you are female, unmarried, not a local and non-white (and non-black) in Asia, you are automatically presumed to be in the sex industry. It doesn't matter if you dress more professionally than Korean women, or that you have a BA degree. People tend to judge books by their covers everywhere in the world. It's gonna be an uphill battle, but one day people will learn: NOT ALL AMERICANS ARE WHITE!