Culture Shock
This was my first week in Erfurt, Germany. I can say this experience in just the first week has left me with many thoughts, new experiences, and take aways. "Many first time travelers are surprised to discover that the excitement can wear off and they experience a concept of culture shock (Remland et al, 2015)." Being a sojourner and going through the phases the book describes has been interesting, difficult, and rewarding.
The preparation to come abroad was exhilarating. I had many ideas of what Germany would be like and I was so excited to get going to see new places and meet new people. Which would be considered the arrival or honeymoon stage. Looking at my new surroundings and seeing how beautiful our new little home away from home is made me so happy and excited to get my feet wet in a new culture and city.
The next stage of culture shock, I'm not sure has hit me entirely yet. I have had a couple occurrences that made me feel uncomfortable but it's all a learning experience. These experiences have not made me feel depression as stated in the book, but I can identify with the feelings of confusion and helplessness. The helplessness feeling comes from not being able to understand or speak any German. This is a huge disadvantage and I am lucky I have a cohort with individuals who know the language, but this is a great learning opportunity. However, not knowing the language makes me feel like a burden or inconvenience in someone else's homeland. I would never want to be rude and expect someone to speak my native language in their own country. This has caused some language barriers when I need something at a convenient store or just trying to have a conversation with a stranger. This is where I look forward to entering the stage of recovery. This stage is describe by adopting new practices and developing transitional skills. Which I have started, but I can't wait to feel engrained and learn phrases so that basic conversation can be fluent with the Germans. However, I did have one experience that made me feel embarrassed. I speak very loudly and use colorful language. (Which I need to work on.) But on the public transportation space, nobody talks. Which I did not know and I got yelled at by a woman on the train to be quiet. As you can imagine, I felt terrible and didn't understand why I was being yelled at. Then I spoke with one of the German roommates of one of the students here and he said people don't talk on trains and that it is considered rude. He also talked with Dan and I about language barriers but not to feel like a burden. He explained most people are just fascinated by our way of life and they don't mind helping us. That really reassured me and he is very kind for going out his way to make Dan and I feel comfortable.
Overall, I feel I am working towards the stages of recovery and adaptation. I am hopeful that over these next few weeks, I can adopt and consume more German culture. The experience so far has been fascinating for this Northern New Yorker.
The preparation to come abroad was exhilarating. I had many ideas of what Germany would be like and I was so excited to get going to see new places and meet new people. Which would be considered the arrival or honeymoon stage. Looking at my new surroundings and seeing how beautiful our new little home away from home is made me so happy and excited to get my feet wet in a new culture and city.
The next stage of culture shock, I'm not sure has hit me entirely yet. I have had a couple occurrences that made me feel uncomfortable but it's all a learning experience. These experiences have not made me feel depression as stated in the book, but I can identify with the feelings of confusion and helplessness. The helplessness feeling comes from not being able to understand or speak any German. This is a huge disadvantage and I am lucky I have a cohort with individuals who know the language, but this is a great learning opportunity. However, not knowing the language makes me feel like a burden or inconvenience in someone else's homeland. I would never want to be rude and expect someone to speak my native language in their own country. This has caused some language barriers when I need something at a convenient store or just trying to have a conversation with a stranger. This is where I look forward to entering the stage of recovery. This stage is describe by adopting new practices and developing transitional skills. Which I have started, but I can't wait to feel engrained and learn phrases so that basic conversation can be fluent with the Germans. However, I did have one experience that made me feel embarrassed. I speak very loudly and use colorful language. (Which I need to work on.) But on the public transportation space, nobody talks. Which I did not know and I got yelled at by a woman on the train to be quiet. As you can imagine, I felt terrible and didn't understand why I was being yelled at. Then I spoke with one of the German roommates of one of the students here and he said people don't talk on trains and that it is considered rude. He also talked with Dan and I about language barriers but not to feel like a burden. He explained most people are just fascinated by our way of life and they don't mind helping us. That really reassured me and he is very kind for going out his way to make Dan and I feel comfortable.
Overall, I feel I am working towards the stages of recovery and adaptation. I am hopeful that over these next few weeks, I can adopt and consume more German culture. The experience so far has been fascinating for this Northern New Yorker.
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