W Curve

Read something interesting yesterday. In a wishy washy, flaky book called Culture Shock! by Rex Shelley (the exclamation mark in the title says it all doesn't it?), Shelley comments on psychological state called culture shock. Apparently, for anyone moving to a foreign country, their state of happiness goes through a W curve. First the honeymoon period of being in a new country, new experiences, holiday time. Then it sinks because you realise you cannot speak the language, even ordering coffee or directions to the toilet is a struggle. Next you pick up some words, phrases and begin to acclimatise to the foreign culture before a final epiphany. When you realise that you still haven't scratched the surface, the ground falls away and underneath it all, you don't know what the hell is going on. Only after then you rise and reach a plateau. The W curve takes an estimated 14 months to complete, and 12 months to reach the final trough. They say the worse culture shock is in Japan, were everything looks so familiar (McDonalds, 7 Eleven, Nike, Coke) but is actually so different.

I may have some tough times ahead.