Let's begin by addressing the elephant in the room. In this article, 'expat minority' refers to foreigners from countries with fewer representatives in Korea. For example my country; Algeria. Coming from a North African country where most migrants move to European countries such as France or Spain, makes us a demographic minority in Korea.

I moved here three years ago and lived in Jeonllanamdo's mini-global hub, Gwangju for a year. I refer to it as such because it has earned that title for good reason.

First, during my time at Chonnam National University (and to my knowledge) I was the only Algerian attending it. Did I ever feel lonely or isolated because of that? No. Did I ever miss talking in my native tongue or crave Algerian food? Yes. Luckily, I was quite active during my Korean language training year which is why I crossed the Gwangju International Center or GIC.

"GIC is a non-profit organization and the first international center to be established in Korea. It serves as a place for local and international residents in the Gwangju and Jeollanam-do area to share and exchange culture and communication. It also strives to raise the international status of Gwangju as a city of inclusivity, human rights, and culture by promoting mutual cultural understanding and revitalizing cultural exchanges."

I joined GIC's events as a participant, a volunteer and a staff so my scope of understanding of their work expanded over time. My first activity with them was during the GIC Day where I gave an Algerian cooking class to Koreans. It was a one of a kind experience and my first interaction with the Korean community outside of campus walls which made it more special and somehow made my future interactions with other Koreans, less daunting. I was even contacted a few weeks later by the coordinator because one of the participants asked for the recipe to make for their family. Now, to me at least, that's what cultural exchange is all about.

The longer I lived in Korea, the more I found myself not only learning about Korea but sharing about Algeria too. At some point, it became clear that I must leave a good impression on people as they had never met an Algerian before and the chances of running into another in Korea, were low. Soon enough, GIC was recruiting for the Gwangju Together Day as they do every may. Expatriates are given a stipend and encouraged to share their cultures in whichever way they choose. Since food is a huge part of my heritage, I decided to share three dishes from Algeria. Shoutout to Meriem from Senegal and Fatima from Jordan who helped me operate the booth. It was a hot, humid summer day on the Jeonlla province and I couldn't have done it without them.

As my language training year came to an end, I left Gwangju and moved to another city. Fortunately, I got to have one last hurrah with the GIC as a teacher for their Global Cultural Classes and as a volunteer during the Gwangju International Community Week.

My time spent with the GIC was a blissful one and I felt I integrated into the Gwangju community with ease, thanks to them.