The Frau descended on
the United States for a few weeks this Christmas. In this special edition post
that proves Reverse Culture Shock is alive and well, here are some of her
observations.
Things about the
United States that offended her Swissified sensibilities:
People leave their
cars running forever and ever.
 |
| One U.S. strip mall. So many possibilities... |
People have trashcans
that are bigger than some Swiss apartments.
Stores leave their
doors wide open in winter (The Frau personally shut them).
Waitresses and waiters
visit the table way too frequently.
Prices are annoying.
Like paying an amount like $7.72. How uneven and sloppy.
Most towns have little
charm or character.
Chain stores have
taken over everywhere.
You can’t walk to
anything.
People wear pajamas in
public.
The strip malls never
end.
Football is always
front-page news. Despite all the other issues that should be.
There is an obsession
with material things.
The concept of
layaway.
Things about the
United States that she loved:
Americans say „sorry“
all the time, even when they have nothing to be sorry about, like when they get
within one foot of the Frau at a store. (In contrast, today a Swiss man ran his
grocery cart into her at Migros and wasn’t sorry at all. And on Monday, a man
on a Swiss train kicked her by mistake on the train and also said nothing).
Sigh. There appears to be no middle ground.
No cigarette smoke in her
face.
Lots of personal
space.
Movies with no
subtitles in the way.
People that smile a
lot.
Free water.
Free tea refills.
Shopping on Sunday.
Eavesdropping.
Root beer.
Deep dish pizza.
$20 hair cut.
Family close by.
Not feeling like a
foreigner.
Charging a purchase as little as $3.52 on a credit card.
What does your
version of reverse culture shock involve?
11 comments:
Those are two very good lists. I am a Brit in the US, but I relate in many areas to what you've written! :)
I hear you about how restful it is not to be a foreigner. No matter how nice a place is, and Switzerland is very nice, you never quite fit in.
Thanks, Paul. And yes, Hattie, what you said is very true.
Back in the U.S. this fall:
1) Seeing a price tag and knowing that's not really the price because of taxes.
2) Having to be surreptitious when having a bottle of wine with a picnic in a city park.
3) Having someone tell me I was being pretentious because I correctly pronounced a French word. Except he used the French word "pretentieuse"! And pronounced it correctly!
Greetings from down under Chantal. WE've been back home six months and barely notice the cultural cringe issues any more. They are more than replaced by going surfing at five thirty in the morning in the Pacific where the water temp is 26 degrees, by good service and smiling faces, by neighbours who drop by for a cuppa and wild birds that eat out of your hands... oh yeah and free delivery of white goods from your local appliance store.
I miss the natural beauty of Europe, the history, the travel but I have definitely found that love and people are more important than money.
Cheers from the world's happiest country.
Rob
Cigarette smoke seems to fill the air in public areas in Switzerland. It is very annoying.
I had reverse cultural shock even before I left Italy. Things that I don't like when I go there now I already didn't like when I lived there. For instance, the fact that nothing is ever going to happen the way you were told it would.
I think it's already given that in order to counteract with culture shock is to have an effective risk management. Anticipate the changes and be ready with a solution.
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