Cultural shocks

There is no such thing as culture shock going from Mexico to any other western type country, wait until you go to Japan and don’t find a proper “throne” to put your butt cheeks on while you pee that, my friends, is a culture shock.  

I will never forget the first thing I was told in my very first encounter with an Australian by myself: “Mexico? Breaking Bad!” Instant reaction to that: “That’s in New Mexico… USA.” Of course he tried to be witty about it: “Yeah, but that happens in Mexico too, right?” Well, I can’t blame foreigners for not knowing crap about Mexico because honestly, not even we know what the hell is going on in our very own country. 

Every single Mexican paisano that has had the opportunity to go abroad, knows the typical stereotypes we all face out there. I was asked  “where’s your sombrero?” as I unpacked all my stuff in my new room; but it’s not all so bad, I could not get tired of listening to people’s stories about the amazing views, beaches and encounters they had had while visiting Mexico because despite it all, let’s face it, it is pretty great. Nevertheless there are a couple things people should know about Mexico, let’s just call it general knowledge guys, it doesn’t hurt to know that stuff.

I am not going to lie though, there is something about going abroad that does feel kind of strange every single time, it is a mix between excitement and fear when you're headed into the unknown. You get on that plane and after some hours you get off on a country with a language so different from yours that you just think to yourself "what in the world am I doing here?" as you follow people out of the plane because of course, you don't understand where to pick up your luggage. 

Because of my dad being a big planning freak, I usually get everything before I go somewhere, hotels, make sure there’s metro to move around and get to know three cents about a city before I get there. That is so impossible to do you don’t ever wrap your mind around it until you are actually there. It so does happen that you forgot some minor details and realise it is 23:30, you just arrived, you didn’t change currencies, phone is half dead, wifi is crap and with three bags on you the airport’s floor is looking pretty comfortable.

This is what I am talking about, this was happening when I arrived at Narita airport and I just thought to myself “my dad was right about this; of course he can NEVER know that I am thinking this so I have to pull everything I have on me together and get my butt to that hostel because I have an 8 am Shinkansen to take to Hiroshima." 

That kind of life experience cannot be got anywhere or any other way. Culture shock arrives later though, when you finally arrive as tired as you can be to that hostel, open your room’s door and voilà, there’s no bed. A flat mat with a flat pillow and a couple of blankets are your most desired bed at your most tired moment.

To really get an idea of what I believe cultural shock is, I had to wander off a few times. I have met people that get so homesick and depressed, they stop enjoying themselves and their vacations. There are some others that don’t get to realise the whole wonder of the place they’re in; I don’t really get this last type of people. Coming back from a semester abroad in Australia I could not have been a more different person than the girl who had left six months earlier, everything is different when you get back home, even though it has actually stayed the same; you just have a very different set of eyes to look around and percieve it. On the other hand, I have talked to people that say they haven’t changed, everything is the same and they couldn’t wait to get back. That is an unknown type of cultural shock where people just don’t stop to see where they are and appreciate it, grow with it and learn, they just get stuck thinking about home and everything they’re missing out on instead of living on that moment right then and there. 

Embrace it, everything. Wearing thongs to school because it’s hot (flip flops people, not underwear), eating things made out of yeast because straya, or maybe something with a name you can’t even pronounce because the Japanese love those weird names on their food. There is nothing more exciting than getting to know a different culture so different from what you are used to, getting out of your comfort zone and getting acquainted with change and new people bringing a different perspective to your world. Make the best out of that culture shock.