Culture Shock
March 28th, 2008
When I first came to America, I was expecting a culture shock, but I wasn’t culturally shocked. Being here now in an Arabian sand, for the first time I am experiencing a culture that is realistically backwards to what I’ve been used to. I can stand the heat, so it’s not the desert heat at all. It’s the restrictive nature of an Islamic culture that I found inadequate in my vacation.
I will list the things that I think are unadaptable for my lifestyle:
- Paranoia on public display and action.
- Halal
- Fridays - not a good day to go for lunch because you’ll starve. Restaurants and malls open after 1PM on Fridays after the prayer. Sabbath is strictly adhered to.
- Web censorship.
- Annoying TV programs.
- If you’ve been to the likes of Jamaica Avenue in Queens, New York, that’s how the people in the city center behave - without the gang activities.
Regardless of the shock, I still enjoyed my stroll with Mai and friends later this afternoon. We ate in a Filipino restaurant, although I only had a couple of spoonfuls because I already had lunch ahead of them. Needless to say, the Coca Cola Coke that I drank did not taste like one. It tasted like brown sugar was added in it. Very, very weird! Afterwards, we went to a gold souk to look at jewelry for her friends who are getting married - and we ended buying a pair of rings for us. Before I go any further, I’m not getting married…yet. Not in this place! I’ll be sporting a bling when I get back and this is for the first time because I have never worn a jewelry in my entire life.
Afterwards, we all went our separate ways. I went back alone to my hotel room and slept under the serenade of Damien Rice. Obviously, I did not sleep well because apart from a culture shock, I experienced jet lag for the first time. I am writing this entry at midnight. While we’re on the nocturnal subject, life here happens at night. I don’t see this many cars until early morning roaming the streets - not even in the City That Never Sleeps. I’m not brave enough to go outside and take a snapshot of the busy streets, but I soon will.
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