Culture Shock? What do you think of when you hear this phrase? I didn't expect to be writing about culture shock this soon in the Dalian Game. I've been here only three weeks, but I can tell I have started the phases of Culture Shock. According to a five second Wikipedia search, and referencing Ask Jeeves for clarification, there are four phases of culture shock. The honeymoon period, rejection, aggression &isolation, and adjustment & adaption. Within the last three weeks, I feel like I have experienced every single one of these phases. It doesn't sound realistic, but this is me we are talking about. The culture is so drastically different that sometimes I think I experience culture shock every day. Abnormal? Not really. When you live in a country that is the complete opposite of your own, this is to be expected. Some days are extremely difficult and overwhelming. I rather just keep my eyes glued to the blinding glare of my laptop as Netflix loops continuously and my thoughts ruminate of home. I desperately try to explain to my family and friends about my culture shock. While they are sympathetic, I know they really don't understand. So instead of getting frustrated and upset, I came up with a list of ten big culture shocks I regularly experienced. This list isn't me complaining, but offering insight on some of the many challenges I normally encountered. I hope it helps my family and friends better understand my daily adventures.
1. Language Barriers- I really can’t speak or read ANY CHINESE. I am lucky to have great coworkers who know enough to help when they can. They’ll read the dinner menu for me, interpret conversations, and talk to the taxi driver when we go home from outings. I can’t expect them to help me all year though. I won’t lie; not understanding what everyone around is saying can be daunting. What is everyone talking about? I have no idea! While I do try to practice saying what I do know, I sometimes start speaking Spanish by the end of the conversation. What really sucks is not being able to read. It’s frustrating when you don’t understand why a specific door won’t open because you can’t read the sign saying it’s broken. I really have to get on this Mandarin as soon as possible.
2. Air Pollution- Pollution is real. The local weather report even lies about how bad it really is here. The sky has a way of playing hide and seek. You rarely get a chance to see the sun or the stars because it’s usually hidden behind a thick layer of smog. That white haze I see in the sky every day is NOT a big ass cloud. I can admit that I have been slacking on my face mask. It always makes my mouth feel really moist and uncomfortable. As a result of me not wearing it like I need to, I’ve had a sore throat and terrible congestion for a good week now.
3. Squat toilets- While my last post explained my bathroom issues (sorry for all of the details) it continues to be a daily shock. When you use the toilet, you don’t put TP in the toilet but the trashcan. No I am not sure if this applies to doing something other than peeing.
4. Sanitation- Most days, the streets are decently clean in comparison to Buenos Aires. From my experience, I’ve encountered a lot of people who don’t use the same sanitation practices as we do in the states. Often times, people cough without covering their mouths, incessantly pick their nose and habitually chew on their (sometimes black) finger nails. After all of this, they put their hands on everything in sight. These are not just the children I am talking about, but adults. While my school is clean and cleaning products are a thing, that can’t be said everywhere. Mopping for some just includes warm water and nothing else. I will let your imagination take over from here.
5. Public transportation- The picture says it all.** All pictures located at the bottom of this post**
6. Grocery shopping-Grocery stores here in Dalian are gigantic. A Walmart here is about the size of Sam’s club. Some grocery stores have multiple floors and typically hold household appliances, clothes, and other necessities. They are always jam packed with people. I don’t mind the crowd, but being unable to read Chinese means I have no idea what anything says. Often times, I have to make an educated guess and hope it’s what I think it is. There are arrows on the floor directing traffic and I’m unfortunately on the wrong side way too often. The seafood section is the biggest shock of the store. Many grocery stores have sea life swimming and scrummaging about in the tanks. You can buy frogs and catfish alive to take home as pets or make a nice dinner. It’s completely mind blowing to me.
7. Water pretending to be tea- When you go out to eat you can ask for bottle beverages or you can have the restaurants tea. Its equivalent to asking for water in the states, being that it’s free. Often times, the tea is brought to your table and the waitress exclaims what kind of tea it is. When I look it, I swear it’s just hot water instead of “White tea”. It has no color, no odor. Nothing. Maybe that’s me being ignorant or me knowing better.
8. The coldest winter ever- Its Midwest cold here. The wind is serious because we’re a coastal city. I thought I over packed the winter stuff. Nope, I didn’t I actually should have packed some turtle necks and long johns. I was not expecting it to be this cold and it’s only going to get colder.
9. Beijing time- The 13 hour time difference is real. While I have adjusted to the time, I often forget about the time difference at home. This results in me calling home at some crazy hours. Sorry everyone.
10. Last Minute isn’t really last Minute- Being in China you have to be really flexible. Your boss could tell you about a presentation you have to make in front of fifty people two hours before you’re supposed to make it. Your schedule could change at any minute, literally.
While my top ten daily culture shocks are really a struggle, I have learned to honestly just laugh. Yes it is overwhelming, but having a sense of humor makes it a little bit easier.