I received
numerous materials before my departure about the difficult process of adjusting
to a new culture – “this is different, that is really different, you’ll
probably make this mistake, you’ll definitely interpret that wrong . . .” I think it is a combination of my idealist
belief in the power of the universality of humanity (which leads to some
naïveté), and my very un-detail-oriented mind (which leads to a certain lack of
observation), but culture shock was not a eminent concern of mine before I
left, and it remains that way now that I am here. For now, I think the lack of “shock” I have
experienced has most everything to do with the fact that I have been fortunate enough
to travel before, which, besides having given me some idea of what it feels
like to be a foreigner, has also reinforced my belief that US culture is far,
very far, from ideal or superior. I
believe it is clear that this sort of arrogance and lack of exposure, which go
hand in hand, are main contributors to “culture shock.”
Additionally, I
find myself frequently comparing my experience here in Ecuador to the one I had previously in Nepal and India (my longest stint
abroad). In the end, it always seems to come
down to the fact that South Asia was a lot
more extreme. The poverty, the religious
differences, the color schemes, the language barrier, the pollution . . . And
having had Nepal as my first
solo travel, and my first true immersion experience, has made the transition to
Ecuador
much easier than I imagine it would be had I not tried to do something like
this before. I am not shocked by things
that would seem odd or novel were this my first time in a developing
country. Chickens on buses and
indigenous dress and sidewalks with more holes than not and transportation
systems that require vigilance and physical effort and unidentifiable food and
the prominence of bargaining and the constant stares at my white skin – all of
these things seem familiar, I guess, in a way.
Then again, there are many reasons why the
previous statements are presumptuous and naïve.
To begin with, I have only been here one month, and it has been a very
comfortable one at that. Secondly, I
will be here for much longer than I have tried to be anywhere even slightly
different. Even at college on the east
coast I noticed cultural differences that I was happy to leave after only five
months or less there. So I imagine my
one month of comfort in the orientation bubble is not the best indication of
the ease at which I will deal with living abroad for a year.
