Hmmmm, I guess by all the post-editing, Science realized that pharmacy (actually the internet) makes it a small world. I didn't read Science original post, so my post is based on other people's responses to his (her?) post.
Most people fear the unknown, but the mature person will recognize that and be willing to learn about the unknown. I was raised in a pretty uniform & UN-diverse community, and I had a lot of preconceptions about different people (mostly based on what I had seen on TV, remember this was pre-internet.) But, I did know that everyone in my class was human, just like I was human, and while I was nervous when I first started interacting with different people, its really not that hard when you just treat them like a normal human. And my best friends turned out to be people I never would have guessed, people who were raised quite culturally different from myself. In today's world, its even easier, since via the internet, its easy to have interactions with culturally different people from all over the world, even if one is living in a uniform community.
Science, not sure if you are serious about taking a year off, but either way, don't fear people who are different. It's OK to be nervous, it's not OK to think that somehow you are too superior to interact with other people. So, you see a group of students who are talking in another language--forget that, just think how you would approach any group, and do the same. Just go up and ask them what they thought about such and such class or lab or teacher, or if they are planning to pledge a fraternity and which one, or if they are interested in setting up a study session, etc. It is never too late to broaden your horizens and work at making new friends.