Culture Shock

Hello

Last night, I went out to an Indian restaurant for dinner with Andrew & Angela, and another American couple they work with. Just the idea of going out to Indian in Japan I found very novel. While we were there, Peter (other man) asked us all "What would you take back to America from Japan?". Answers were interesting- the garbage system* (see below), public baths, urban agriculture, the public transport system, Japanese people's hospitality & consideration for others. I think a couple of them may be going through some form of culture shock at the moment, so I think it was a smart question to ask.

"Let your vision be world embracing"

- Baha'u'llah

Culture Shock Phases

Andrew googled "culture shock" the other night, and was really interested by the different phases within it. I thought people might find them interesting (courtesy of Wikipedia as usual!):

1. Honeymoon Phase- Differences between old and new are seen in a romantic light. (eg love new foods, peoples habits)

2. Negotiation Phase- After about a few weeks, differences between old and new become more apparent, and may cause anxiety. (eg miss food from home, find people's habits annoying)

3. Adjustment Phase - After about 6-12 months, one becomes used to new culture and things become more "normal". Host country no longer feels "new", become concerned with basic living again.

4. Reverse Culture Shock - Produces same results as above, but is often unexpected and therefore can be more difficult than standard culture shock.


Types of "International People"
(Thank you Wikipedia!)

1. Rejectors - Can't integrate into new society and form ghettos. May be perceived as hostile by general community, return to home country seen as escape. Ironically, this type also struggles with re-integration the most when they return home. 60% of expatriates are like this.

2. Adopters - Completely take on host culture and lose original identity. Remain in host country forever. 10% of expatriates are like this.

3. Cosmopolitans - Adapt parts of host culture they like, while retaining aspects of original culture. Able to return home, or relocate elsewhere with few problems. 30% of expatriates are like this.


Prevention/Coping Tips

Scared? Here's some tips I found for the international adventurer.

* Learn about the country & culture before your trip. This way, culture is more familiar and one is more aware of differences & how to deal with them. (eg study the language, reading about country)

* Avoiding offence (this is v. useful in life generally) - Try not to be offended, or offend locals. When I feel offended by what someone says, I take a deep breath, then try to understand the reason why the person said it. 90% of the time it's not intended to be hurtful.

* Being open-minded about culture - Try not to think "Why do they do it like this? In Australia, ...". It's simply different.

* Exercise, meditation, yoga etc are good ways of dealing with stress

* Socialise!

For other tips, see http://edweb.sdsu.edu/people/cGuanipa/cultshok.htm



Sonia



* In Japan, you have to divide your garbage into several categories - combustible, plastic, PET/aluminium, non-combustible, paper & cardboard. If I wasn't so lazy I might appreciate it more!

Guest

Hey

A few nights ago we had a very interesting man visit our house. He came to Takamatsu for Second Hand, to do a lecture at the local university about non-profit organisations. This man went to Iraq as a "human shield" at the start of the Iraq War, and as a result of that experience developed a love for Iraqi culture and its people.

In Japan, like in the West, the image many people receive of Middle-Eastern people is distorted, and our guest said that before he went to Iraq, he too was prejudiced. However, meeting the Iraqi people in person revolutionised his outlook. Apparently half of the Iraqi population is under 18 years old, and our guest really enjoyed the large number of children there.

As a result of this experience, he decided to start a charity which brings Iraqi artists to Japan, in an aim to transform Japanese people's view of Iraqi people, and to give them an opportunity to be exposed to such a different culture. He also started studying Arabic which I found amazing! His global perspective reminded me of this quote:

“The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens”

「地球は一つの国であり、人類はその市民である。」

Tomorrow night the children's class fathers and I finish the 1st workbook of the study circle sequence. I'm very excited. Because I've been involved with so many study circles (the majority of which are in the 1st workbook), I've done many sections of this workbook several times.

I've been particularly repeating parts from the 1st unit, which primarily deals with what kind of qualities we should strive to practise in our lives (eg truthfulness, kindness). I don't think you can repeat this enough though- if we all got to a stage where we could model these qualities more, you'd think the world would be a better place.
Here's a quote I particularly like, from the very first section of the workbook (below).
Every time I look at it, I feel like it keeps all my goals and actions directed towards "the betterment of the world".

"The betterment of the world can be accomplished through pure and goodly deeds, through commendable and seemly conduct."

「世の改善は清らかで立派な行いと、称賛に値する礼儀にかなった行動を通して達成できる。」

The weather's continuing to heat up here. At the moment, its averaging high-20's still, but the humidity makes everything a bit bothersome. It also makes me wonder how I'm going to transport my space-consuming ski jacket home, on the way here I wore it- but wearing a ski jacket when it's over 30 degrees and humid won't be pleasant.

My neighbourhood has been transformed into a land of emerald lakes with the flooding of the rice-fields. It's gorgeous.

Sonia

Ando-san!

Hello

Yesterday I had ICES again, the club for international students at Kagawa University. All the people there are so friendly- I love it.

Today Yuichi asked me to sell a book about local architects in an underground plaza from 1-5.30. It was extremely boring. At least I wasn't alone, there was a guy only a couple of years older than me who I was with, but our conversation didn't get very far. Also very few people came which didn't help, and I had no reading material.

In comes Ando-san, aka miracle-worker. She is such a generous, selfless person- and when she heard that I was selling books, she came to support me. Anyhow, she ended up staying from about 2 till we finished at 5.30, 3 and a half hours talking to the 2 of us and even going to Starbucks and bringing us back drinks from there. I love her.

Tonight me and Ando-san went to karaoke with a friend of mine from ICES called Shinya. One thing I love about Ando-san is that, despite her being slightly older than my mum, her energy and enthusiasm make her really fun to hang out with. I often forget that there is an age difference between us. Shinya also likes 70's music, and both him and Ando-san are really friendly, so even though they'd never met before, we all got along really well.

On Thursday, we had a study circle with friends of Cathy and Ando-san's. They recently began the 3rd workbook of 7 which study circles are based on. Book 3 focuses on children's education and its importance. These women are all mothers and quite a few of them are teachers, so its a topic close to their hearts.

The weather in Takamatsu is gradually heating up. At the moment, the average maximum is in the high 20's. They recently flooded all the rice paddies and planted fresh rice plants, which has brought with it an influx of mosquitoes. Today when I rode my bike to karaoke, I kept getting hit in the face by mosquitoes. They're everywhere. In the first week after the rice paddies being flooded, I made the mistake of going for a walk in a skirt- and my calves each were bitten no less than 10 times.

Summer is supposedly terrible here- over a month of the temperature not dipping below 30 degrees, even at night. Humidity, also is a problem. A maximum of 38 and humid, for weeks, is not my idea of a pleasant experience. A Japanese book I'm reading at the moment said that Japan's summer is worse than that of many places in the Middle East, chiefly because of the humidity.

I can't believe it's only a month and a half until I go home! I love Japan and am going to miss it, but being able to see all my friends and family again makes the idea of leaving Japan more happy than sad. And I'm determined to make an effort to maintain my Japanese (and even perhaps improve it!) after I go back, but with busy uni life whether that'll be possible or not I don't know.

I think reading though is really important- and reading in Japanese makes me appreciate even more the importance of children reading lots of books when young. It is so incredibly good for every aspect of my Japanese (it even helps my spoken Japanese) and for vocabularly learning and retention, that it makes me want to tell every parent read to your kids! I remember the fact that I read a lot as a kid really helping me at school.


Sonia