Culture shocked!
My friends and i were talking about how it was when we first left the Philippines for another country… to finally step foot in America. For most of us it was the US, others went to England, the UAE, or Hongkong. We felt euphoric, excited, giddy at times, and pleased by everything we saw and experienced. We mised our family terribly and yet we can’t wait to “taste” the new place - food, customs, people, language. Everything was new.
And then, crisis. Language barriers. Feelings of inadequacy, intimidation, incompetence. Inferiority. Impatience. Anger. Sadness. Loneliness. The winters are too cold and snow isn’t as the postcards make it to be. Once the euphoria subsided and having to adjust to the culture set in, we just all wanted to go home to familiarity.
Some months later, having met new friends and learning the ropes around town, there was now a sense of belonging. Well, not quite yet, but we’re not too lost anymore. We begin (or at least try to) speak with the accent - “wassup!”, “hav’ a good day”, “how ‘ya doin”… Not bad for a promdi (pinoy slang for ‘from the province’). We’re now frequenting the malls and buying brands that previously only our ’stateside’ relatives enjoyed. Some of us bought cars and new tech-toys. We still eat rice everyday, but our tastebuds have acquainted itself with more than six brands of burgers… and yeah, no one calls it ‘hamburger’ anymore.
A year or two later, we get to back to the Philippines and yay! Euphoria once again. But wait, it’s too humid and sticky, dusty and dirty. There’s no warm shower, and no A/C. The South Super Highway lanes are too narrow and drivers too chaotic, and we’re going too slow! Jollibee hamburger doesn’t taste as delicious as we remembered it to be. Our friends went on without us, their jokes don’t appeal as much anymore, and once again we’re adjusting. Things are just no longer the same. And somehow, when we get back to that once-foreign land, we’re actually relieved.
This see-sawing? It’s called culture shock. And I’ll share more about this in the days to come.
Tags: adjustment, culture shock, immigrant
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POSTED IN: General: Philippine Culture, Personal Experiences
August 26th, 2006 at 10:54 am
You’ve hit the nail on the head. I can totally relate. But instead of going back after a couple of years, I went back after twenty-two years! I always tell people: the Philippines has changed a lot, but many things have stayed the same as well.