Moving to Asia
Moving to a foreign
country can be daunting. Most people struggle a bit with
the decision of whether to try it or not. This is normal,
because we instinctively crave environments that make
us feel comfortable. But if you want to discover the inner
Marco Polo, you will need to get over your attachment
to home sweet home.
Now, on with the expat
program. You have decided to move to Asia. What can you
expect in the way of feelings and cultural issues? The
short answer is, a lot. The long answer is too long to
go into, and it depends on where you are going and how
you feel about yourself and your world.
The answer
Upon moving overseas,
you will face four major challenges: your job, the local
culture, the local bureaucracy, and your new friends (probably
other English teachers). Of these, culture is probably
the one least likely to work itself out. And if you don't
get comfortable with the local culture, you will probably
have a lousy time and a big black spot on your life pathway.
Culture shock is a mysterious
process, but it is well-named. When it hits full-blown,
the sufferer may feel on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Sometimes it hits people months or even years after moving.
The best self-treatment
one can engage in is to look at things behaviorally. The
goal is to enjoy the place. So don't behave in ways that
are contrary to this goal, and do behave in ways that
are in harmony with it.
Advice here is best
delivered as tips.
Keep things in perspective
Enjoy the privilege
of comparing the host culture with your own, but try not
to attach value judgements to those comparisons. Sometimes
this will be very difficult. (Why do people over here
drive like they just don't care?) But it is much
better for yourself and others if you only seek the true
reasons behind your observations, rather than to bore
people by saying, back home we do things better.
In the case of poor driving, a combination of problems
with driver training, testing, and law enforcement probably
does cause roads in some countries to be more dangerous
than western countries. But not by much, I'll bet.
Learn the local language
ASAP
Don't panic! It ain't
gonna be so hard. It is absolutely ridiculous how many
English teachers in Asia haven't bothered to learn the
basics of the local language. Perhaps the irony doesn't
strike them.
Your best bet is probably
a Lonely Planet phrasebook. They are designed for hardcore
backpackers to digest in about two weeks. Just get one
and act like a backpacker for a few weeks. Before you
know it the locals will be thumping you on the back saying
yours is the best localese they've ever heard from a new
arrival. This is guaranteed too.
Never, ever fight
This is always true,
but especially when you are new in town. You are living
in a foreign country and couldn't possibly hope to come
out on top of any bad situation should loose lips get
you into one.
If you feel cheated
by your employer in any way, you should seek help from
the appropriate authorities. Find out who that is and
visit. If you feel cheated in any kind of "private
teaching" arrangement, that is probably your bad
luck and you should forget it. Private teaching is technically
illegal in most countries teachers go to, and the authorities
would not likely be warm to your case.
Act like a tourist
Sure, you're here to
work, but that's all the more reason to make sure you
get out and hit the famous tourist sites every weekend.
Places are famous for a reason, and these weekend memories
will fill you up with some local experience that provides
great social currency. Everyone will ask you if you've
been to this place or that anyway. It's much more fun
to be able to say yes.
