Dating and relationships can be complicated, but dating someone from a different cultural background can make things even more hectic. There are a lot of challenges that come with dating someone from a different background – for starters, the differences in morals, beliefs, and values. Although there are challenges, there are plenty of things that make dating someone from a different background a beautiful thing.
1. Food
If you are someone like myself who loves food and loves to try new things, you will definitely appreciate the different worldly cuisines. I remember when my ex-boyfriend’s mom made saltfish and dumplings and thinking to myself, “What in the world is this?!” I was very hesitant to eat it, but it was my first time meeting her and out of respect for his mom I tried it. Turns out, it was really good! Now I crave it every once in a while.
2. Learning New Languages & Dialects
With different cultures comes different languages, or if you are dating someone from a different culture but the official language is English, you can learn the different dialects that are used. Along with learning a new language, it gives you the opportunity to be able to express your love for each other in a different language. My ex-boyfriend was from the U.S Virgin Islands so luckily for me, he spoke English, but some of his dialect was hard to understand. Being the open minded person I am, I was able to learn new terms to express my feelings for him, such as “Me love you long time” or “I love you bad bad.”
3. Travel
Many people love traveling and would not pass it if the opportunity came up. For most, when the relationship is getting pretty serious, the topic of being introduced to your significant other’s family members come up and usually their family members are still living in that country where their culture originates from. You can take the full advantage of traveling to a new country to get a first hand experience on that culture (along with a nice vacation). The first time I visited St. Thomas to meet my ex-boyfriend’s family members, I was a little scared (like most people who are scared to meet their boyfriend/girlfriend’s parents), but I do not regret the decision at all. I was able to stay at his house instead of a hotel, I was able to eat free food, and I was able to see parts of the island that most tourist do not get to see when they visit.
4. Learning Life Lessons
Unfortunately, we grow up with misconceptions and misrepresentations of different cultures in the world. Dating someone from a different culture, you get to learn about the culture from someone who actually experienced it. You’ll also find out that you have some commonalities, which can bring two people closer in a relationship. Growing up, I always thought that people from the U.S. Virgin Islands were not considered to be West Indian because it was U.S. territory, and my ex thought that since I was from New York City, my life was like and episode of Law & Order: SUV. After many long talks and explanations, we both realized that many of our thoughts were wrong.
5. Respect
The most important aspect of a relationship is respect. After getting the chance to eat the foods from his island, visiting St. Thomas, and getting quick history lessons about his home, I was able to gain a whole new respect for him.
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