I've done quite a few homestays in other countries, and this is by far the best homestay experience I've ever had. I've never gotten as close with a homestay family, or felt like a true son in the household. There was nothing I can complain about. The family was welcoming and warm and fun, the food was fantastic, the room was clean, there was no curfew. Fantastic family.
I learned a lot
about Korean culture while staying with my homestay family. Through many of my
interactions with the family, I learned more about Korean family values,
education system, stress from the job market. From my relationships with the
family, I saw a lot of differences (and similarities) in our attitudes about
age, marriage, the parent-child relationships, etc. Working out these
differences while becoming closer was the most valuable experience in terms of
learning more about Korean culture. In addition, with my family we sometimes
took trips to tombs in Gyeonggi-do, local parks, hiking trails, etc. Of course,
we ate a lot of good Korean food both in the house and outside it. Overall, I
felt like I was able to live like a Korean for 4 months.
Completely
satisfied. I think I was a little unclear about the process of applying for a
homestay at the beginning. I remember applying for a specific homestay and then
going through a whole process with Joo Woo where he chose another one for me.
Maybe having that process clarified at the beginning would have been helpful.
But honestly, it turned out amazing since the family that Joo Woo selected was
way better than anything I could have expected.
Very glad that I
chose Homestay Korea. I think you should maybe re-do your website. I know that
there are some foreigners who see homestaykorea.com and worry it might not be a legitimate
homestay company. So if you have the resources or time, making it feel a bit
more modern might help people trust in the resource!