.....LIVING OVERSEAS...

Foreigner

2008-06-01T00:13:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting sharing of an American in Korea. She is there for an English teaching, and this is part of her story...

Knowing that I am going soon to my company for training reminds me of one of the purposes I came all the way out here. To teach English to the youngins' of Korea. If you know me I am the kind of person who doesn't really like to work...I enjoy the slower paced times of life when the schedule you live by is your own. But obviously you really can't get by with out a job in life. So that is why I decided to have a job but somewhere different and exciting (Korea).more

Culture Shock Phase

2008-05-22T20:37:00.000-07:00

According to this blog, perhaps you will pass the three phases in the culture shock:

The Honeymoon Phase

The "Everything is Awful"

The "Everything is OK"
more...

image source: istock photo

Traveled to Taiwan

2008-05-18T17:17:00.000-07:00

Perhaps this is the question that you need to ask before you decide moving to other country:

Will the locals speak your language? I'm not trying to scare you, but perhaps they won't.

And after reading this blog, I know that people are different in understanding the differences. Some are willing to adapt, while others just simply give up.

Culture shock is an interesting phenomenon that doesn't affect everyone the same way. Some just can't understand it when the locals don't speak English. Some can't comprehend why there aren't any English signs anywhere to be found. Why are things done that way, and not that way? Why am I even in that situation? It would never happen in my home country. Questions like these can cause people to get stressed out and want to go back to their own countries. People can get frustrated when faced with change. Many people deal with it their own way, head back home. more

A Norwegian in Australia

2008-05-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

I find this posting very natural and interesting. I post some for you. So, have a look...

1.Where are you from originally, where are you now and what brought you there?

I am from Hamar in Norway. Right now I’m back Brisbane, Australia where I study journalism. I have just been one semester in London, on exchange from the university here. To study journalism in Australia was an idea from a friend, and I thought why not? Life is all about collecting memories and for me its just a big collection of (positive) accidents.

4.Any practical tips for the new expats out there (like me)?

Be positive! Don’t be afraid to take contact with people. Norwegians are weird like that, we are not welcoming and I understand that people find us hard to approach. The easiest is to get to know people thru a shared activity or class, for instance at university, a dance class, a hobby etc. Then you get a few friends that introduce you to new people and it becomes easier to make some friends. It is hard to make friends without having anything in common. You have probably noticed that Norwegians usually do not talk to strangers on the street. more

Tips Dealing with Culture Shock

2008-05-01T20:09:00.000-07:00

The most effective way to combat culture shock is to step back from a given event that has bothered you,
assess it, and search for an appropriate explanation and response. Try the following:

· Observe how others are acting in the same situation

· Describe the situation, what it means to you, and your response to it

· Ask a local resident or someone with extensive experience how they would have handled the situation
and what it means in the host culture

· Plan how you might act in this or similar situations in the future

· Test the new behavior and evaluate how well it works

· Decide how you can apply what you have learned the next time you find yourself in a similar situation .....more

First Three Days in Canberra

2008-04-24T02:41:00.000-07:00

No rice

As Asian people, I always eat rice at least twice a day (lunch and dinner). We never call it as lunch and dinner if we do not eat rice, while here, at the first day, I had no food. My friend asks me to join him going to Canberra Center, but I only can find bread. I thought I am going to die if I have no rice to eat. However, I am glad to find my noodle (Indomie) here.

No friend

I am staying in Toad Hall B312 and can not find any Indonesian. Lucky me, my neighbors are very nice, an Australian and Indian. The Indian guy tells me several things that I need to know, offers help, and show me the nearest groceries. One day he introduces one of Indonesian girl in my block and suddenly I realize many Indonesian there.

to be continued...

pictures are taken from 3 and 4

Stranger in Russia

2008-04-17T15:11:00.001-07:00

A lot of folks know me as Mr. NetBeans - in 1999, I'd been working as a contractor for a bunch of years, had backpacked through Prague and liked it, and found a job ad on monster.com from a tiny little company in the Czech Republic called NetBeans. I'd done some tools work before, had been doing a ton of GUI component development in Delphi, and was looking to do something different. I thought to myself, "I'm never going to hear from these guys," but I sent a resume for the heck of it. Life being stranger than fiction, they hired me. And I found myself working with a fantastic bunch of people with a great product, in a beautiful city. I'd studied Russian in Monterey in college (which I thought would help, and it did, but speaking Russian to people in Prague does not make you popular, as I quickly found out), which helped in learning Czech...

