What’s It Like To Have International Friends?
What’s it like to have international friends?
Perhaps you’re not the type of person who uses the Internet that much (except for reading my articles of course!). Or you don’t have the chance to travel often to meet new people abroad. Or you happen to be stuck in a small town with a bunch of locals. If any of these things apply to you, then you may not have any international friends at all.
I myself have found myself throughout my life to be able to have international friends. This has been the case ever since I grew up. I was raised in a large city with a huge international population, so I was exposed to different cultures and ethnic backgrounds from the very beginning. When I was growing up with the Internet, I played a bunch of games online and met a bunch of gamers from different countries and learned what it was like there. With social media such as Instagram, it was easy to meet so many different international friends who followed me and seeing what it was like in their area. But I’d say the biggest and best way I met international friends was through my travels; going to foreign countries and meeting foreign was by far the best experience!
So if you haven’t been exposed to international friends like I have, is it any different from the friends in your local area? That’s what I wanted to share with you today!
In this post, I’ll go over 3 things on what it’s like to have international friends. These are from my experiences and I have lots of interesting stuff to share. Whether you’re looking for international friends or not, I’m sure you’ll find it intriguing.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
It’s nice to learn about their way of life.
I think the coolest thing about meeting new international friends is learning how their culture is, and the way they do things. One of my first international friends is from El Salvador, one of the countries in Latin America. First of all, I never even heard of the place! Secondly, I had no clue how Latin culture worked. But that all changed when I became friends with him. He taught me about his country and how Latin culture is, and wow was it quite different from my Western ways.
Whenever I’m using my social media to view the stories that my international friends post, I am always fascinated whenever they post stuff in their home country. It makes me want to travel to more places and learn and try new experiences that are different from mine.
On the flip side, it’s always fun to teach my non-local friends some stuff that we do here in the West. For example, many people think it’s only cold where I live, but it also gets really hot in the summer as well. Oh and my country is one of the coldest on Earth. When I tell an international friend how cold it gets where I live, they look legitimately scared! Especially true if they’re living in a tropical country.
I also find it really fun to point out the little things in a different country that seem so odd to me. For example, when I went to Europe and noticed that a lot of grocery stores don’t refrigerate their eggs, I was shocked! Yet my European friend made a comment to me like I was an alien. She said something along the lines, “Of course it’s normal to leave eggs out in the open!”
Having international friends is such a great way to keep your mind open and learning new experiences.
What brings people together is great.
Chances are, when you meet international friends, there was something that brought you together to socialize with each other. Whether it’s traveling, a video game that you both play or a hobby that interests you both, different things bring people together from all over the world.
For example, I’m into a certain type of fashion and have met so many friends from the events associated with that hobby. But it was only when I started an Instagram account and met people all over the world who were into the same hobby that really fascinated me. I couldn’t believe how popular this particular hobby is, and how incredibly similar things were. It’s amazing how something can bring people together from all over the world and in my situation, allowed me to meet international friends this way.
The same problems you have.
Of all my years traveling and meeting international friend both online and in-person, I’ve come to learn that we all have similar problems. I’m sure you have dealt with personal issues such as family, friends and dating. Well it’s the exact same thing with international friends; they deal with the same issues. Being from a rich or poor country doesn’t really change it that much. We are all human in the end.
What’s also similar is that for the most part, we all want the same things. We want money (or at least to be financially secure). We want to be loved by our friends and family. The same reason why you post on Instagram, is the exact same reason why someone on the other side of the world is doing the same thing. And some of the issues that we have to deal with in our own countries, are pretty similar to what international friends have to go through as well.
I think when we are young, we may have a rosy version of a place in another part of the world and how perfect it may be there. But in reality, no place is perfect and everywhere have issues and problems. Or you’d think people from a certain country have to be perfect. But when you meet them in real life, they are completely different from what you’d imagine. This is what happens when you meet international friends!
Conclusion
I hope you found this post useful and intriguing. If you don’t have any international friends at the moment, maybe now you’ll want to! If that’s the case, then click here to check out my guide on how to meet international friends.
If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the comments below!
