I Spent a Year in South Korea—Here’s My Advice to Other Black Travelers Considering Trips

For Travel + Leisure’s column Traveling As, we’re talking to travelers about what it’s like to explore the world through their unique perspectives. We chatted with travel blogger Sarah Toyin, who identifies as Black and British, about her experiences—both positive and negative—while spending a year teaching in Korea and traveling throughout Asia. Here’s her story…  

I loved airports when I was young—being in one meant another travel adventure was about to begin. Although I was born in London, my family is Nigerian, so we used to go back and visit quite often, and we’d also take trips around Europe. 

When I was in secondary school, we moved to Kent, which wasn’t the most diverse area at the time. I was the only Black girl in my grade, and that’s when I first experienced racism of any kind. At 16, I went to an international boarding school in Ghana, and then I moved back to the U.K. for college. 

These early years shaped how I view travel today. I got to see different people and ways of life, so I’ve learned to adapt to new environments. After college, I worked for two years at my university—but I was looking for another kind of experience, one that allowed me to travel internationally and also have a consistent income. After hearing about teaching abroad, I went online and came across EPIK (English Program in Korea), applied in February of that same year, got accepted, and started in August.

To be honest, I didn’t know much about life in Korea before I moved there. I had a Korean friend at my school in Ghana who introduced me to K-dramas and other pop culture, but I hadn’t even been to Asia. 

So I did my research, including watching YouTube videos. Culturally, South Korea didn’t look like anything I’d experienced before; life seemed so fast-paced, and there were people trying all sorts of foods I’d never seen. What reassured me was seeing some Black people making content about their experiences in South Korea, and I thought if they were there, it’d be OK for me. Still, I joined local Korean classes so I could understand basic words and phrases before I got there.

I lived in Ulsan, one of the largest cities in South Korea. A lot of foreigners are in the city because of the Hyundai shipping dock, but they don’t tend to visit the area where I was staying. I don’t think I met any other foreigners during my time there.

One of the first things I noticed was getting stares from the older generation and really young kids. Once a guy my age came up to me and said, “Yo! Yo! Yo!” in a stereotypical American way. I had to tell him I’m not American, and he seemed really confused that I could be both Black and British. 

Most of my students were amazing. They would come up and give me hugs. But one time, a first or second grader called me “Africa Saram,” which means Africa person. Then, he called me “dwaeji,” which is the Korean word for pig. 

I was taken aback. I had to tell his homeroom teacher. She was also a traveler, who spent some time in Australia, so she empathized and was upset by the behavior. I appreciated that she took the time to explain to him why what he said was not OK. He was so young that it felt like a teaching moment for him. 

I realized later on I was one of the first Black people a lot of these students were meeting. Some would ask questions like, “Why is your palm lighter than the rest of your skin?” I would say, “Why is yours not?” and use that to show them there are many different types of people and skin tones. Hopefully, they’ll carry that on with them into the future.

During my travels around Asia, I would get lots of questions about my hair. It was a running theme because I had braids. In the Philippines, they would ask if it was my real hair and how I styled it. In South Korea, it wasn’t necessarily questions, but more like, “Oh wow, your hair is so cool.” Most curious people who asked questions also touched my hair. 

Sarah at the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple in Busan, South Korea.

Sarah Toyin

Japan was pretty straightforward, but China was the place where I got my picture taken quite often. In South Korea, they would ask before snapping a photo, but in China, they didn’t ask. At first, I just let them take pictures, but after a while, it got to the point where I had to start saying, “No, please.” At one point, I was in Hong Kong at the Causeway Bay beach area with a friend who is white. Some tourists from mainland China approached me and said, “Picture?” I said, “Sure.” But eventually, I had a queue. I did take some pictures. My friend told me to just say “No,” but it was hard. Eventually, I did have to refuse—I wasn’t the tourist attraction.

Once I was on a train in South Korea when an older woman saw me and looked scared. I don’t think I’m scary—I’m 5-foot-1 and small. But she went to the other side of the train. Then, another elderly woman approached me and said, “Yeppeuda,” which means, “You’re very beautiful.” She saw what happened and tried to rectify it, which was nice of her. We had a pleasant little chat. That stuck with me because she didn’t have to get involved.

Truth be told, I experience racism in the U.K. and Europe, too. If I did get stares in South Korea, it was more out of curiosity than maliciousness. I had few experiences that felt intentionally unpleasant. A lot of people may not like being stared at or having someone coming up and touching their hair. I don’t want to say I got used to it, but I understood it was coming from a place of curiosity. When I was able to respond to their questions in Korean, we could have some conversations and that helped. 

I’m not fluent in Korean by any means, but when I was there, I made an effort to at least be able to have basic conversations. Koreans I met were nice about it, so even trying to learn the local language does make a difference.

I don’t think many of the people I spoke to understood how I was British and Black at the same time. Most people initially thought I was American. There are fewer Black Brits than Black Americans, and it seemed like there was a higher American presence in South Korea. And then, of course, when I tried to explain that I’m Nigerian, people didn’t understand. It was interesting, to be honest.

Despite it all, when people ask me if they should visit Asia, I’m say, “Go!” Nine times out of 10, you’re going to have a good experience. You do meet one or two people who may not be the nicest, and it’s responsible to tell other travelers about those encounters as well. My advice is to go online and listen to a variety of stories about traveling in Asia. You will hear about good and bad experiences. As a Black traveler, the only time you truly don’t want to go somewhere is if you feel like you’re going to be harmed. Ultimately, how much negativity you face depends on who you happen to meet. It’s best to go and form your own opinion firsthand.

I loved my time in Asia and would do it again. It was amazing to be able to experience another culture. Of course, there were times when I’d put a hoodie up, put my cap on, and just try to blend in.

I went back to South Korea again recently. This time I was in Seoul, where there are more foreigners, especially in the Itaewon neighborhood. They’re used to tourists, so I didn’t feel like I stuck out as much.

When I came back to the U.K. after teaching, I was looking for kimchi everywhere. Whenever my friends and I would go out, I would say, “Let’s go for Korean barbecue.” I’d even tell people that while our underground train is great and extensive, I knew it could be even better after using Korean transportation.

What I learned about this experience is the world is vast, and there are so many different cultures you can explore. Everyone lives in a unique way, and it’s amazing to learn about a new culture, from its history to its food. It’s all about seeing various ways of life and learning from new types of people.