Culture shock blog post

I think the winter's bitter cold (wind, moisture, snow/precipitation, grey mistiness, and all the mold and dust allergies that come with the mix of it all...) makes me grumpy and irritable. And perhaps being sick every other week doesn't much brighten my outlook on life, so forgive me if my blog posts and comments of late have been in any way judgmental, callous, sardonic, or sarcastic. 

But, in my experience with a background studying (I have a B.A. in Cross-Cultural Studies) and having insight into the effects traveling and living abroad has on a person, I recognize that culture shock may also be taking its course at this point in my experience with China. I have been in China for four months now, including travel up around the eastern, coastal, and some southern regions, but excluding my trips to other Asian locations such as Hong Kong and Korea. (And getting out of China, within the context of similar, yet different, Asian cultures gifted me with new perspectives as well.) 

I am probably just becoming fed up with China, in a growing sense, developing so many pet peeves, by bringing my own cultural lens as a context with me into this culture. Therefore, perhaps I'm not being super understanding, or as forgiving and patient as I could be with this culture that is still somewhat foreign to me. I like to think I am capable of being pretty open-minded to new... things... for a lack of a better word.  

According to my cross-cultural studies, as well as previous awareness of personal "culture shock" episodes, this is indeed about the time at which the culture shock sets in for a foreigner. I know all the "symptoms," having educated many a group of CRCers (Whitworth Costa Rica Center students) in the identification and coping mechanisms involved with culture shock stages. 

At this point in my interactions with China, I've observed just enough of Chinese culture to turn judgmental, and liable to make remarks that I know better than to utter out loud. I catch myself making mental comparisons between my contact and observations of Chinese culture with other cultures, and sometimes regrettably even make condescending remarks about the way the Chinese do things... and even though only remarked to those who journey a similar path as myself--such as my "family" like Kari and Kate who are in the same boat as I am here in China--I still feel ashamed for letting myself be so... well... judgmental. Sometimes we make fun of cultural differences in order to cope and just function by laughing the extreme differences off. 

Kari recently wrote a very well-composed post on her own blog about cultural differences and how we handle our pet peeves while living in a very different culture than what we were raised in. I think her reflections and mature, experienced understanding of a couple specific encounters help the outsider really understand some of our experiences and thought processes-- as to why the Chinese leave doors open; hock lougies, or speak excessively loud on the phone. This by no means is an exhaustive list of the seemingly quizzical things that the Chinese do that have us Westerners in stitches at times (also in pure frustration, misunderstanding, and aggravation at other times!), but it's all a par for the course when living in a foreign culture. I think Kari did a very good job communicating the cross-cultural perspective we have as expats living in China. Please take the time to check out her entertaining post, entitled, "Keeping it Classy, China."