I talk on elevators - Americans have a sort of taboo about talking to strangers on elevators - it's like we're all trapped in this small space, and slightly afraid of each other or something. NetBeans original office in Prague was in an airplane parts factory. Every morning I'd ride the elevator with a bunch of guys going to other offices. And I would get off the elevator on our floor, and there would be a chorus of "Na schledanou" (good bye) from the folks still on the elevator. I didn't know what to make of it, and I asked my ex-girlfriend about it. She said "Well, Tim, they're pointing out that you were rude and didn't say 'Dobrý den' [good day] when you got on!" Light dawns on marble head... Now breaking the habit is the challenge, so I don't weird out people on american elevators!

see the entire article here

Differences are beautiful

2008-04-09T19:00:00.000-07:00

As I live my life in Canberra, the more I realize how different it is from my home. Here, all stores will be closed at 4 pm, while in Jakarta I still can find traditional kiosk open until very late at night, so no need to worry of being starving. Second, Canberra is so quiet, so prepare yourself of finding no one when you walk somewhere. Jakarta is very crowded, you can find people anytime, anywhere. Next, I love the air in Canberra. It smells fresh and very clean since I used to live at Jakarta, polluted city.

Pictures are taken from here & here

Symptoms and How to Minimize it

2008-04-03T20:12:00.000-07:00

When you had a culture shock, you will feel:

Homesickness
Headaches
Distrust of people
......
......

What you can do to minimize it:

Be aware of the symptoms
Exercise; drink and eat well
Make sure you have familiar things around you
......
......more

*photo is taken from free images

My Shocks

2008-04-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

having no one smiling at you?
that's culture shock
seeing people kissing at the library?
that's culture shock
having no rice as your lunch?
that's culture shock

Expat Woman

2008-03-27T20:36:00.000-07:00

Case:
I was born in Asia and went to London at age 23. I studied, worked, lived and met my American husband in London and became the professional trailing spouse. No wait, I became an American citizen first. Well, it’s been 14 years and we have lived in different countries in Asia for the last 10 years. Apart from being accused of wasting away my financial education while I was in Vietnam, I have found meaningful and gainful employment over the years to insulate myself from the frustrations of having useful skills but no job to match my qualifications....

Solution:
You probably know that the feeling of isolation is a very common experience for expats. However it may not take on the same shape or form in each country, which makes it even more difficult to prepare for and deal with. I guess you never would have expected to feel so alone in a country that you are a citizen of, especially seeing as you seem to have lived successfully abroad for many years.

See more in here

Welcoming Myself

2008-03-26T23:25:00.000-07:00

It was 10 July 2006 06:00 am when my flight landing at Sydney Airport. The weather is 6⁰C, Ok, I’m freezing!. I know from beginning that it will be winter, but I did not expected to be this cold, especially in Sydney, since Jakarta will probably reach 27⁰C as the coldest day. For your information, I was wearing a shirt, a sweater, and coat which I thought make be warm. I was following the crowd to the EXIT, hope that I can meet my friends as soon as possible and get some sleep in their house. Unfortunately not, I have to pass the immigration checking, ohmygod, did they have to ask all those questions?, I feel like a prison breaking. Is that all? NO. While I am queuing with two huge luggages, a bloodhound sniffs the luggage. I am afraid of the dog and I have to open my luggage, which means I need to find a key in my messy backpack. Huff, thanks god, I am safe. My friends have waited outside because the process takes about an hour. We went to their house and I fall asleep for 6hours. Yes, jetlag!

*That was not my first time going overseas, but my first time to Australia, ON MY OWN. My final destination is not Sydney, but Canberra and I have no ide how to get there. English is not my second language and the bilateral relationship between Indonesia and Australia is not quite good. I am shock since I had a lot of questions to answer in the immigration while in my country no one asks me a question. I need to declare anything that needed while I am free to bring anything to my country. People may not understand but I feel anxious at the time. It is just SO FUNNY if I am sent back to Indonesia just because I forget to declare my belongings, because I am here for study.

Pictures are taken from 01 and 02