The Shock of Culture Shock

31 May, 2004

Hi Friends and Family,

This is the unusual situation in which one of these letters comes from Rob instead of Barb.  Also, I need to start this communication with a disclaimer.  We are not unhappy with our life. Things happen in developing country environments that require patience and maturity to deal with, but our life here overall is not too bad.  We have been here five months, and all in all, things have gone pretty well.  We have our household established.  The kids, Barb and I have made some friends who we spend time with on a social basis.  We are pretty comfortable, and my work is going reasonably well. 

On the other hand, things can get to you, and at times, the annoyances don’t need to be that substantial to hit you the wrong way. It is mostly an accumulation of minor issues that creates a sense of frustration.  This has been the case for the past week or so, and at times it caused one to think “So, if everything is so great, why do I feel so bad?”

The answer is culture shock.  Those who have lived overseas, even in more developed and comfortable places than Tanzania, know what this is. It is a predictable and documented set of phases that one experiences when living outside of his or her native culture.  While we have experienced it before, and we know it is cyclical, there is an emotional impact that is significant.  The books on culture shock will say that first there is a honeymoon period in which everything is cool and exciting. That is followed by a time(usually at between 4 and 6 months of living in the new place) that is frustrating and exasperating as you try to absorb the fact that you are living in a place where people and things don’t function as you have grown to expect them to.  (We have now been here five months) That is where we find ourselves, and the degree of frustration may vary among us, there is a bit of stress about the situations that Barb has described concerning power, water and the Monster vehicle. 

To start with, there always has been a low level ambient stress associated with the fact that the project that I am here to operate is complex and requires a lot of interventions which are costly and a challenge to manage. Unfortunately, the budget that we were able to obtain does not allow for such complex and costly activities. Consequently, since October, I have been struggling with how to shoehorn this massive project (which is the kind of program I want to run) into a sardine can budget.  That continues to be a daily issue at work.  We know we could do a lot of good development work here, but we don’t have sufficient resources. Plus, all of our clients, prospective clients and stakeholders have the perception that we do have a lot of resources, so we constantly being asked to do and support things that we cannot.  (More on the donor dependence that runs deep here at a later time.)

On the other hand, I am enjoying the challenges of starting up a new activity, and living in a weird and interesting place, even if it is only for a year. We have gone on a few safaris, which are truly a deep experience that is almost spiritual in nature.  We have sailed on and snorkeled in the Indian Ocean, and the kids have gotten a different perspective on many things as they have adjusted to life here.  They operate in a truly multicultural environment, and are appreciative of many of the advantages of life that are often taken for granted in the US. So, many of my objectives have been accomplished in moving here, and in those respects, it will  be successful even if we don’t stay here for the two year term we had anticipated.

On the other hand, the effect of the culture shock is bad enough to make one cranky.  Add to that the fact that we have had:

a)      car battery/electrical problems,

b)      plumbing and water pump problems

c)      failure of our generator when we need it to compensate for the power interruption from the electrical utility (I am writing this during a power outage—thank goodness for the battery in the computer)

d)      Barb’s encounter with the local law enforcement.

(please see Barb’s last email for a good description of all these things).  Therefore, at the moment, my enthusiasm for the adventure of life in this place has diminished a little. 

Yesterday, for the first time, I really envisioned going to the airport and getting on a plane to go where things are “normal.”  Our usual routing back to the US would be through Amsterdam, and I can imagine how different it would feel to sit in that airport having a cup of coffee and a sandwich, and have things work much more predictably.  It seems like a dream.

Yet, from our experience in repatriating from our last overseas tour, I know something ironic. Things break down in the US and in Europe.  Service people can be unreliable and surly.  Sometimes the thing that you really want is not available.  And that can be even more maddening after you have lived in a place where some things really are not available, and the circumstances of peoples’ lives give them some justification for being less than perky and service oriented.  When dealing with a poor excuse of a service friendly person that I am dealing with in the US, I am thinking, “this is the US, you don’t have an excuse for this inefficiency or that attitude!!”

Deep down, I know that we can adjust to the minor discomforts of life in a developing country environment.  The next phase of culture shock involves more of an assimilation or acceptance of the circumstances in the new country.  I am looking forward to the time that this phase kicks in.  There are inconveniences, but there are inconveniences everywhere.  It isn’t what happens to you, but how you respond to what happens to you.

So, we will pull out of the culture shock funk, and begin to appreciate this experience soon.  There are good reasons why we chose to come here, and they remain valid. We have friends and family coming over the next few months, and we’re really looking forward to having the chance to reconnect with them and share in some wonderful safari experiences.  (they might even bring a few things that remind us of home.)

Living in DC had its own set of things that were not completely satisfying, and if and when we go back, they will still be there. But for now, let us stew about the power outages, the car repairs that we need to get done, and the fundis that never come when they have promised. We can allow ourselves to be cranky when people don’t tell us the things that we think they should or can’t seem to grasp that we choose to do things in our own way. 

It’s all part of the experience, and we are in it and enjoying it.  I better sign off because the battery of my computer is getting low, and you know the generator battery is dead…

Bye,

Rob

PS:  Just to let you know that these things are true, I thought I would attach my horoscope of yesterday:

Frustration could be the keyword for today. If you've made plans to get together with a close friend or lover, dear Libra, don't count on it happening. Unexpected events might necessitate a postponement. Problems with schedule coordination could have you playing telephone tag. This is also not a good day to work on creative or artistic projects, as the results you want could prove elusive. Best advice: Spend the day reading!